Object Description
A truly magnificent Regency period silver tea urn crafted by the hand of the master silversmith Paul Storr. Every detail is executed with the utmost skill and precision; the cast, ornamental mounts are particularly fine. The plain fluted body sits on a substantial square base with lion’s-paw feet and four absolutely stunning dolphins with upward curling tails. The spigot, hand chased with fish scale, terminates in a dolphin spout with a folding tap in the form of a flower bud. The fixed handle incorporates acanthus ornament and a large conch shell to either side. To the front is a large marital coat of arms for the Colgrave family within an expansive cartouche. Without question this is a most impressive example of Paul Storr’s undeniable genius as a silversmith.
The burner below has a detachable oil reservoir with bayonet fitting and a separate wick and flame snuffer.
Weight 6,166g, 198.2 troy oz.
Height to top of handle 41.5cm, 16.3ins.
London 1810.
Maker Paul Storr.
Sterling silver.
To find a work of such grand size and design by Storr is exceptional
Marks. Stamped underneath the body and side of lower base rim with a full set of English silver hallmarks. The lid has the lion, duty, and maker’s marks. The burner is unmarked. There is a manufacturer’s number 567.
Arms. The samovar is engraved with the impaled, marital arms of Major William Manby (24 Feb 1788 – 27 May 1868) and his wife Catherine Anne Sarah, eldest daughter of General Sir John Fraser GCH, Col. of the Royal York Rangers – probably in celebration of their marriage on 12 June 1810. Major Manby adopted the name and arms of Colgrave in pursuance of the will of his great-uncle William (who died without issue in 1810), brother of Anne Colgrave (b. 1740) who had married his grandfather, Thomas Manby, in 1761. William’s quartered arms, on the dexter side (left, as viewed), reflect this fact – the Colgrave arms occupying the 1st and 4th quarters with Manby 2nd and 3rd.
Below the arms, the Colgrave motto “Fidei Constans” means “Steadfast in Faith”. Above the arms, the engraved crests are both those of Manby: – Dexter – An arm couped at the elbow erect, vested per pale crenelée Or and Argent, holding in the gauntlet a sword pommelled of the first (with the Manby motto Pro Patria Mori above). Sinister – A head affrontée couped at the shoulders Proper habited Gules collar Or, on the head a plain cap Azure band Or.
Maker: Paul Storr
Paul Storr (28 October 1770 – 18 March 1844 ), was one of the most talented silversmiths of the late Georgian period. Today his legacy of exceptionally well crafted silver can be found worldwide in museums and private collections.
Son of Thomas Storr, a silver chaser, apprenticed 1785 to Andrew Fogelberg. First mark, as plateworker, in partnership with William Frisbee 1792. Second mark alone 1793. 3rd mark 1793. 4th mark 1794. 5th mark 1799. Subsequent 6th – 12th marks entered 1807-1834.
By the beginning of the nineteenth century, established as one of London’s top silversmiths, he was producing commissions for Royalty. In 1801 he married Elizabeth Susanna Beyer with whom he was to have ten children. In 1807 Paul Storr entered into a working relationship with Philip Rundell and by 1811 was a partner, and managing the workshops for Rundell, Bridge & Rundell. During this period he kept his own marks and separate workshop, however Rundell, Bridge & Rundell were appointed Goldsmith in Ordinary to George III in 1804, and through them his reputation as a master silversmith grew.
His talents lay in being able to transform ideas and designs from Rundell, Bridge & Rundell’s designers, William Theed II and later John Flaxman II. Rundell, Bridge & Rundell’s reputation grew due to the subsequent patronage of the Prince Regent (later George IV). Storr left RUNDELL, BRIDGE & RUNDELL in 1819 and went into partnership with John Mortimer, the assistant of a retiring retail goldsmith and jeweller, WILLIAM GRAY, of 13 New Bond Street. The firm was renamed STORR & MORTIMER and Storr concentrated on the manufacture of goods for Mortimer to sell in the shop at 13 New Bond Street. Storr and Mortimer, now manufacturing and retail goldsmiths, jewellers and silversmiths with an influential clientele, moved to 156, New Bond Street, in 1838. Storr retired to Tooting in 1839 and died in 1844.
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