An important Hungarian silver neoclassical travelling dinner service, maker's mark FH, probably for Franciscus Xaverius Huber (Koszeghy Elemer, no. 342), Budapest, circa 1790-1800

with running laurel borders, fruit and vegetable finials, hairy paw feet, in a fitted iron-bound chest, marked FH in oval, late 18th century Budapest mark, and with control marks from 1806 and 1809, comprising:
    1 oval small tureen, cover, liner, and stand
    1 circular small tureen, cover, liner and stand
    6 dinner plates
    1 oval platter
    1 round platter
    1 teapot, with leather-covered handle
    1 sugar bowl and cover
    1 ecuelle and cover
    1 saucepan and cover, with turned wood handle
    1 gilt soup ladle
And in a gilt-tooled leather etui:
    1 gilt oval spicebox
    1 gilt handled steel knife, blade marked Klitson
    1 gilt handled steel fork
    1 gilt dinner fork
    1 gilt tablespoon
    1 gilt spoon/marrow scoop
    1 gilt knife rest

Overall good condition, crisp decoration and gilding in good shape Small bent sections to rims of covers of tureens, foot of circular tureen and dent to base rim of its liner One leaf detached from cover of saucepan but present; wood handle to saucepan broken where screws into silver; handle to teapot with old glue repair; possibly small element missing from cover of ecuelle Some scratches from use to platters, especially circular one; some dinner plates with rubbing marks and one with ding Ladle with dings to lower edge, knife rest with control marks only, handles unmarked on steel knife and fork, Some scuffing to leather etui of flatware, outer case with cracking to leather and darkened lining
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

The style of this set is based on Viennese silver, particularly the work of Johann Georg Hann, and is particularly close to an important neoclassical dinner service by Hann and others, 1788-1791, partly preserved in the Museum of Applied Arts, Budapest (see Waltraud Neuwirth, Wiener Silver 1781-1866, pp. 37-45).  Called the “Palatine Service”, the 72-piece service was first recorded in 1912 in the collection of Count Adam Teleki in Marosújvár, presumably descended from Count Samuel Teleki (1739-1822). 

A famous book collector who founded the Teleki Library in Târgu Mureş, Count Samuel was Lord-Lieutenant of Küküllő County from 1774 and later of Bihar County. He was appointed Assistant Chancellor of Transylvania in 1787, going to Vienna to meet with the Emperor, and from 1791 until his death in 1822 he was full Chancellor. 

Like the offered suite, the Palatine service conspicuously does not have any heraldry.  It is likely that this travelling service was ordered in complement by Count Samuel Teleki in Budapest, from a local silversmith but following the model of his new Viennese service, and was used on his travels between Transylvania, Budapest, and the court in Vienna.