QUEEN VICTORIA AND HER ROYAL COURT


Victoria royal court spoon

This is an amazing 4.5" spoon depicting Queen Victoria and her Royal Court

The die work on this spoon is possibly the best that I have ever seen. The amount of detail is amazing. The detail work is so small that I even had trouble photographing it. Whoever created this spoon die was a true expert and a superb craftsman . See the below spoon for its close rival.

According to the marks on the back, the spoon was created in Edinburgh in 1902.
The silvermaker is "JF" but I could not find these initials for an Edinburgh maker during this time period.

At the time, Queen Victoria was the longest reigning British monarch having been crowned in 1837.
The bowl has engraved years 1837 and 1897.

The picture below is greatly enlarged. Actually it is round and  about the size of a U.S. Penny.



This is a picture of the finial. You can see a larger version of this picture by clicking here.

 In the center is "H.M. Queen Victoria and Empress of India "

Rotation starting at the top and going clockwise:
1. Emperor Frederick of Germany. Frederick married Princess Victoria, daughter of Queen Victoria of Great Britain. The couple were well matched; their shared liberal ideology led them to seek greater representation for commoners in the government. Frederick, in spite of his conservative militaristic family background, had developed liberal tendencies as a result of his ties with Britain and his studies at the University of Bonn. As the Crown Prince, he often opposed the conservative Chancellor Otto von Bismarck, particularly in speaking out against Bismarck's policy to unite Germany through force, and in urging for the power of the position of Chancellor to be curbed. Liberals in both Germany and Britain hoped that as emperor, Frederick III would move to liberalize the German Empire.

2. "Empress Frederick of Germany". Queen Victoria's daughter

3. "Alfred Duke of Edinburgh" . He was  a member of the British Royal Family, the second son and fourth child of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. He was created Duke of Edinburgh, Earl of Kent and Earl of Ulster in the peerage of the United Kingdom on 24 May 1866.

4. "Dutchess of Edinburgh". Wife of Alfred.

5. "Princess Beatrice". At the age of twenty-seven,  she met Prince Henry of Battenberg (1858–1896) and became determined to marry him. Princess Beatrice was instantly charmed by the handsome and athletic prince who was serving as an officer in the Prussian Household Cavalry. But as determined as Beatrice was to marry, Queen Victoria was equally determined to keep her youngest child by her side. The two would eventually  be allowed to marry, Queen Victoria finally agreed, as long as nothing changed and Princess Beatrice continued serving her.


6. "Prince Henry of Battenburgh". Colonel Prince Henry of Battenberg (Henry Maurice; German: Heinrich Moritz; 5 October 1858 – 20 January 1896) was a descendant of the Grand Ducal House of Hesse, later becoming a member of the British Royal Family, through his marriage to Princess Beatrice.

7. "Prince Louis of Hesse". On 1 July 1862, Louis married Princess Alice, the third child of Queen Victoria of Great Britain at Osborne House on the Isle of Wight. On the day of the wedding, the Queen issued Letters Patent granting her new son-in-law the style of Royal Highness. This style was only in effect in Great Britain, not the German confederation where Prince Ludwig was only a Grand Ducal Highness. The Queen subsequently created him a Knight of the Garter.

8. "Princess Alice".  Wife of Prince Louis of Hesse.


UNFORTUNATELY  I WAS UNABLE TO GET A DETAILED PICTURE OF THE BOWL BECAUSE OF THE BOWL CURVATURE.
See the top picture.

Center: "Their R.H. The Prince and Princess of Wales"

Starting at the top and rotating clockwise:

1. Duke of York
2. Duchess of York
3. Marquis of Lorne
4. Princess Louise
5. Duchess of Albany
6. Duke of Albany
7. Duchess of Connaught
8. Duke of Connaught
9.Prince Christian
10. Princess Helena


queen victoria court spoon
This is an incredibly detailed embossed spoon about Queen Victoria.
I mentioned that the above spoon was the best detailed spoon die which I have seen. But this one is a very close second.
I  would not be surprised to learn that they both used the same die maker.


Some detail shots to show you this incredible quality

queen victoria court scene spoon bowl
Remember - -all of this detail is in a tea spoon size bowl.
You can see the costumes and facial expressions of many of these figures




"In commemoration of the 60th year of the most glorious reign of H.I.M. Victoria Empress & Queen -1837-1897-"


Center picture is the front handle

The other two pictures are from the back
left: "Heaven's Light our guide" -- notice the interesting spelling of Australia (australasia)
right: rifle volunteers

queen victoria cased spoon
This spoon was also  made available in a fitted case as a presentation gift
 and few of the presentation boxes have survived

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