Tureen; James Charles Edington; London, 1845

Tureen; JAMES CHARLES EDINGTON, London, 1845.
Sterling silver.
Presents punches.
Measurements: 28 x 48 x 31 cm.
Weight: 4750 g.
Elegant oval profile, this tureen stands as a refined example of English silverware of the mid-nineteenth century, produced in London at a time of full technical development and historicist taste. The piece rests on rocaille feet, whose sinuous volumetry introduces a decorative dynamism inherited from the eighteenth-century repertoire, while the turned handles articulate the body with a delicate play of curves and counter-curves. The finely chiseled acanthus leaf-shaped finials reinforce the classical and ornamental imprint of the whole.Executed in sterling silver, the tureen combines material solidity and technical virtuosity, demonstrating the mastery of James Charles Edington's workshop.

James Charles Edington registered his first mark on February 6, 1828 at 43 Berwick Street, Soho. Between 1837 and 1840 he moved to 23 Leicester Square, where he is listed as a working silversmith until 1862 and, from 1863 to 1872, as a manufacturing silversmith. Although the business continued in his name after June 1869, it appears that J.C. Edington had retired, died, or had gone into partnership with Henry Stokes, who at that time was registering a mark at 23 Leicester Square. Stokes subsequently moved to 103 High Street, Marylebone. The workshop of J.C. Edington seems to have been particularly active during the 1830s and 1840s, a time when he was probably the main supplier of silver to the goldsmiths and jewelers Green, Ward & Green of Cockspur Street.