European silver in the collection of Her Majesty the Queen

Abstract

This catalogue raisonné is the first study of this area of the Royal Collection for more than a hundred years. Extensive research has uncovered much new information relating to the European silver in the Collection since the last publication on the subject in the early twentieth century. The catalogue discusses more than 350 objects of pre-twentieth-century silver made in France, Germany, the Netherlands and Russia, with a smaller collection of pieces from Italy, Scandinavia, Spain, Portugal and the Austro-Hungarian empire. An introduction on the history of collecting European silver is followed by catalogue entries on silver objects used for dining and drinking, tea, coffee and chocolate wares; toilet services; desk accessories and church plate. Highlights include the German Kunstzkammer objects acquired by George IV, and items formerly belonging to Napoleon which have subsequently entered the Royal Collection.