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Digby Scott & Benjamin Smith

A Highly Important George III Silver-gilt Two-handled Tray

Digby Scott & Benjamin Smith

A Highly Important George III Silver-gilt Two-handled Tray

Silver-gilt
George III, London, 1803
Makers: Digby Scott and Benjamin Smith I,

Length over handles: 31in
Weight: 250 oz
 
Engraver: Walter Jackson.
The arms are those of Dick.
 

A fine George III silver-gilt two-handled oval tray engraved with armorials on a drapery mantle, the wide border being formed as an openwork grapevine retained by a rim of ribbon-bound berried foliage. The handles are formed as twin cornucopias rising from ram heads and conjoined by lioness heads. It rests on four feet formed as satyr masks between satyr legs festooned with fruit and emerging from leaves. It is marked on base and rim, both being stamped with the Latin signature of Rundell, Bridge and Rundell
 

The Dick family.
The Al Tajir Collection

The Dick collection was dispersed at Sotheby Parke Bennet, New York, 16 December 1976.
 

The partnership of Digby Scott and Benjamin Smith produced some of the greatest silver works of the early 19th century. Scott and Smith jointly ran workshops located in Greenwich, England from 1802 to 1807 and during their brief partnership were the principal suppliers of silver masterpieces to the esteemed firm of Rundell, Bridge & Rundell. At the time London's most prestigious firm, these jewellers and silversmiths supplied the official plate ordered by the Lord Chamberlain's office, and were the official "Jeweller, Gold and Silversmiths to the Crown" from 1798 to 1843. Working in the cusp of the late Georgian and early Regency periods, the works of Scott and Smith often feature elements of the classical revival style such as grapevines and rams' heads, all crafted in exquisite, sumptuous detail. One of their most renowned collaborative efforts, the Duke of York Baskets, created for Frederick Augustus (1763-1827), second son of George III, is currently on display at the Powerhouse Museum in Australia.

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Digby Scott & Benjamin Smith