A Charles II Silver-gilt porringer on stand, maker's mark attributed to Isaac Dighton, London, 1679 and circa

all engraved with the initials JDM in monogram below a duke’s coronet, the initials and coronet are those of James, Duke of Monmouth (1649-1685)

James, Duke of Monmouth (1649-1685)
General John Ramsay (1768-1845), sold at Christie & Manson, London, 19 June 1855, purchased by Sir William Stirling-Maxwell, 9^th Bt of Keir and thence by descent

Exhibition of British Art, Royal Academy, London, January 1934, lent by Mr William Stirling

Cover - maker's mark only struck four times, pinhole dent below the engraved cypher Body - minor surface scratches, one .5cm flaw to gilding near rim, one hairline split to rim (not all the way through) Stand - surface scratches commensurate with age, wear to gilding at highlights, fully hallmarked, lion passant mark on foot Overall nice colour and good, honest condition
"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. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

Duke of Buccleuch, born to be King?

James Scott, 1^st Duke of Monmouth and 1^stDuke of Buccleuch was born in Rotterdam in the Netherlands on 9 April 1649, the eldest illegitimate son of Charles II, king of England in exile, and his mistress, Lucy Walter.

 During the summer of 1662, Charles II recalled his son James, then known as James Crofts, from the Netherlands to London. A marriage was arranged to the wealthy Scottish heiress Anna (Anne) Scott, Countess of Buccleuch (1651-1732), in anticipation of which James changed his name to Scott; her father, the late Francis Scott, 2^nd Earl of Buccleuch (1626-1651), had stipulated that the spouse of his heiress had to take his family name. On 10 November 1662 Charles created James Duke of Monmouth among other titles and on 28 March following the boy was nominated a knight of the Garter. The marriage, which took place on 20 April 1663, was the event of the season: it took place ‘in the King’s Chamber at Whitehall . . . Earl David [Wemyss, the bride’s stepfather] provided the wedding feast; the day ended with supper and dancing in Monmouth’s lodgings in Hedge Lane off Charing Cross.’ (Maurice Lee junior, The Heiresses of Buccleuch: Marriage, Money and Politics in Seventeenth Century Britain, East Linton, 1996, p. 65). That same day James was also created Duke of Buccleuch, Earl of Dalkeith and Lord Scott of Whitchester and Eskdale.

 Monmouth subsequently served in the Second and Third Anglo-Dutch (1665-1667 and 1672-1674) and afterwards commanded the Anglo-Dutch Brigade during the Franco-Dutch War of 1672-1678.

Monmouth declares himself King of England

 Following his father, Charles II’s death on 6 February 1685 the Duke led the unsuccessful Monmouth Rebellion in an effort to depose his uncle, King James II. Declaring himself at Taunton on 20 June 1685 the legitimate successor to his father’s throne, Monmouth, an avowed Protestant, tried to capitalize on his position as the son of Charles II in opposition to James, who was Catholic. Monmouth and the Royal forces (including the 2^nd Regiment of Foot, or Queen’s Royals) clashed at the Battle of Sedgemoor on 5/6 July 1685 at Westonzoyland near Bridgwater, Somerset, during which the Duke was heavily defeated.

 Monmouth beheaded for treason

Monmouth was captured soon after and imprisoned for treason in the Tower of London from where, on 15 July 1685, he was taken to Tower Hill and beheaded.

Following his death, Monmouth’s English honours, the Dukedom of Monmouth, the Earldom of Doncaster, and the Barony of Scott of Tindale, became forfeited, whereas the Scottish peerages enjoyed by his widow in her own right were not affected. Furthermore, James II generously restored to her all her husband’s confiscated English estates.

The maker – D in script

Because of the disappearance of the Makers’ Marks Registers at the London Assay Office prior to 1697, it is not possible to determine with any certainty the names of the owners of those marks prior to that date. Some have been ascribed and further work on this problem is on-going.

The only surviving record of maker’s marks at Goldsmiths’ Hall prior to 1697 are those struck on a large copper plate between 23 February 1675 and 15 April 1697. The original parchment key, however, has been missing since at least the middle of the 19^th Century.

The maker’s mark D, found struck on the Duke of Monmouth’s cup and cover, clearly belonged to a goldsmith of some note and Gerald Taylor, whose work on pre-1697 London maker’s marks is well known, has suggested that it might be that of Isaac Dighton (before 1641-1707) of Gutter Lane by Goldsmiths’ Hall. The latter’s only recorded mark (Grimwade, no. 476) was one of the first to be registered at the Assay Office in the new Maker’s Mark Register, which was begun in April 1697. Timothy Schroder draws attention to this in his catalogue, British and Continental Gold and Silver in the Ashmolean Museum, in his description of a Chinoiserie snuffers tray, maker’s mark D in script, London, 1682, and The Actor Toilet Service, Isaac Dighton, London, 1699 (vol. 1, pp. 440-443, no. 171 and vol. 2, pp. 538-541, no. 206).

Schroder furthermore mentions that the D in script mark has also been found on a number of other Chinoiserie pieces. Particularly striking examples are the pair of ginger jars, covers and stands, London, 1682, which was sold at Sotheby’s, London, on 21 June 1962, lot 15.

The maker - WH, a pellet in annulet below

The maker’s mark struck on the Duke of Monmouth’s salver on foot would appear at first glance to be WH, a pellet in annulet below. Upon further investigation, however, it is clear that it is the impression of a damaged punch which originally had been WH, a star above, a pellet in annulet below. By the time it appeared on the Duke’s salver (1679/80) this mark had been in use by its goldsmith owner since at least 1651, a period of some 29 years, during which it must have become chipped.

Of the many surviving pieces bearing this maker’s mark, one of the most interesting is the two-handled cup and cover, London, 1655, engraved with the arms of Buckland of West Harptree, Somerset, impaling those of Phelips of Montacute, Somerset, probably for John Buckland and his wife, Elizabeth, sister of Edward Phelips. This was bequeathed in 1949 to the Fogg Museum, Harvard.

General John Ramsay was the only son of the celebrated Scottish painter, Allan Ramsay (1713-1784) by his second wife, Margaret (née Lindsay). In 1782, following the latter’s death, Ramsay made his final trip to Italy, taking with him his son, who was then a scholar at Westminster School. John went on to pursue a successful military career and later in life became a keen collector of pictures, antiquities, coins and historical memorabilia. When he died without issue in 1845 the residue of his property passed to his only immediate heir, Sir John Archibald Murray, Lord Murray of Hinderland (1779-1859).

‘The National Gallery and British Museum are deprived of very valuable additions to their collection which were left to them under the will of the late General John Ramsay who died a few weeks back at Geneva; the deceased having only a few days before his death executed a codicil revoking the bequests made in his will to those public institutions, of his pictures, antiquities, and curiosities, which as a national loss is much to be regretted, and has left the same to his cousin, William Murray, subject to a few specific bequests to Lord and Lady Murray [of Hinderland], and a selection by each of them of any one of his cameos and intaglios. The deceased’s personal property in England and within the province of [the Consistory Court of] Canterbury was sworn under 30,000£. . . . The deceased formerly resided at John-street, Berkeley-square. He belonged to the 3d Regiment of Guards, and was a General in her Majesty’s army. He died at the city of Geneva on the 10^th of August last.’ (The Morning Post, London, Tuesday, 14 October 1845, p. 6a)

John Ramsay’s acquisition of the Duke of Monmouth’s silver-gilt cup and cover and salver on foot is understandable in the light of his military connections. On 31 January 1825 he was one of the distinguished guests at a meeting celebrating the restoration of the Third Colour to the 2^nd Regiment of Foot, or Queen’s Royals. The event was chaired by Major General Sir Henry Torrens, Adjutant General of the British Army. In his address, he told his regiment that ‘It is with his Majesty’s [George IV’s] gracious approbation, that the colour is now restored to you, which was presented to the regiment, by its Queen, when the corps was originally formed in the year 1661, immediately after the restoration of Charles II. to the throne of his ancestors. His Majesty Charles II. was then pleased to confer upon the 2d Regiment of the Line, the appellation of the Queen’s Royal Regiment, and her Majesty Queen Catherine, in order to give greater effect to the distinction, thus conferred upon a corps taken under the special protection, was graciously pleased to present it with a Third Colour . . .’ Sir Henry later went on to explain that, ‘The regiment was first employed in forming the garrison of Tangiers [before returning] to England about the time of James the Second’s succession to the Throne, and the first great and signal service in which the corps was employed was in repelling the efforts of the Duke of Monmouth to wrest the throne from the reigning Monarch. . . .’ (The Morning Post, London, Thursday, 3 February 1825, p. 4a)