£1,200
Royal. A Victorian gold woodscrew novelty propelling pencil, Walter Thornhill & Co, dated 1877, with countersunk head, shank engraved SANDRINGHAM XMAS 1877, 93mm, marked Thornhill 16, 23.5g
Provenance: Almost certainly given by King Edward VII (when Prince of Wales) to his equerry Major - General Sir Arthur Ellis (1837-1937) (Gentleman Usher or Extra Gentleman Usher to Kings Edward VII, George V, Edward VIII, George VI and Queen Elizabeth II) at Christmas 1877; his son Major Gerald Ellis (1872-1953) Gerald Ellis by whom given to the Honourable Rosemary Seymour, nee Scott-Ellis (1922 - 2017) of Thrumpton Hall, Nottingham; thence by descent to the present vendor.
By the 1870's the firm of Walter Thornhill & Co had become renowned for the ingenuity and elegance of (in the opinion of a writer for 'The Queen') the firm's novelty in knicks-knacks. These included, in December 1876, a range of Christmas Novelties, such as the 81 tonne gun arranged as a telescope pencil case or as an etui balloon sewing necessaire incorporating a vinaigrette, travelling desks and bags, perfume and spirit cases and game cabinets... new shoe paper knives... silver champagne pencil... silver bellows scent bottle... and a silver screw pencil case...
Good condition
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