AN IMPORTANT GEORGE I IRISH BEER JUG, Dublin 1727, maker's ...

Estimate

€15,000 - €20,000

AN IMPORTANT GEORGE I IRISH BEER JUG, Dublin 1727, maker's mark of Matthew Walker, of plain baluster form with central girdle, the front engraved with elaborate armorial, with applied c-scroll handle and raised on circular spreading foot (c.33 troy ozs) 23.5cm tall, 22cm wide over handle and spout This elegant silver jug, introduced into Ireland by the Huguenots during the first half of the eighteenth century, exemplifies the period’s preference for plain silver, focusing on refined shape and proportions over elaborate decoration. From 1700 to 1735, pieces like this were often engraved with coat of arms within a cartouche. This particular jug is adorned with the armorial of the Wilson family, set within a foliate and scroll cartouche, showcasing the craftsmanship and heraldic tradition of the time. For comparative examples, refer to ‘Irish Silver: From the Seventeenth to the Nineteenth Century’ by the Smithsonian Institution (1982, p.19) and Douglas Bennett’s ‘Collecting Irish Silver’ (1984, p.25)