A large Victorian silver seven-light presentation candelabrum, Bateman & Ball for Rundell, Bridge & Co., London, 1841

the triangular base engraved with an inscription on one side, a coat-of-arms, crest and motto on another and the third applied with a view of the entrance to the London and Birmingham Railway Station (the Euston Arch), the cast vine stem and detachable branches rising from three cherubs and a vintner's vat, complete with detachable nozzles

Property of a Private Collection

Good clear marks on stem and sconces, overall condition excellent.
"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."

The arms are those of Glyn impaling Grenfell for George Carr Glyn (1797-1893), fourth son of Sir Richard Carr Glyn, 1^stBt. of Gaunts, Dorset, by his wife, Mary, daughter of John Plumtre of Fredville, Kent. Mr. Glyn, who was sometime a partner in the banking firm of Glyn, Mills & Co., was married in 1823 to Marianne (d. 1892), daughter of Pascoe Genfell of Taplow House.
The inscription reads: 'To GEORGE CARR GLYN, ESQ^re. This service of plate is presented as a testimonial of the high estimation in which he is held by the Subscribers who as directors and proprietors of The London and Birmingham Railway Company have witnessed and experienced the benefit of the signal services which he has rendered to that great, and successful undertaking in the important station of Chairman of the Company. 1841'

This centrepiece, with its accompanying silver service and a letter from the subscribers’ secretary, was sent to George Carr Glyn from Euston Station on 31 December 1841. Contemporary reports, which mentioned that the service was ‘executed with the accustomed good taste of Messrs. Rundell and Co.’ at a cost of £1,634 19s., noted the recipient’s response: ‘Mr. Glyn has returned a feeling and well-expressed reply, in which he congratulates the proprietors of the railway on their having so successfully completed their great undertaking.’ (The Railway Times, London, 1 January 1842, p. 41c; The Derby Mercury, Derby, 19 January 1842, p. 2f).
The patterns for this candelabrum were sold at one of the retiring firm of Rundell, Bridge & Co.’s dispersal sales in 1842 and 1843. They were purchased by G.R. Collis & Co. of Birmingham, by whom they were again put into production; an example was shown by Collis at the 1849 Birmingham Exhibition of Manufactures and Art. (Shirley Bury, ‘The lengthening shadow of Rundell’s,’ part 3, The Connoisseur, April 1966, p. 218; The Art Journal, London, 1849, p. 311).