Hansons Auctioneers and Valuers
Lot 41
An early 20th century, late Boer War era sterling silver and possibly BlackBuck horn table lighter, once belonging to Major General Alexander Whitelaw Thorneycroft of the Royal Scots Fusiliers. Featuring a ridged, twisted and polished horn section, fitted with a scalloped collar, and a grenade style spherical lighter fixed upon a rotating gimbal. Fully hallmarked for London 1902, with the makers mark for Joseph Braham. The spherical part of the lighter is also engraved ‘A.W.T. from JM 20th June 1903’, which is the date he married his wife, Rebecca Francis Crozier. Notes: Alexander Whitelaw Thorneycroft (1859 - 1931) had a distinguished military career, and was first commissioned as a 2nd Lieutenant in February 1879. He saw service in the later stages of the Anglo-Zulu war of 1879, and the First Boer War of 1881. A promotion to Lieutenant followed in 1881, followed by Captain in 1887. By the commencement of the Second Boer war, Alexander had been promoted to Major (Brevet Lieutenant-Colonel), and with the British Government preempting a Boer uprising, Major Thorneycroft was sent to South Africa to raise a corps of troopers. This hastily raised corps became known as Thorneycroft’s Mounted Infantry, and saw service during the Relief of Ladysmith, and the Battle of Spion Koh. During Spion Kop, Maj Thorneycroft found himself to be the most senior officer still alive, or that wasn’t incapacitated. An award of the Companion of the Order of the Bath followed in 1901, on account of his Boer War service. By November 1902, Thorneycroft was promoted to Colonel, and was back in the U.K serving as Adjutant-General of the 7th Infantry Division in Dublin. Colonel Thorneycroft retired from the army in 1912, retiring to Blandford Lodge in Berkshire, and died there in 1931 at the age of 72. Provenance: the item was acquired in 1931 by a relative of the current owner, who with his wife had acted as housekeeper for Col Thorneycroft at Blandford Lodge. As was fairly commonplace for the time, the couple were offered an item each from the Colonel’s items, and this lighter was one of the items acquired. The lighter has remained in the family since 1931. Approximately 60cm length. Condition: generally good. Good all round patina to the silver, and clear hallmarks. The gimbal mechanism works exactly as I should by always keeping to the lighter part level. A small area of chipping to the underside of the horn section, towards to pointed end, but this is not visible when sat upon a desk, and does not detract at all. There’s a tiny little pinhead dent to the spherical lighter section, but again this doesn’t detract.
