The stolen milk jug, which is part of a tea service given to Disraeli by Queen Victoria.
A silver milk jug has recently been stolen from the Drawing Room at Hughenden Manor. It is part of a silver tea set given by Queen Victoria to Benjamin Disraeli, Earl of Beaconsfield, in 1876.
Bronze statuette of Queen Victoria by Sir Joseph Edgar Boehm, at Hughenden Manor. ©NTPL/John Hammond
Disraeli had become Prime Minster for the second time in 1874 (his first brief period in office was in 1869) and his relationship with the monarch was extremely cordial. The Queen was charmed by his judicious flattery and approved of his imperialist policies.
Cartoon in Punch magazine entitled 'New crowns for old ones (Aladdin adapted)', 1876, referring to Disraeli's 'oriental' (Jewish) origins and Victoria's crowning as Empress of India. ©NTPL/Andreas von Einsiedel
Disraeli made Victoria Empress of India in 1876, and the following year she visited him at Hughenden, a clear mark of favour.
Bronzed plaster statue of Benjamin Disraeli at the time of the 1878 Congress of Berlin by Lord Ronald Gower, at Hughenden Manor. ©NTPL/John Hammond
The jug has a London hallmark and has the Beaconsfield arms engraved on its base. We urge anyone with any knowledge of its whereabouts to contact the Hughenden Estate Office on 01494 755573 or email hughenden@nationaltrust.org.uk (all calls and messages will be treated in confidence).
May 20, 2011 at 17:22 |
So depressing. Our local papers show thefts to be greatly on the rise, after a few fallow years. In our own house museum, we find ourselves less and less willing to leave small objects out, to the detriment of the ambience
On another note, in our local Library is a silver cup, given a local sea captain by Queen Victoria for service to a British ship in distress. I must remember to blog about it.
May 21, 2011 at 08:21 |
Indeed depressing. And it is always difficult to strike the right balance between security and presentaton.
May 23, 2011 at 18:45 |
News like this is so discouraging. I am sorry. I recently heard about a piece of pottery stolen from FLW’s Fallingwater. So hard to track down the smalls once they are gone.