Based in Pall Mall, the London firm of Vulliamy & Son was headed by the Royal Clockmaker, Benjamin Vulliamy (1747-1811), and his eldest son Benjamin Lewis (1780-1854).
Patronised by the Prince of Wales and the nobility, it not only specialised in clocks but luxury decorative ornaments in bronze, marble and ormolu.
This ornate pair of George III ormolu ice pails were made for one of the firm’s regular clients, Thomas 1st Viscount Anson of Shugborough Hall in Staffordshire.
According to Vulliamy’s shop ledgers, they were originally part of a suite of six ‘magnificent ice pails’ that were ‘amended and altered according to Lord Anson’s directions’. Each piece is engraved with the Anson family coat of arms and originally cost £133, a princely sum equivalent to around £140,000 today.
English furniture dealership Ronald Phillips is selling the pair priced in excess of £100,000.
