SOLD- Irish Engraved King William Balustroid Wine Glasses c1890

Description

Two superb Williamite engraved glasses c1890 commemorating the Battle of the Boyne in 1690.

It has a conical bowl with an annulated knop above and below a central swelling knop stem. Conical folded foot with snapped pontil.

The bowl is engraved with ‘THE GLORIOUS MEMORY OF KING WILLIAM’ with the king sitting on his horse and NO SURRENDER and also “BOYNE 1st JULY 1690 T.C.S.C.”.

Lead glass. no chips cracks or restoration. it measures 6 ¼ inches tall with a 2 5/8 inch bowl and 2 ¾ inch foot.

In 1690 Willliam of Orange. now King Wiilliam 111 defeated James 11 at the Battle of the Boyne. The glasses commemorate this event. However. they were probably produced at the Potters Alley glasshouse in Dublin between 1865 and 1890. The “stiff. and angular” engraved horsemen are typical of the work of one Franz Tieze. a Bohemian engraver. He engraved both newly made glass and also earlier glasses with the deliberate intention to deceive collectors and to make a few extra shillings. I do not see how these coud be described as “fakes” as they are simply not good enough to deceive anyone. The colour alone should have alarm bells ringing.

I first encountered one of these glasses in the Turnbull collection at Mompesson house amost 30 years ago. We called the national trust and they were kind enough to confirm that they still have several examples and that they were all purchased from Arthur Churchill. a highly reputable antique glass dealer in the 1920s. The national trust do claim to have one genuine gilded Williamite but we are unable to obtain any images at this time. lets make do with the two antique Irish glasses we do have for now.

£350 for both