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Lot 325
Edward Patry (British, 1856-1940) Portrait of Francis Barring Bt 1740-1810, inscribed en verso 'Sir Francis Baring, Study for picture in the Payal Exchange painted by Edward Patry', signed lower left and dated 1927 oil on canvas, unframed, 127 x 81 cm Baring, Sir Francis, first baronet (1740-1810), merchant and merchant banker, was born at Larkbear, Exeter, on 18 April 1740, third of the four surviving sons and one daughter of John Baring (1697-1748) and his wife, Elizabeth Baring daughter of John Vowler, a prosperous Exeter 'grocer' who dealt largely in sugar, spices, teas, and coffee. Despite being partially deaf from an early age, in 1762 Francis Baring established the London merchant house of Barings. He emerged as a powerful merchant banker and by the mid-1790s reckoned that his concerns had been 'more extensive and upon a larger scale than any merchant in this or any other country'. Baring's father, the son of a Lutheran pastor, emigrated from Bremen in 1717 and settled at Exeter, where he became a leading textile merchant and manufacturer, and a landowner; other than the bishop and the recorder, apparently he alone in Exeter kept a carriage. His premature death in 1748 resulted in Francis, aged eight, being brought up and strongly influenced by his mother. Her sound business head doubled her firm's worth and in 1762 she extended the business to London. Notwithstanding these private reverses, the City of London quickly recognized Baring's special qualities and in 1771 the Royal Exchange Assurance, a giant public business, appointed him to its court. He underpinned his directorship, which continued until 1780, with a holding of £820 in the company's stock, no mean sum when his assets totalled £13,000. This appointment was important to hold; for the first time he was marked out from the throng of merchants populating the courts and alleys of the City. The partnership capital grew steadily from £20,000 in 1777 to £70,000 in 1790, and to £400,000 in 1804. Baring came to contribute the major share, providing 12 per cent in 1777, 40 per cent in 1790, and 54 per cent in 1804. Annual profits rose to £40,000 in the 1790s and peaked, untypically, at over £200,000 in 1802; they were calculated after payment to partners at 4 per cent interest, sometimes 5 per cent, on their capital. Baring's share of the profits increased steadily from a quarter in the mid-1760s to a half from 1777 and to three-quarters from 1801. His total wealth, business as well as private, rose accordingly, from almost £5000 in 1763, to £64,000 in 1790, and to £500,000 in 1804. Hope & Co. of Amsterdam, the most powerful merchant bank in Europe's leading financial centre, was Baring's most valuable connection. Their association is said to have begun in the 1760s, when Hopes passed Baring some bills to negotiate and ended up 'exceedingly struck with the transaction which bespoke not only great zeal and activity, but what was still more important … either good credit or great resources … From that day Baring became one of their principal friends'. The link was consolidated in other ways, in particular through the marriage in 1796 of Pierre César Labouchère Hope family a leading figure at Hopes, to Baring's third daughter, Dorothy. Baring's work from 1782 as an adviser on commercial matters to cabinet ministers propelled him from relative obscurity to the inner circles of British political life, underlining how in these early years his influence was entirely disproportionate to the resources he commanded. The catalyst for this advancement was his Devon connections. His brother John was elected to parliament as a member for Exeter in 1776; more importantly, in 1780 his sister, Elizabeth, married another MP and fellow Devonian, John Dunning. A rich and influential lawyer, Dunning was allied to Lord Shelburne, a powerful whig politician who held progressive views on political economy and whose borough of Calne Dunning represented in parliament. In July 1782, following Shelburne's promotion to prime minister and Dunning's appointment as chancellor of the duchy of Lancaster, Baring fulfilled the new prime minister's need 'to have recourse from time to time to mercantile advice'. Baring, by instinct a whig, became Shelburne's confidential adviser on commerce, or his 'handy City man', according to a discontented William Cobbett. Baring's ideas on political economy and commerce were well ahead of his time; in 1799 he rightly defended the Bank of England's decision (in 1797) to suspend specie payments as both correct and inevitable, in the face of hostile opposition from many of his peers. Baring was not nearly as close to the tory leader William Pitt, who followed Lansdowne as prime minister and who held office almost continuously until Baring's retirement from active business. Their views were far apart, and on Pitt's death Baring was quick to stress their lack of concurrence 'on any great political question for above 20 years, our political opinions and principles being different' (The Times, 6 Feb 1806). In particular he disagreed with Pitt's policy for the seemingly endless continuation of a wasteful war; they also suffered differences over government policy towards the East India Company. Baring's personal influence in government waned but his expert advice, always fairly delivered, continued to be provided on such matters as trade with Turkey, the importance of Gibraltar, and the funding of the national debt. As part of Pitt's cleansing of abuse from public office, in 1784 he appointed Baring a commissioner charged with investigating fees, gratuities, and prerequisites for holding certain offices. Britain's European allies needed funds and came to Baring who, with Hopes, now organized some of the first marketings of foreign bonds in London. Believing fervently that 'it may be desirable not to have the subject to discuss with our own Ministers, as you know very well how ignorant they are of foreign finance', in 1801 he dispatched P. C. Labouchere of Hopes and his son George to negotiate a loan to the court of Lisbon. The resulting 'Portuguese diamond loan' of 13 million guilders was shared between Barings and Hopes on the usual 25:75 basis. Baring died on 11 September 1810 at Lee and was buried in the family vault at Stratton, Micheldever, on 20 September. He was survived by five sons and five daughters. His eldest son, Thomas, succeeded to the baronetcy and country estates; Thomas's son Francis was to enter political life and in 1866 was created Baron Northbrook. His second son, Alexander, succeeded him as senior partner and was later created Baron Ashburton for his political services. The third son, Henry, was also a partner, albeit an unremarkable one, while the other surviving sons, George and William, never rose to prominence. After Baring's death tributes included one from Lord Lansdowne, son of his political friend, who reckoned Baring was a 'prince of merchants'. Another political ally, Lord Erskine, wrote: 'he was unquestionably the first merchant in Europe; first in knowledge and talents and first in character and opulence'.
Lot 1709
Blick time recorder clock, the enamel dial with Roman numerals inscribed Blick Time Recorders Ltd, 188, Grays Inn Road, No. 82 London, West Central bearing an M.O.D. arrow, the glass door similarly inscribed enclosing a calendar dial and two train key wind movement, the oak case with silvered metal mount, 34ins high
Lot 335
A gentleman's Baume & Mercier 18 carat gold chronograph manual wristwatch. With centre second stop watch facility and having two subsidiaries for constant seconds and 30 minute recorder. Having Arabic numeral markers and tachymeter scale. Reference 3915, 35mm wide. Condition Report. To be used as a guide only. Running but would greatly benefit from a service, stops running intermittently on occasion. Adjusters working. Dial tarnished. Strap a replacement. Crystal a perspex replacement.
Lot 354
ANNOUNCE THIS LOT IS A RECORDING GALVENOMETER Morse recorder: in brass and ebonised wood case with hinged glazed lid and electric motor with lacquered brass commutator, the inking mechanism on the front with take-up spool in drawer in base and stud selectors on each side – 13 in wide, no maker's name, No. 11,379
Lot 169
Two watercolour and pen views of St Tropez, one signed Derocco, a pair of wool tapestries of art nouveau style maidens, a gouache of a harbour signed June Drysdale, a mixed media Mediterranean view signed C. V Baynes and an oil on canvas of a boy playing the recorder in St Marks Square, Venice (7).
Lot 152
A cello, bearing an Andreas Teller label to the inside, approx. 115 cm high, a viola, two violins, an acoustic guitar, a drum and other related items (qty) Condition report Report by GH Included in the lot is a leather violin case with a fabric cover, generally in good condition with some scuffs and age related wear. The guitar is generally in good condition with some small cracks to the wood joints, and age related scuffs and wear. The cello is in good and reasonably well looked after condition, with no obvious cracks or damage, some age related nicks and scratches particularly to edges and corners. All four strings present and bridge, construction etc in good condition. Associated bow in poor condition with some taped up repairs, but generally usable. The first of the violins (the older of the two) is generally in poor and worn condition, with the bridge off and two strings missing. Structurally reasonable but with some small cracks, chips, nicks and dents. All four tuning pegs present and in reasonably good condition. Accompanying bow - generally reasonable structurally but many strings detached and hanging loose. Loosening/tightening screw appears to be jammed. Case in reasonable but slightly tatty condition. The more modern violin is generally in good condition, with three strings broken off or missing, but all four tuning pegs present (one possibly a replacement), and some wear and dents commensurate with use. Case reasonable with some age related wear. No accompanying bow. The viola presents well, in good condition with some small chips and scratches, but no obvious structural damages or repairs, all tuning pegs present, one string missing. The two associated bows have most of their strings missing but are in generally reasonable condition structurally and both tightening/loosening screws turn freely. Case also reasonable with some marks and knocks. The drum has been repainted at some point with chips to the paint, scratches and wear, but generally complete with no major damage. Other items, including the trumpet mute, recorder, drum foot pedal etc in reasonably good condition. Overall most parts of the lot in reasonably good serviceable condition with age and use related wear. The viola bears a label to the interior reading Blessing, otherwise none of the other instruments appear to bear any labels.
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