John Tuite

George II Waiter from the Earl of Warrington Service

John Tuite

George II Waiter from the Earl of Warrington Service

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By John Tuite
London, 1731

Diameter 8 1/4 inches (21 cm)
approximately 17 ounces.

Shaped circular with engraved border of strapwork with masks, shells and husk swags, the center engraved with arms as bourne by George Booth, 2nd Earl of Warrington.

This waiter is listed by George Booth, 2nd Earl of Warrington in The Particulars of my Plate and its Weights, 1754, pg. 14, 2 larger Waiters to give drink on 18 -

The history of silver owes great debt to George Booth, 2nd Earl of Warrington (1675-1754) and the meticulous record he took of his silver collection. Written in his own hand, he records his efforts to reestablish the family's silver that had been lost in his father's generation. A marriage to Mary Oldbury, daughter of a wealthy merchant set him on his way to amassing the almost 26,000 ounces of silver that is recorded in his notes. The rather rapid establishment of his silver service led Booth to work with a variety of silversmiths; Booth is noted for buying from among London's leading silversmiths, and interestingly, John Tuite was the only non-Huguenot silversmith he patronized.

The Earl of Warrington's silver remained in the family through to the early 20th century when it was sold by his descendants, the Earls of Stamford.

This waiter is listed by George Booth, 2nd Earl of Warrington in The Particulars of my Plate and its Weights, 1754, pg. 14, 2 larger Waiters to give drink on 18 -

SILVERSMITH BIOGRAPHY

John Tuite was son of James Tuite a merchant of Drogheda. He was apprenticed to John Matthews of Dublin goldsmith in 1703, and working in Dublin from 1710 to 1720, using the same, or a similar hallmark to that entered later in London to which he moved in 1723. He was based in London until his death in 1740.
His first hallmark was entered as a largeworker, undated, between September 1721 and July 1725. His address is recorded at Ireland's Yard, Blackfriars. He moved to Litchfield Street, near Newport Market, also undated. His second mark, 27th June 1739. Address: Litchfield Street, St. Ann's, Westminster. Heal records him as goldsmith, Irelands Yard, 1721; Green Door, Litchfield Street, near Newport Street, 1721-39; and George Street, York Buildings, Strand, 1745. This last address may perhaps have been in fact that of Elizabeth his widow Heal also has John Tuite, goldsmith, London, 1763, but this appears probably based on a mis-attributed mark of another maker, or misprint for William (following). In spite of the elegant ewer incorporated in both his hallmarks Tuite appears to have specialized in the making of salvers.