An extensive Edwardian 5-piece silver mounted tortoiseshell desk set by J.C. Vickery

An extensive Edwardian 5-piece silver mounted tortoiseshell desk set by J.C. Vickery, comprising a stationery box, a pen tray with inkwell, a blotter with photo frame, a barometer and an 8-day clock set into a velvet lined case, all of rectangular form apart from the curved, hinged cover of the stationery box and the serpentine rectangular base with an outswept back of the pen tray, the three largest items applied with four entwined initials in silver, all with applied wavy silver edging, the red silk lined box stamped in gilt J.C. Vickery, 179,181,183 Regent St. W.  Locks stamped ‘H&C L, Secure Lever’, silver assay marks for Willliam Comyns, London, 1909.  English.

Footnotes: John Collard Vickery acquired 183, Regent Street, in around 1890 and expanded rapidly into 179 and 181 within a year.  He specialised in gold, silver, jewellery, dressing cases and fitted travelling bags, watches and clocks.  He held numerous Royal warrants for both British and European royalty.

William Comyns established his silversmith’s business in Soho in 1859.  With his sons, Charles and Richard Harling Comyns, who joined him in 1885, the firm gained a reputation for exceptional attention to detail and intricate designs.  They supplied the world’s finest retailers including: Tiffany & Co, The Goldsmiths and Silversmiths Company and firms such as J.C. Vickery, Henry Lewis and Howell & James of London.

A CITES licence will be supplied for any item being exported from the UK.