Antique silver — the most interesting small collectibles in London

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A George III wine funnel (with muslin ring) in original red leather case made in London in 1794 by John Mince (also marked on the upper section), crested with a horse's head within a chain.

Price: £1495.00

A cast wine label with integral crest engraved for HOCK, by Isaac Cookson of Newcastle (d. 1754), crested for FENWICK .
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This label is described as follows in Wine Labels 1730-2003 (2004)- p. 224:
"Mid-eighteenth century cast designs are rare [in Newcastle], but not unknown. Isaac Cookson made a version of the two putti design (see fig. 744 HOCK by Isaac Cookson circa 1745) incorporating, top centre, a crest of a phoenix in flames , 'murally gorged'. This is the crest of the Fenwick family , which had several branches in the surrounding counties of Northumberland and Durham. As with all armorial labels, these labels would have to have been made to a private commission and were probably in a set of six".

This label was exhbited at the Wine Label Circle in 2003 while the BURGUNDY from the set is mentioned in the Society's Journal in 1954, the CLARET in 1957. PORT, CHAMPAGNE and another (unspecified) were referred to in 1976.

A George IV Britannia standard wine label with threaded border engraved for MADEIRA, by George Knight London 1825 .
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A Britannia standard Sherry label of the same year by the same maker, but with canted corners rather than rounded ends, is referred to in Wine Labels 1730-2003 on page 135. At the time of publication that label (along with a sauce label by William Knight of 1831) were the only recorded examples of a pre Victorian Britannia standard wine label . The Sherry label is in a private collection and once formed part of the collections of Sir Thomas Barlow and later that of Tony Cowdry.

A Victorian wine label in the form of a silver barrel hoop (36cm in diameter) with a space for a card insert made in London in 1883 by John Mappin.

Price: £750.00

A William IV wine label embossed with agriculural motifs and the word 'Free' stamped twice forming a motto (all of which relate to the Free Trade movement) and pierced for BUCELLAS made c. 1835 and stamped Mordan on the reverse for Sampson Mordan and Company.

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The Free Trade Movement formed the main opposition to the controversial Corn laws enacted by British Governments that imposied tariffs on imported cereals and staple foods from 1815 onwards before being repealed in 1846. These laws protected the agricultural land owners but were unpopular with an increasingly urban population, as well as many others. In 1846 Conservative Prime Minister Sir Robert Peel managed to repeal the Corn laws, with help from the Whig opposition, but in doing so caused a split in his own party.

Bucellas is a Portuguese wine region located south of the Arruda Valley. The majority of the wine produced was white and the Duke of Wellington, having taken a liking to it during the Peninsular War, did much to popularise it.

A George IV rectangular wine label, with canted corners and a threaded border, engraved for SHERRY by John Townsend of the Cape of Good Hope (active 1824-1846) circa 1830.
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Stephen Welz comments in his Cape Silver (1976) comments that 'Cape silver wine labels are rare' and Wine Labels 1730-2003 (2004) continues that the vast majority of labels were made by British silversmiths in the Cape and that 'the demand for wine labels was apparently never very great'.

John Townsend arrived in the Cape of Good Hope in 1824 and is recorded as a goldsmith and jeweller at a number of addresses between 1824 and 1846.

A George IV wine label decorated with bacchic revellers pierced for BOURGONE made in London in 1824 by John Reily.

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Pages 74 to 78 of Wine labels 1730-2003 edited by John Salter (2004) describe this model and figure 287 illustrates an example of a similar model made in 1821 by George Pearson. This label carries an alternative spelling of Burgundy.

A George III scroll shaped wine label with pierced decoration above and below engraved for PORT made in London circa 1780 by Hester Bateman (overstruck by Thomas Daniell).

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Figure 501 of Wine Labels 1730-2003 (2004) shows a label of this design for PORT by Hester Bateman. Her maker's mark appears on this example having been overstruck by that of Thomas Daniell.

A pair of William IV hump top wine labels with feather-edge borders in graduated sizes both pierced for MADEIRA made in London in 1835 by Charles Reily and George Storer, crested with a sphinx passant.

Price: £565.00

A George III corkscrew with mother-of-pearl handle and bright-cut decoration made by Joseph Wilmore of Birmingham, circa 1800.

Price: £525.00

Adjacent to the maker's mark on the sleeve of this corkscrew are marks that have been overstruck by Joseph Wilmore. These are not clear but they do not look like English marks. Dutch corkscrews with a very similar handle have been recorded- giving the possibility that Wilmore imported objects and applied his own maker's mark to them (similar examples with the mark of Samuel Pemberton but no accompanying marks).

A pair of George III sauce labels with shaped gadrooned borders pierced for Cayenne and Anchovy made in London in 1816 by Thomas and James Phipps

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A George III escutcheon-shaped wine label for CLARET, by Samuel Teare of Dublin circa 1755, initialled {BE}
Price: £495.00

A wine label for CALCAVELLA of similar shape and threaded border by this maker is in the collection of the National Museum of Ireland and is illustrated on page 129 of 500 years of Irish silver by Ida Delamer and Conor O'Brien (2005) as figure 23.23.

A George IV rectangular wine label with canted corners and a threaded border engraved for SETGES made in London in 1821 by W?.

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Setges is a wine growing area described by Penzer as lying "on the coast 18 miles S.W. of Barcelona and produces a good Malvasia or Malmsey. It is pale and clear, but acquires colour with age.". It is an unusual name to find on a wine label and only occurs four times in the Wine Label Circle Journal only since 1952.

A set of four Victorian wine labels with threaded borders pierced for CURACOA, MARASCHINO, CHARTREUSE and CHERRY BRANDY made in London in 1877 by Thomas Johnson.

Price: £495.00

A Victorian shaped rectangular wine label with Feather-edged border engraved for MADEIRA, by Rawlings and Summers London 1854 , crested for the Goldsmiths' Company. .
Price: £475.00

The Goldsmiths' Company of London received its Royal charter in 1327, making it the 5th Livery Company to be established. It oversees the hallmarking (a term derived from the marks being struck at Goldsmiths' Hall) of all items of precious metal marked in London.

The first labels of this design were commissioned by the Company from Margaret Binley in around 1770 and they continued to commission very similar labels until 1854. This label was one of six recorded in the catalogue of the Company silver (privately published in 1926) bought from Rawlings and Summers in 1854 (all for MADEIRA). In 1970 the Goldsmiths' Company sold 46 of the 96 labels they had purchased.

A George III rectangular wine label with oval ends and threaded borders engraved for CALEDONIA made in London in 1805 by Elizabeth Morley.

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The name CALEDONIA was added to the list of previously unrecorded names of wines and spirits by the Wine Label Circle in 1958. However no definitive information has been published as to what the decanter would have contained. The most likely explanation appears to be that it is an alternative name for whisky (perhaps to confuse the servants). The Edradour distillery in Pitlochry now markets a Caledonia range but was only founded in 1825 and there is no apparent evidence that the name Caledonia was used there in the nineteenth century.

However there is a possible alternative- that it referred to wine brought back on the East India Company ship the Calendonia which was launched in 1795 in Calcutta and made three trips from India to Britain in 1796-1797, 1800 and 1801-1802. On the last trip the refitting costs were £5540 10s but unfortunately on 29th July 1803, when trading along her native coast, the Caledonia caught fire and exploded leading to 86 fatalities (of the 157 people onboard) including the First, Second and Third officers.

A George II escutcheon shaped wine label engraved for PORT made in Newcastle c. 1750 by Isaac Cookson (d. 1754).
Price: £450.00

A George III impressed wine label for EAU D'OR made in Birmingham in 1814 by Joseph Willmore.

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EAU D'OR is a liqueur made in Dantzig, also called Goldwasser, first recorded in 1598. It is a clear herb-flavoured liqueur with a perfume of aniseed and caraway and has flakes of 22 or 23 carat gold suspended in it. Gold is non-toxic to humans and passes through the digestive tract unchanged. Eau D'Or is used to flavour a traditional Souffle Rothschild.

In 1865 Eau D'Or appeared on the cellar list of Charles Dickens. The perfume Eau D'Or was launched in 1994.

A crescent wine label engraved for PORT, Chester circa 1780 by Joseph Walley of Liverpool.
Price: £425.00

A George III silver-gilt wine label with notches beneath (for identification by the blind) engraved for PORT made in London in 1804 by John Reily.

Price: £395.00

On page 191 of Wine Labels 1730-2003: A Worldwide History it is commented that: "Intriguing narrow rectangular labels exist with eyelets above and coded tassels below, presumably for fingering by blind persons. Perhaps the blind could distinguish easily between sweet and dry sherry using this method. They bear Thomas Heming's unregistered mark (Grimwade 3828) in use from c.1760 to c. 1782". This label would seem to have been made to enlarge the set.

A George II crescent shaped wine label engraved for PORT made in Thomas Hyde of London circa 1755 , initialled {AP}.

Price: £395.00

A Victorian stamp shaped wine label with a threaded border engraved Ms (perhaps for Marsalas, Malmsey or Medes) made in Exeter in 1854 by James Williams.

Price: £395.00

Research by members of the Wine Label Circle published in Wine Labels 1730-2003 (2004) shows that Exeter assay office only assayed 14 wine labels in the 1850s and Josiah Williams and Company assayed 33 labels in total. The family were the most prominent users of the assay office and James was admitted to the Exeter Goldsmiths' Company in 1857 and served as Warden in 1861, 1862, 1865 and 1868. Josiah Williams was admitted in 1869 and was Warden in 1870, 1873 and 1880.

This Ms label could relate to several possible wines to go with this name are M[arsala]s, M[alm]s [ey] or M[ede]s all of which are recorded on the list of wines noted by the Wine Label Circle.

A George III rectangular wine label with wrigglework border engraved for RUM made in York circa 1790 by Richard Clarke.

Price: £395.00

A George III escutcheon shaped wine label with flat chased decoration engraved for SHERRY, made in Dublin between 1809 and 1820 by John Townsend (retailed by [Matthew] West).
Price: £375.00

Douglas Bennett, in his two books on Irish silver (1972 and 1984), records three retailer's marks for the firm of Matthew West (M W, M. West, M. West beneath a crown) but not the one found on this wine label.

A George II escutcheon shaped wine label engraved for WHITE WINE made in London circa 1755 by Sandilands Drinkwater, initialled {SF}.
Price: £365.00

A Victorian wine label stamped with cherubs and pierced for PORT made in London in 1839 by Sampson Mordan and Company (also stamped with their retailers mark).

Price: £350.00

On page 116 of Wine labels 1730-2003 (published in 2004) it is noted that 'Sampson Mordan produced some of the most finely stamped labels of all'.

A pair of George III sauce labels with rounded ends engraved for ANCHOVY and SOY, made in London circa 1800 by John Rich.
Price: £350.00

An Elizabeth II Britannia standard wine label made for the Wine Label Circle with five removable strips engraved the names of different wines- PORT, BUAL, MADEIRA, SHERRY and MALMSEY (all part marked) made in London in 1967 by John A. Donald numbered 84.

Price: £345.00

At the Annual General meeting of the Wine Label Circle on 29th September 1967 the announcement was made of the commission of a commemorative wine label as the Circle, founded in 1952, had reached 100 members. The resulting label, with an illustration was reported on page 97 of the Journal in Volume 4 number 5. This states that 112 labels were made and that members could commission one blank strip to fit into the label. This example is unusual in having 5 strips with different wine names.

A George III silver wine label engaved for CLARET made in Sheffield in 1785 by Richard Morton.

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A George III scroll shaped wine label with integral cartouche and feather-edge borders engraved for MOUNTAIN made in London circa 1780 by Hester Bateman, crested with a dragon's head between wings all out of a coronet.

Price: £345.00

A Victorian Vine Leaf shaped wine label pierced for BEER made in Birmingham in 1847 by Yapp and Woodward.

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A George III rectangular wine label with canted corners and a bright-cut border engraved for MADEIRA, by Robert Jones of Liverpool circa 1790 .
Price: £345.00

This label, or one very similar to it, is illustrated as label number 698 on page 202 of Wine Labels 1730-2003 (2003).

A George III wine label with thread-edge border engraved for WHITE WINE, by IW of Chester (John Walker of Chester or Joseph Walley of Liverpool) , c. 1800.
Price: £335.00

Labels by Joseph Walley of Liverpool (d. 1801) are recorded. If it is by him the shape would suggest that it was a late example of his work.

The other candidate for this mark is John Walker of Chester. He was the son of George Walker I of Chester and was born in 1782. John was made a member of the Goldsmiths' Company of Chester in 1808, having been apprenticed to his father, and succeeded his father as Assay Master on the latters death in 1809 (although he did not swear the oath of that office until 1819). In 1825 Walker described himself as Secretary (as well as Assay Master) and in 1834 he was admitted to the Company again 'according to ancient use and custom'.

In 1840 he appears to have ceased his activities with the Goldsmiths' Company of Chester in the wider disgrace of his family. It certainly seems dubious for the son of the Assay Master (if this label were 1808-1809) or the Assay Master himself, if this label were made after 1809, to be avoiding assaying charges. John Walker is only known to have assayed four labels in his career and the whereabouts of these are currently unknown.

A George III rectangular wine label with rounded ends and a threaded border engraved for BURGUNDY made in London in 1792 by Susannah Barker.

Price: £325.00

A Victorian wine label on a neck ring engraved for BUCELLAS made in Exeter in 1839 by John Stone.

Price: £325.00

The records of the Exeter Assay Office show that John Stone produced 25 labels between 1833 and 1863.

A George IV rectangular wine label with canted corners and a threaded border pierced for CHERRY BRANDY made in London in 1825 by Charles Reily.
Price: £325.00

The first record of a Cherry Brandy label in the Wine Label Circle Journal is in Volume 1 number 5 issued in August 1953 when the name was ordered to be engraved on one of the Coronation commemorative labels. Georgian Cherry Brandy labels are recorded and an early reference to it is in The Tatler for December 19th-December 21st 1710. The diaries of Joseph Farington (1747-1821) include a reference to Cherry Brandy being served at a dinner he attended on 23rd September 1800 at the home of Mr. Bell, a wine merchant. There it was served with other liquours at the end of dinner but before the fruit was served. Farington notes that this was 'a Scottish custom and the ladies partake of it'.

A George III Rectangular sauce label with a threaded border engraved for CHILI VINEGAR made in Edinburgh in 1817 by George McHattie.
Price: £325.00

A George IV cast wine label pierced for SAUTERNE made in London in 1828 by Robert Garrard.

Price: £325.00

A Victorian wine label of escutcheon form with engraved decoration named for ANISETTE made in Birmingham in 1849 by Samuel Evans.

Price: £315.00

Anisette, or Anis, is an anise-flavored liqueur. It is colourless and, because it contains sugar, is sweeter than dry anise flavoured spirits (an example being Absinthe). Anisette was recorded as having been made by Marie Brizard (1714-1801) and her successors since 1755.

A Victorian collar shaped wine label pierced for SWEET made in London in 1870 by William Summers.

Price: £310.00

A George III rectangular wine label with feather-edged border engraved for WHITE WINE made in London circa 1760 by Richard Binley.

Price: £295.00

An oval reeded wine label engraved for SHERRY, by Williams Brothers Exeter 1853
Price: £295.00

This label was once part of the Warde-Aldam family silver at Hooton Pagnell, Yorkshire. It is one of only 33 assayed by the Williams Brothers at Exeter and must be one of the earliest of their labels assayed there -- Exeter Assay Office records only show their labels from 1854 onwards.

A George III rectangular wine label engraved for CLARET with canted corners, a threaded border and an integral cartouche made in Edinburgh circa 1790 by William Robertson, initialled {SWM}.

Price: £295.00

A Victorian circular wine label with a threaded border engraved for SHERRY made in London in 1846 by George Frederick Pinnel, initialled {W}.

Price: £295.00

A wine label with threaded border pierced for CHAMPAGNE, by Thomas Phipps and Edward Robinson London 1806.
Price: £295.00

A George III shaped rectangular wine label with threaded border and integral cartouche engraved for PORT made in London in 1791 by Thomas Phipps and Edward Robinson, initialled {H}.

Price: £285.00

A George III cast wine label decorated with putti pierced for MADEIRA made in London in 1816 by Thomas and James Phipps.

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A George III rectangular wine label with canted corners and a threaded border engraved for TENERIFE between two decorative swirls made in London in 1809 by Elizabeth Morley.

Price: £265.00

A George III rectangular wine label with wrigglework borders engraved for Madeira made in Dublin circa 1805 by John Townsend (active 1802-1827).

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A George III eye shaped wine label with beaded border engraved for MADEIRA made in London circa 1790 by Susannah Barker, crested with an arm embowed in armour holding a dagger.

Price: £260.00

A George IV wine label engraved for SAUTERNE made in London in 1827 by William Elliott.

Price: £260.00

A Victorian sauce label with a threaded border pierced for ANCHOVY made in London in 1844 by Charles Rawlings and William Summers.
Price: £250.00

A George IV wine label with embossed floral border pierced for MADEIRA made in London in 1830 by Charles Fox.

Price: £245.00

A George III sauce label with a threaded border engraved for ANCHOVY made in London in 1803 by John Whittingham.
Price: £245.00

A George III sauce label with a threaded border engraved for SOY made in London circa 1790 by James Hyde.
Price: £245.00

A Victorian wine label with threaded border engraved MADEIRA, Rawlings and Summers London 1837, crested for Philip Yorke Gore, 4th Earl of Arran (1801-1884) .
Price: £245.00

Philip Yorke Gore (1801-1884) inherited the Earldom of Arran from his uncle in 1837. Prior to this point he had a diplomatic career starting with his appointment as Attache to the British legation in Stockholm before being transferred to Paris in 1825 and Lisbon in 1826. From 1827-1837 Gore was Secretary to the Legation in Buenos Aires (where he was also Charge D'Affaires from 1832-1834). In 1838 Gore, now Earl of Arran, married Elizabeth Napier (d. 1899). Elizabeth was the daughter of the historian of the Peninsular war General Sir Francis Napier (1785-1860) and had the second Duke of Richmond as both her maternal and paternal grandfather (making her also a great, great grand daughter of Charles II).

A William IV silver-gilt wine label of rectangular form with canted corners and a threaded border pierced for NOYAU made in London in 1837 by Rawlings and Summers.

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Noyau (a direct copy of the french for the central part or core of something- including nuts and fruit) in this context is a liqueur made by infusing apricot, peach or cherry kernels in neutral alcohol and then distilling the infusion and sweetening with sugar. Some recipes have a red colour which is produced by the addition of cochineal.

Historically, crème de noyaux would contain trace amounts of hydrogen cyanide, which is poisonous. Although the chemical was not normally present in a dangerous intensity, bottles of 19th-century Noyaux left for decades in the cellar would sometimes have all the cyanide float up to the top, with lethal results for the drinker of the first glass. This peculiarity was used by the author Dorothy L. Sayers in her short story "Bitter Almonds" (published in 1939 as part of In the teeth of the evidence).

An Old Sheffield Plate wine coaster with japanned base and border pierced with Prince of Wales Feathers, circa 1790 .
Price: £240.00

A coaster of very similar design to the body of this one can be seen in figure 334a of Gordon Crosskey's Old Sheffield Plate: A history of the 18th century plated trade (2011). The japanned base, described as 'very rare' on page 280 of that book, a set with these bases shown in figure 333.

A Victorian wine label of escutcheon form with engraved decoration named for MARASCHINO made in Birmingham in 1849 by Samuel Evans.

Price: £225.00

Maraschino is a liqueur  obtained from the distillation of the small, slightly sour fruit of the Marasca cherry tree. This tree, which grows wild along parts of the Dalmatian Coast  in Croatia, lends the liqueur its unique aroma. Production of the liqueur is first recorded in 1759 by Francesca Droli, a Venetian merchant and by 1779 it was being imported into Britain by Johnson and Justerini and in 1804 the Austrian emperor granted the factory the right to use his coat of arms on the bottle.

A boudoir label engraved GLYCERINE, by William Jones London 1859 .
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A George III crescent shaped wine label with escutcheon above engraved for MADEIRA made in London in 1796 by Allen Dominy.

Price: £225.00

A George III wine label with threaded border, canted corners and a central point to the base engraved for MADEIRA made in London in 1798 by George Smith and Thomas Hayter.

Price: £210.00

A George IV wine label with pierced vine border and pierced for PORT made in Birmingham in 1827 by Ledsam, Vale and Wheeler.

Price: £210.00

Labels with similar piercing , although of a different shape, are illustrated on page 241 of Wine Labels 1730-2003: A Worldwide History as labels 793 (a Port label circa 1825-1827 probably by Thomas Freeman) and 794 (a Gin label by Joseph Willmore assayed in 1833).

A George III wine label with shell and scroll border pierced for SHERRY, by John Reily London 1816, crested for Henry Vassall-Fox, 3rd Baron Holland (1773-1840).
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Henry Fox (later Vassall-Fox) (1773-1840), was 3rd Baron Holland from 1774. He was descended from Charles II (via the Dukes of Richmond) and inherited his title when just over a year old. His was a strongly Whig family with his uncle being the orator Charles James Fox. Baron Holland himself was described as 'rather the Whig party itself than its leader'. As a result of his firmly held Whig principles, Holland held few Government offices — he served as Lord Privy Seal in the brief 'Ministry of All The Talents' that followed the death of William Pitt the Younger in 1806, and then as Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster between 1830-1834 and 1835-1840. In 1797 he married the recently divorced Elizabeth, Lady Webster, daughter of Richard Vassall of Jamaica (after paying £6000 in damages to Webster for 'criminal conversation' with his wife, which led to the birth of the future archaeologist (and General) Charles Richard Fox).

A William IV cast wine label pierced for SHERRY made in London in 1831 by Rawlings and Summers.

Price: £210.00

A George IV sauce label with gadrooned border engraved for Cavice made in London in 1823 by John Reily

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An unusually small George IV hobcut wine label for MADEIRA made in London in 1829 by William Knight.

Price: £210.00

A base metal George III pierced wine coaster with gadrooned border, wooden base and applied rococo cartouche, circa 1770.

Price: £195.00

Chemical XRF analysis by the London Assay Office shows that that the pierced body of this coaster is made of an alloy with 92.1% copper and 5.7 % zinc (along with very small amounts of Nickel, Lead, iron and silver). The rim is 93.7% copper and 4.9% zinc (with very small amounts of nickel, lead and silver). This suggests that the alloy could be so-called 'German Silver', which has an unusually high copper content. Another named alloy is Tombac, a brass alloy with a high copper content and between 5 and 20% zinc. The name is of Javanese origin and entered the Dutch language witth their colonisation of the area in the early 17th century and then entered both English and German. Usually, however, Tombac is of a colour closer to that of gold. Interestingly White Tombac was in use for buttons in the 18th century and is also called White Copper. In 1766 the correspondence between Matthew Boulton and John Fothergill mentions 'East India white copper' and in 1768 Boulton was offered '500 lbs of white copper at 9s per pound' [equivalent to £1,000 per ton]. In 1771 there are several references to 'white copper' in letters to and from Boulton's London agent W. Matthews.

This coaster appears to have been made been made in the same mould as an Old Sheffield Plate pair with the crest of Viscount Tracy engraved on the cartouche (Private Collection).

It is possible, therefore, that the Boulton references are to the alloy employed in this coaster and that it was a short-lived and non economically viable experiment by Boulton or someone else thinking along the same lines.

A George III rectangular wine label with canted corners and a threaded border engraved for CALCAVELLA made in London in 1809 by John Reily.

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Calcavella is a sweet wine produced in Portugal (recorded as early as 1769). It was favoured by Thomas Jefferson who seems to have discovered it when he was American ambassador to France between 1784 and 1789. When writing about wine, Thomas Jefferson said, ”I would prefer good Lisbon; next to that Sherry, next to that Calcavallo: but still a good quality of the latter would be preferable to an indifferent quality of the former”.

A George IV wine label with impressed border engraved for RUM made in Birmingham in 1829 by Ledsam, Vale and Wheeler.
Price: £195.00

A George III wine label with hump top and hobcut engraving engraved for RUM made in London circa 1816 by Thomas Leathwick Robinson.

Price: £195.00

Thomas Leathwick Robinson (1782-1864) was a London goldsmith who operated from a number of addresses in the City of London before being apprehended for 'selling four silver bottle labels with forged and counterfeit hall-marks' in 1822. He was also charged with creating the false stamps but, due to his helpfulness, was only indicted for selling the labels. He was sentenced to be transported to Australia for 14 years and arrived in Hobart onboard the Competitor on August 2nd 1823.

In 1824 Robinson was appointed as a school master in Campbelltown in New South Wales. By 1829 he had gained his Ticket of Leave (removing many of the restrictions on him) and his full freedom in 1836. As early as 1828 he had been joined by his family. At the time of his death he was farming a tract of land in the Maneroo area, adjacent to the Snowy River.

The Robinson family remained in Australia- his son Frederick becoming a tin plate worker and founding a firm his own son, Ellis, was to take over. Frederick was a member of the Deaf and Dumb and Blind Institution for 39 years and Ellis served as Secretary for 41 years. Their descendants are still living in Australia.

A George III sauce label with a threaded border pierced for READING, unmarked circa 1800.
Price: £195.00

Reading sauce is believed to have been invented by James Cocks, a fishmonger of Reading, in the late 18th century. It was originally a dissolved fish sauce but Mrs. Beaton's recipe included: walnut pickle, shallots, spring water, Indian soy, ginger, pepper (both long and Cayenne), anchovies and bay leaves. The sauce was referred to by Jules Verne in Around the world in 80 days (where Mr. Fogg has it as part of his breakfast) and a variation made by Harvey's was referred to by Lewis Carroll in his Poeta fit non nascitur. Commercial production of this sauce ceased in 1962.

A Victorian sauce label with threaded border engraved for SOY made in London circa 1890 by William Summers.
Price: £195.00

A Victorian sauce label with a threaded border engraved for ANCHOVY made in London in 1855 by Rawlings and Summers.
Price: £195.00

A George IV rectangular wine label with gadrooned border and an anthemion cresting engraved for PORT made in London in 1822 by Joseph Angell, crested with a falcon on a stand looking at the sun.

Price: £185.00

A George III glass cayenne bottle with silver mounts on the body and the spoon made in London in 1794 (the mount by John Schofield and the spoon by William Abdy).

Price: £175.00

A George III large stamp label of unusual curved section with threaded border engraved S (for SHERRY), made in Edinburgh circa 1810 by George McHattie.

Price: £175.00

A George III stamp shaped wine label with gadrooned border engraved S (for SHERRY) made in London in 1815(carrying the duty mark used between 14th June and 31st August) by John Reily, numbered {10}.

Price: £165.00

A George III stamp shaped wine label with gadrooned border engraved M (for Madeira) made in London in 1815 (carrying the duty mark used between 14th June and 31st August) by John Reily, numbered {11}.

Price: £165.00

A George III sauce label with threaded border engraved for KYAN made in London circa 1790 by Phipps and Robinson.
Price: £165.00

A George III navette shaped wine label with pierced body engraved for MADEIRA, unmarked last quarter of the 18th century probably by Susannah Barker or John Reily.

Price: £155.00

Although this label is unmarked very similar examples have been noted by Susannah Barker and figure 546 of Wine Labels 1730-2003 (2004) shows a BRANDY label by John Reily assayed in 1799.

A Victorian wine label engraved for BITTERS made in London in 1862 by Charles Boyton.

Price: £150.00

A George IV/William IV cast wine label decorated with leopard's heads and national symbols pierced for PORT, unmarked circa 1830.

Price: £145.00

In Wine Labels c. 1730-2003 (2004) Sir Thomas Barlow commented that "From about [1830], however, a label made by all three members of the Knight family, Samuel, George and William, featured three of the national flowers of the United Kingdom: the rose of England, the thistle of Scotland and the shamrock of Ireland. This was a time of patriotic fervour, following the defeat of Napoleon, when a display of national emblems would certainly have seemed appropriate. The picture is slightly complicated by the incorporation into the design of two panther's heads, which seem to have no connection with the national flowers, but one appropriate for a wine label". It has also been argued that the leopard's heads could relate to the emblem of England and that this design could therefore be linked to the coronation of William IV.

An Elizabeth II wine label with harp top engraved for WHISKY made in Sheffield in 2013 by Arthur Holder.

Price: £145.00

A Victorian wine label with pierced grape border engraved for SHERRY made in Birmingham in 1837 by Joseph Wilmore.

Price: £145.00

A George IV Old Sheffield Plate wine coaster circa 1820 by Matthew Boulton Plate Company, crested (on an inset silver disc) with a demi-lion rampant.

Price: £145.00

A Victorian vine bordered wine label for RUM made in Birmingham in 1838 by Joseph Wilmore.

Price: £135.00

A George III wine label with threaded border engraved for HOCK made in London in 1811 by James Atkins.
Price: £135.00

A Victorian wine label in the form of a letter M [for MADEIRA] made in London in 1859 by Charles Rawlings and William Summers, crested with a cross flory between two wings.

Price: £130.00

A Victorian wine label with grape border engraved for BRANDY made in Birmingham in 1855 by Owen and Boon.

Price: £125.00

A Victorian vine bordered wine label for PORT made in Birmingham in 1838 by Joseph Wilmore.

Price: £125.00

A Victorian wine label of escutcheon form with cast border pierced for SHERRY made in London in 1844 by Charles Reily and George Storer.

Price: £120.00

A Victorian wine label of escutcheon form with cast border pierced for MADEIRA made in London in 1846 by Charles Reily and George Storer.

Price: £120.00

A George III stamp shaped wine label with threaded border engraved M (for Madeira) made in London in 1835 by Joseph Perkins II.

Price: £120.00

A rectangular label with cut corners engraved BRANDY by Joseph Angell, London 1813.
Price: £120.00

A George IV oval wine label with gadrooned border pierced for SHERRY made in London in 1829 by Charles Rawlings and William Summers.

Price: £90.00

A George IV banner shaped wine label pierced for SHERRY, unmarked circa 1830.

Price: £85.00

A George IV banner shaped wine label pierced for SHERRY, unmarked circa 1830.

Price: £85.00

A George III wine label with threaded border engraved for CLARET made in London in 1811 by James Atkins.
Price: £75.00

A William IV Old Sheffield Plate wine label decorated with fruit and flowers engraved MR. MACDOWALL, circa 1830.

Price:

This name is not recorded by the Wine Label Circle and is likely to refer to the, now unknown, favourite drink of Mr. MacDowall.

A George III wine label with threaded border engraved for MADEIRA made in London in 1811 by James Atkins.
Price: £65.00

A Victorian paper wine label printed in gold ink and for SPARKLING HOCK.

Price: £58.00