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Lot Essay
The Lloyd's Patriotic Fund was established in 1803 by merchants, underwriters and other subscribers at Lloyd's, the result of a resolution 'That to animate the efforts of our defenders by sea and land it is expedient to raise by the patriotism of the community at large a suitable fund for their comfort and relief and for granting pecuniary rewards, or honourable badges of distinction, for successful exertions of valour or merit.' Before it was finished in 1809 the fund had spent some £21,274 on the awards, ranging from swords of honor to the patriotic vase, of which sixty-six were produced by the order of J.J. Angerstein of the Patriotic Fund for presentation to both Naval and Military officers. Most of the vases were given to naval officers of the rank of Captain or above, including those awarded to Admiral Collingwood, Lady Nelson and William, Earl Nelson, Admiral Nelson's brother and heir to his titles.
While the plan for this vase was indeed the work of the neo-classical sculptor John Flaxman (1755-1826), the design elements may actually be attributed to Mr. John Shaw and Mr. Edward Edwards, who respectively won the competition for the design of a vase and a medal and whose designs were so similar that it was decided both their designs would serve as the principal ornaments for both the vase and medal. Flaxman was then asked by Rundell's in March of 1804 to plan a design for the final vase, conforming to the Shaw-Edwards drawings and were produced by top silversmiths of the day such as Benjamin Smith, as with the present example, and Paul Storr. Flaxman is also believed to be responsible for the lion finial, which did not appear on the original Shaw and Edwards designs (see A.Twist, The Journal of the Silver Society, no. 26, 2010, p. 88).
According to the inscription the present vase was awarded to Sir Samuel Auchmuty. A New York native and Loyalist during the American Revolutionary War, Auchmuty joined the loyal army in 1777 and returned to England with his regiment following the war, where he later distinguished himself, particularly for his role in commanding land forces in the successful attack upon Montevideo, 1807.
While the plan for this vase was indeed the work of the neo-classical sculptor John Flaxman (1755-1826), the design elements may actually be attributed to Mr. John Shaw and Mr. Edward Edwards, who respectively won the competition for the design of a vase and a medal and whose designs were so similar that it was decided both their designs would serve as the principal ornaments for both the vase and medal. Flaxman was then asked by Rundell's in March of 1804 to plan a design for the final vase, conforming to the Shaw-Edwards drawings and were produced by top silversmiths of the day such as Benjamin Smith, as with the present example, and Paul Storr. Flaxman is also believed to be responsible for the lion finial, which did not appear on the original Shaw and Edwards designs (see A.Twist, The Journal of the Silver Society, no. 26, 2010, p. 88).
According to the inscription the present vase was awarded to Sir Samuel Auchmuty. A New York native and Loyalist during the American Revolutionary War, Auchmuty joined the loyal army in 1777 and returned to England with his regiment following the war, where he later distinguished himself, particularly for his role in commanding land forces in the successful attack upon Montevideo, 1807.