Walpole tureen

This soup tureen is part of a small surviving body of silver made for Sir Robert Walpole, Britain’s first Prime Minister. It was supplied to Walpole by George Wickes (1698-1761). Wickes, from Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk, became one of the most important English silversmiths of his day. Wickes and Co. were eventually to become Garrard, the Crown Jewellers.

The tureen is a virtuoso example of the silversmith’s art, combining many different decorative techniques. Oblong in form it is engraved with the Walpole crest and Garter on both sides of the body and cover. It is raised on four feet, all in the shapes of lions’ paws. The side panels, displaying lion’s heads, combine baroque stylistic features with early examples of rococo asymmetrical design. The overall shape is influenced by contemporary sculptural forms promoted by William Kent, who was involved as Walpole’s architectural decorator at his Norfolk seat of Houghton Hall. Houghton’s Palladian architectural influences were thus reflected in Walpole’s collection of decorative arts.

Sir Robert Walpole entered Parliament in 1701 as MP for Castle Rising and then for Lynn. He quickly distinguished himself through skilful dealings on the political stage. He held several senior offices, including that of Prime Minister. As well as being an outstanding politician, Walpole developed an understanding of architecture, pictures, sculpture, furniture and landscape design, all of which were reflected in the sumptuous surroundings of Houghton Hall, built on the site of an earlier family house.

Constructed and completely furnished during the period between 1722 and 1735, Houghton Hall became a showcase for Walpole’s internationally important collection of works by the finest architects, craftsmen and painters of that elegant age. Walpole’s tureen provides an elegant and expensive reminder of the Norfolkman who was Britain’s first and longest-serving Prime Minister – and of the considerable fortune that he was able to amass during his political career.