Beschreibung:

A GEORGE III NINE-PIECE SILVER SUPPER SET ON AN OLD SHEFFIELD PLATE STAND
MARK OF JOHN EDWARDS LONDON, 1805 AND 1806, THE ENTRÉE DISHES WITH MARK OF HENRY NUTTING AND ROBERT HENNELL LONDON, 1808
A GEORGE III NINE-PIECE SILVER SUPPER SET ON AN OLD SHEFFIELD PLATE STAND MARK OF JOHN EDWARDS LONDON, 1805 AND 1806, THE ENTRÉE DISHES WITH MARK OF HENRY NUTTING AND ROBERT HENNELL LONDON, 1808 Comprising: a sarcophagus-form soup tureen and cover and four matching sauce tureens and covers, each with pendant ring handles and gadrooned borders, and four oblong entrée dishes with similar borders and heraldic lion's head finials, the soup tureen and sauce tureens each engraved with a coat-of-arms and crest, the entrée dish covers with detachable crest finials, the soup tureen and sauce tureens each marked on foot, inside cover and on finial, the soup tureen further marked on the ring handle, the entrée dishes each marked on bases, covers and finials , all fitted on a revolving octagonal Old Sheffield plate base with ivory drop ring handles, on a wood base the soup tureen 15¾ in. (40 cm.) long the stand 30 3/8 in. (77 cm.) long 455 oz. (14,151 gr.) The arms are those of Rainier. The Rainier or Reynier family came to Britain, as many French Calvinists did, after the revocation of the Edict of Nantes in 1685. The grant of arms to Peter Ranier of Southampton (d.1837) dated 25 July 1816 (College of Arms Ms: Grants 29/433) differs slightly to the arms engraved on the present lot, which are the arms historically used by the family but never registered. The grant notes that the family had left France sometime after 1685 and had settled in Ramsgate. There are three likely owners of the supper service. The most likely is Admiral Peter Rainier (1741-1808). He was the grandson of Daniel Rainier who had fled to England. He entered the navy in 1756 and had a distinguished career. He completed a celebrated voyage to Madras without having made landfall once. His considerable fortune, £250,000 at his death, was predominantly due to his admiral's share of the booty from the capture of Amboyna and Banda Neira in 1796. He was appointed Admiral of the Blue in the Trafalgar promotions of 1805 and went on to represent Sandwich in the parliament of 1807. He died at his house in Westminster in 1808, leaving much of his fortune to his nephews, Admiral John Spratt Rainier (d.1822) and Captain Peter Rainier C.B. (d.1836). It is possible the supper service belonged to one of these two nephews or alternatively a third nephew Peter Rainier M.D. (d.1837).