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Lot 4
An exceptional pair of Regency silver wine decanter stands by Philip Rundell. For Rundell, Bridge & Rundell, with ribbon wrapped reeded rims over the openwork cast sides chased with infant bacchanals and panthers amongst fruiting vine, the centres engraved with the Arms of Edward Hughes Ball Hughes (1798-1863), stamped RUNDELL BRIDGE ET RUNDELL AURIFICES REGIS LONDINI, hallmarked London 1819 & 1820, wooden bases, diameter 14cm, with original clear glass liners.The Arms on these decanter stands are on record at the College of Arms as exemplified to Edward Hughes Ball Hughes of Upper Brook Street, co. Middlesex, on 18 June 1819 (College of Arms: Grants 31/239). These Arms and Crests were exemplified to Edward Hughes Ball Hughes in pursuance of a Royal Licence dated 17 June 1819 (College of Arms: I42/270): the Royal Licence was also the instrument by which he changed his name from Edward Hughes Ball to Edward Hughes Ball Hughes. More details of the Arms available with the Auctioneers.Edward Hughes Ball Hughes (1798-1863) was a notorious 19th century society figure. On his 21st birthday in 1819 he inherited the vast fortune of his grandmother’s second husband, Admiral Edward Hughes (1720-1794). His grandmother Ruth Ball (1731-1800) and the Admiral were childless, and so they promoted the careers of her grandchildren from her first marriage. Edward was educated at Eton and Cambridge. The Admiral had accumulated considerable wealth during his tenure as Commander of the East Indies Station and a long and successful naval career. On his coming of age, the young Edward inherited two London houses, estates in Essex and the equivalent of about £70 million. Anxious to testify his gratitude and affection for the memory of Sir Edward Hughes he took the surname and Arms of Hughes in addition to his own. He became quite the dandy, handsome, sociable, affable and undoubtedly popular, he was affectionately nicknamed ‘The Golden Ball’ by his peers. In his prime, he was known for his chocolate-coloured coach and his invention of the black cravat. Sadly however, he was also an inveterate gambler and it was to be his undoing. He was naive and many preyed on his seemingly obliviousness to the value of money and his love of gambling. He was known to be willing to bet huge sums on the simple toss of a coin and could lose the equivalent of millions in a single night. In 1823 Hughes became infatuated with a 16-year-old Spanish dancer called Maria Mercandotti. He whisked her away from the stage and married her, leading the author William Harrison Ainsworth to quip: “The damsel is gone, and no wonder at all, that bred to the dance, she has gone to the Ball.” Less than a year after marrying Mercandotti, Hughes purchased a 3,233 acre property, the Oatlands Estate from the Duke of York for the exorbitant sum of £145,000 (about £17,500,000 today) where he and his young wife lived a lavish and extravagant lifestyle. A year after this purchase, Hughes Ball ran into financial difficulty and the property once again went up for sale. At the same time, Hughes fled the country in the wake of the revelation that he’d inadvertently gambled away nearly his entire fortune. Evading his creditors by moving to France in 1829, Ball Hughes fortunately left control of his affairs in the more capable hands of his solicitors, who successfully managed the Oatlands Estate in his absence. Nevertheless, Ball Hughes’ debts were such that, despite the estate now being profitable, they were forced to divide it up and sell it off piece by piece to hold his creditors at bay. He was far from destitute, however; according to a governmental report, Hughes was one of the foreign investors in the Second Bank of the United States. In 1832, his holding amounted to $51,000 in stock. In 1835 Hughes also came into the possession of the manor of Sidmouth. In 1835, he helped finance a new sea wall for the town. In 1839, a law was passed by Parliament allowing Hughes to tear down the market and build a new one. An 1846 law confirmed that the new market had been built and that no one could sell anything in the manor except at the market, unless they paid a toll at the market building. Hughes never returned to England. His young wife left in 1839 and he went on to have five children with two other women. Although he didn’t exactly live in penury, it was in greatly reduced circumstances when considering the vast fortune he inherited, which he squandered within 10 years. He died in France in 1863.
Lot 441
A 19th century Indian silver chatelaine clip applied with Victorian and later attachments. The clip cast and chased with a pair of figures on a horse with opposing lions, the 11 attachments comprising a heart shaped pin cushion, a button hook, an aide memoir, a Scottish hard stone set heart pendant, a Victorian hardstone cross set scent bottle, a pair of scissors, a mesh coin purse, a pill box, a thimble holder. a folding pocket knife and a propelling pencil, 180.8g.
Lot 456
Collection of Lord Of The Rings collectables and and ephemera to include Royal Mint/New Zealand Post coin set, Laser-etched glass block Legolas, playing cards, 2 packs Top Trumps, 4 books including The Two Towers Creatures and Fellowship Festival 2004 show guide, 12 collectors stamps, 4 binders of collectors/trading cards (approx 333 cards) and The Brothers Hildebrandt LOTR series (approx 90 cards) and one smaller binder containing approx 60 3D cards by Action Flipz, also packs of loose cards. Qty
Lot 852
The Lizzie Cundy Collection - Thos. Marsh Dorking Victorian silver open faced key wound pocket watch, double bottomed coin edged case, hinged bezel and back, Birmingham 1894, signed gilt English lever movement numbered 268040 (mainspring broken, balance intact), Victorian silver open faced key wound pocket watch, double bottomed coin edged case, hallmarked London 1882, gilt unsigned English lever movement numbered 94765 (watch currently running) (2)
Lot 845
Victorian silver open faced key wound pocket watch, white enamel dial with subsidiary seconds coin edged double bottomed case with hinged bezel and back hall marked Birmingham 1876 unsigned English lever movement No204628 complete with hall mark silver tapering single albert and key case diameter 56mm watch working intermittently
Lot 908
Single string of individually knotted cultured pearls, clasp stamped 14K H, and a collection of costume jewellery incl. enamelled egg pendant, green and amber coloured glass necklace with four-leaf clover charm, other necklaces, ear rings, brooches, glass ball photo pendant, 1920 3d coin ring etc, all in Thorne's toffee tin
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