Sterling SIlver – Moorabool Antique Galleries

Macintosh Clan Family Crest, on Sterling Silver at Moorabool Antiques, Geelong, Australia — The Macintosh Clan Family Crest, on Sterling Silver cutlery at Moorabool Antiques, Geelong, Australia

“Touch not the Cat bot aglove’

The Scottish Clans are a proud lot of Gentry. Of all the clans, Macintosh is a very familiar name – and part of that is the very memorable crest.

It’s a Wildcat, beautifully engraved to each piece. The motto when included reads ‘TOUCH NOT THE CAT BOT(without) A-GLOVE’ – in other words, don’t mess with these wild Scotsmen!

These fierce Scots supported Robert the Bruce in the 14th century; Mary Queen of Scotts in the 16th century; and Bonnie Prince Charlie in the 18th century.

Their crest is in keeping with this ‘prickly’ nature: A wild cat, ‘guardant’ – rising up with claws out to attack.

The silverware is lucky to be here, having been rescued from the ‘Scrap Merchant’ recently in rural Victoria. The knives were made to match in England, with Sterling Silver handles, in 2015!

Welcome to another Fresh Stock release at Moorabool.com

There’s some splendid Georgian items fresh to stock at Moorabool. While you will see a lot released already – there’s more to come over the next week. Check back regularly!

Georgian Furniture, Ceramics & Glass in Geelong

You’ll notice a new ‘Gallery’ link has been added to the home page – the Georgian Gallery, as seen to the right. This will give you quick access to Furniture, Glass, Silver & Ceramics from the Georgian period.

A collection of Georgian Shell pattern Sterling Silver is exceptional in quality & weight, fine examples of the best tableware money could buy in the early 19th century.

Georgian Sterling Silver, 1809 — Georgian Sterling Silver, London 1809

Georgian Silver Fiddle Shell Spoons at Moorabool Antiques, Geelong — Georgian Silver Spoons, London 1809

Georgian Mahogany dropside table with pad feet, c. 1760

$1,650.00 AUD
Mahogany dropside table with fine square legs and brass castors, c. 1800

$950.00 AUD
Georgian Cuban Mahogany dropside table, 6 pad feet, c. 1750

$2,450.00 AUD
Set of 6 Georgian Silver-handled forks, embossed handles, c. 1780

$780.00 AUD
Georgian mahogany carver armchair, carved & pierced, c. 1785

$1,150.00 AUD
Georgian mahogany tea caddy, dome top, c. 1795

$485.00 AUD
Rare set of Georgian airtwist wine glasses (4), c.1760

$3,400.00 AUD
Rare Georgian glass invalids cup, C. 1780

$680.00 AUD
Pair of Georgian oval engravings, coloured & in original frames, c.1820

Sold
Wedgwood black basalt teapot, engine turned with widow knop, c. 1810

$195.00 AUD
Product on sale

Georgian Sterling Silver Brightcut teaspoon, attr. Simon Harris, London 1794

$115.00 AUD
Georgian Irish Sterling Silver teaspoon, hallmarked Dublin 1823

Sold
Product on sale

Irish Sterling Silver ‘rat-tail’ table spoon, ‘156’, Cummins / Brown, Dublin 1836

Sold
Product on sale

Sterling silver jug, hallmarked London 1801

Sold
Product on sale

Georgian Irish Sterling Silver stuffing spoon, George Nagle + Twycross 1813

Sold
Sterling silver stuffing spoon, W. Bateman London, 1830

$850.00 AUD

See all Georgian Silver >>

Portrait Miniatures

Samuel-Betts-Miniature-Artist's Signature Piece — Samuel-Betts-Miniature-Artist’s Signature Piece at Moorabool Antiques, Geelong

We have a fascinating group of Portrait Miniatures, including a new discovery – a ‘Signature Piece’ of an artist who is known to have produced oil miniatures, but has not previously been identified.

While we don’t know the sitter, we have the name of the artist – Mr Betts – and the place – Shipston-on-Stour – and the date, 1847. The literature only records paper-cut profiles, and the miniaturist scholar McKechnie wrote in 1978 “…..Mr Betts ‘engages in every instance to give an acknowledged beautifully Coloured Miniature Profile, highly finished for 5s.’ No examples are known to me.”

More recently, on the fantastic online resource for Portraits fans, http://www.profilesofthepast.org.uk, it states “With so few works to compare, assessing Betts’ stylistic attributes can only be tentative”. This is because no examples of his oil-miniature work were known – until now!

English Transfer Printed Pottery

There’s a fine selection of English Transfer Printed Pottery from the mid-19th century, including some examples apparently not previously identified in the literature.