Antique Dressing Case in Coromandel, by Jenner & Knewstub, Belonging to the Lady Mayoress of London
Ref DL326
SOLD
Manufactured and retailed by Jenner & Knewstub in 1885, this large antique dressing case is veneered in Coromandel with brass edging and brass recessed side handles. It was originally commissioned by the former Lord Mayor of London, George Faudel-Phillips, for his wife, Helen Faudel-Phillips.
The interior, lined with blue Morocco leather, moiré silk and velvet, contains fourteen cut glass vanity bottles and jars ; the silver lids of which are engraved with an ‘H.F.P’ monogram beneath the Faudel-Phillips family crests. The centrepiece is a silver double-ended perfume bottle and vinaigrette with a pierced and engraved silver-gilt interior. Each of the silver fittings bear the manufacturer’s and retailer’s mark of Jenner & Knewstub and are hallmarked for London 1885. An engraved brass plate at the rear of the box reads, ‘Jenner & Knewstub, Manufacturers To The Queen, 33 St James’s St & 66 Jermyn St. London’.
The front flap of the box opens forward to reveal twenty-four vanity and sewing tools fitted to the reverse; these include a mother of pearl handled tongue scraper, four pairs of steel vanity and sewing scissors, a retractable pencil, whistle, double-ended medicine spoon, tape measure, folding picnic corkscrew, and ink pen, all made from solid silver and engraved with matching monograms.
Two brass push buttons set within the manufacturer’s plate release the two concealed spring-loaded drawers below; the top drawer contains four ivory hair and clothes brushes, all bearing the matching ‘H.F.P’ monogram and Faudel-Phillips family crests. The bottom drawer is moiré silk and velvet-lined for jewellery and contains a full width ring channel. With this bottom drawer removed, a concealed spring-loaded floor unit is accessible. This floor unit, made from solid Mahogany, is removed by pushing it backwards slightly, thus unlatching it and allowing it to pop up; it contains three slide-covered sections.
A free-standing solid silver mirror, with matching monogram and crests, is fitted to the underside of the lid. Once removed, a concealed leather-bound letter wallet drops forward.
The Bramah lock, engraved with 'Jenner & Knewstub, 33 St James’s St', comes with its original Bramah key.
This dressing case retains its original leather outer case that bears the branded ‘H.F.P’ initials.
Provenance:
Helen Faudel-Phillips, née Levy, was born in London in 1841. She was the daughter of Joseph Moses Levy, the former proprietor of the Times and Daily Telegraph newspapers, and Esther Levy. In June 1867, she married George Faudel-Phillips. They had five children; Beatrice Rachel Faudel-Phillips (1868-1953), Nellie Cyril Faudel-Phillips (1869-?), Sir Benjamin Samuel Faudel-Phillips (1871-1927), Sir Lionel Lawson Faudel Faudel-Phillips (1877-1941) and Stella Josephine Faudel-Phillips (1879-1958). George Faudel-Phillips took the role of Sheriff of London and Middlesex from 1884-1885, and it was around this time that they moved into the Balls Park estate in Hertford. Balls Park was a very impressive mid-17th-century house set within sixty three acres of parkland. It was claimed that this estate was the inspiration to some of Jane Austen's novel, Pride and Prejudice, and it was here that this dressing case spent most of its life. George Faudel-Phillips became the High Sheriff of London in 1895, and the Lord Mayor of London from 1896-1897. Helen Faudel-Phillips died in 1916 and was buried at Hertford Cemetery. ... Read More
The interior, lined with blue Morocco leather, moiré silk and velvet, contains fourteen cut glass vanity bottles and jars ; the silver lids of which are engraved with an ‘H.F.P’ monogram beneath the Faudel-Phillips family crests. The centrepiece is a silver double-ended perfume bottle and vinaigrette with a pierced and engraved silver-gilt interior. Each of the silver fittings bear the manufacturer’s and retailer’s mark of Jenner & Knewstub and are hallmarked for London 1885. An engraved brass plate at the rear of the box reads, ‘Jenner & Knewstub, Manufacturers To The Queen, 33 St James’s St & 66 Jermyn St. London’.
The front flap of the box opens forward to reveal twenty-four vanity and sewing tools fitted to the reverse; these include a mother of pearl handled tongue scraper, four pairs of steel vanity and sewing scissors, a retractable pencil, whistle, double-ended medicine spoon, tape measure, folding picnic corkscrew, and ink pen, all made from solid silver and engraved with matching monograms.
Two brass push buttons set within the manufacturer’s plate release the two concealed spring-loaded drawers below; the top drawer contains four ivory hair and clothes brushes, all bearing the matching ‘H.F.P’ monogram and Faudel-Phillips family crests. The bottom drawer is moiré silk and velvet-lined for jewellery and contains a full width ring channel. With this bottom drawer removed, a concealed spring-loaded floor unit is accessible. This floor unit, made from solid Mahogany, is removed by pushing it backwards slightly, thus unlatching it and allowing it to pop up; it contains three slide-covered sections.
A free-standing solid silver mirror, with matching monogram and crests, is fitted to the underside of the lid. Once removed, a concealed leather-bound letter wallet drops forward.
The Bramah lock, engraved with 'Jenner & Knewstub, 33 St James’s St', comes with its original Bramah key.
This dressing case retains its original leather outer case that bears the branded ‘H.F.P’ initials.
Provenance:
Helen Faudel-Phillips, née Levy, was born in London in 1841. She was the daughter of Joseph Moses Levy, the former proprietor of the Times and Daily Telegraph newspapers, and Esther Levy. In June 1867, she married George Faudel-Phillips. They had five children; Beatrice Rachel Faudel-Phillips (1868-1953), Nellie Cyril Faudel-Phillips (1869-?), Sir Benjamin Samuel Faudel-Phillips (1871-1927), Sir Lionel Lawson Faudel Faudel-Phillips (1877-1941) and Stella Josephine Faudel-Phillips (1879-1958). George Faudel-Phillips took the role of Sheriff of London and Middlesex from 1884-1885, and it was around this time that they moved into the Balls Park estate in Hertford. Balls Park was a very impressive mid-17th-century house set within sixty three acres of parkland. It was claimed that this estate was the inspiration to some of Jane Austen's novel, Pride and Prejudice, and it was here that this dressing case spent most of its life. George Faudel-Phillips became the High Sheriff of London in 1895, and the Lord Mayor of London from 1896-1897. Helen Faudel-Phillips died in 1916 and was buried at Hertford Cemetery. ... Read More
- Width: 39.9 cm / 15.75 inches
- Depth: 21.2 cm / 8.25 inches
- Height: 20.6 cm / 8 inches
