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Lot Essay
CHARLES HOPE, 1ST EARL OF HOPETOUN (1681-1742)
The arms are those of Charles Hope, 1st Earl of Hopetoun, the son of Margaret, eldest daughter of John Hamilton, 4th Earl of Haddington and John Hope of Hopetoun, who purchased the barony of Niddry Castle from George Seton, 4th Earl of Winton, as well as the barony of Abercorn, together with the office of heritable sheriff of the Country of Linlithgow in the Parliament of Scotland.
Charles Hope was created Earl of Hopetoun at the age of twenty-two in 1703. Family tradition holds that the 1st Earl's father, John Hope, gave his seat in a lifeboat to the Duke of York, later King James II, during the disastrous wreck of the Royal Gloucester in 1682. Since John Hope had given his life for the sake of the Royal Duke, Queen Anne granted a peerage to Hope's son Charles as soon as he came of age, making him Earl of Hopetoun, Viscount Aithrie and Baron Hope.
The 1st Earl was a zealous supporter of the Union of England and Scotland in 1707, but is best remembered as the builder of Hopetoun House, chiefly to the designs of the architect Sir William Bruce. In addition to serving as a representative peer from 1722 until his death in 1742, he also acted as Lord High Commissioner to the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland in 1723 and was Governor of the Bank of Scotland from 1740 until 1742.
THE HOPETOUN DINNER SERVICE
The present soup plates were part of a large service commissioned in 1706 and 1707 from Thomas Parr and Philip Rollos following Charles' creation as Earl of Hopetoun. Six soup dishes matching those offered here were sold from the Patiño Collection, Christie's, New York, 20 October 1986, lot 39. Further pieces from this service to have come to auction included a pair of sideboard dishes by Parr, 1707, sold at Christie's, New York, 28 October 1986, lot 335; three additional dishes by Parr, 1707, sold at Sotheby's, London, 8 June 1972, lot 71; twelve dinner plates by Parr, 1707, sold at Sotheby's, London, 13 June 1983, lot 35; and a further set of twelve dinner plates by Parr, 1707, sold at Christie's, London, 12 July 1983, lot 172.
In 1727, Charles commissioned a silver monteith bowl from Edinburgh silversmith Harry Beathune, which was engraved with both his arms and those of his wife Henrietta, only daughter William Johnstone, 1st Marquess of Annandale, whom he had married in 1699. This monteith was sold for $211,500 at Christie's, New York, 16 April 1999, lot 223
PHILIP ROLLOS
Philip Rollos, at the time of the making of these soup plates, was Subordinate Goldsmith to Queen Anne. He appears in the denization list of 1691. Although his country of origin is not recorded and little is known of his early career, he is listed as a plate worker as early as 1675, however, he did not obtain his freedom from the Goldsmiths' Company until 1697. He held the post of Subordinate Goldsmith to both King William III and Queen Anne and remained one of the most prominent Huguenot goldsmiths into the early years of the reign of King George I.
Amongst the major surviving works by Rollos is the Marlborough Cistern, 1701, in the collection of the Earls Spencer, the Chudleigh Kingston Cistern, circa 1705, in the Hermitage Museum, St. Petersburg and the Burghley Cistern, circa 1710, at Burghley House, Stamford. There are a number of his royal ambassadorial commissions in existence, including a pair of Queen Anne silver-gilt tazze, attributed to Rollos, circa 1705 and a set of three Queen Anne silver-gilt casters, 1705, both made for Thomas Wentworth, 3rd Baron Raby and 1st Earl of Strafford (1672-1739), a George I ewer and basin, 1717, from the Dukes of Cumberland, The Bingley Ambassadorial cups, covers and stands, circa 1714, now in the Victoria and Albert Museum, a set of Queen Anne dinner plates, 1701, originally in the collection of the Dukes of Devonshire, and an inkstand of 1716 given to Sir John Rushout 4th Bt. as Lord of the Treasury. Other private commissions include a wine fountain of 1708 made for the Duke of Leeds, and a chamber candlestick of 1711 from the collection of the Earls of Clanwilliam.
The arms are those of Charles Hope, 1st Earl of Hopetoun, the son of Margaret, eldest daughter of John Hamilton, 4th Earl of Haddington and John Hope of Hopetoun, who purchased the barony of Niddry Castle from George Seton, 4th Earl of Winton, as well as the barony of Abercorn, together with the office of heritable sheriff of the Country of Linlithgow in the Parliament of Scotland.
Charles Hope was created Earl of Hopetoun at the age of twenty-two in 1703. Family tradition holds that the 1st Earl's father, John Hope, gave his seat in a lifeboat to the Duke of York, later King James II, during the disastrous wreck of the Royal Gloucester in 1682. Since John Hope had given his life for the sake of the Royal Duke, Queen Anne granted a peerage to Hope's son Charles as soon as he came of age, making him Earl of Hopetoun, Viscount Aithrie and Baron Hope.
The 1st Earl was a zealous supporter of the Union of England and Scotland in 1707, but is best remembered as the builder of Hopetoun House, chiefly to the designs of the architect Sir William Bruce. In addition to serving as a representative peer from 1722 until his death in 1742, he also acted as Lord High Commissioner to the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland in 1723 and was Governor of the Bank of Scotland from 1740 until 1742.
THE HOPETOUN DINNER SERVICE
The present soup plates were part of a large service commissioned in 1706 and 1707 from Thomas Parr and Philip Rollos following Charles' creation as Earl of Hopetoun. Six soup dishes matching those offered here were sold from the Patiño Collection, Christie's, New York, 20 October 1986, lot 39. Further pieces from this service to have come to auction included a pair of sideboard dishes by Parr, 1707, sold at Christie's, New York, 28 October 1986, lot 335; three additional dishes by Parr, 1707, sold at Sotheby's, London, 8 June 1972, lot 71; twelve dinner plates by Parr, 1707, sold at Sotheby's, London, 13 June 1983, lot 35; and a further set of twelve dinner plates by Parr, 1707, sold at Christie's, London, 12 July 1983, lot 172.
In 1727, Charles commissioned a silver monteith bowl from Edinburgh silversmith Harry Beathune, which was engraved with both his arms and those of his wife Henrietta, only daughter William Johnstone, 1st Marquess of Annandale, whom he had married in 1699. This monteith was sold for $211,500 at Christie's, New York, 16 April 1999, lot 223
PHILIP ROLLOS
Philip Rollos, at the time of the making of these soup plates, was Subordinate Goldsmith to Queen Anne. He appears in the denization list of 1691. Although his country of origin is not recorded and little is known of his early career, he is listed as a plate worker as early as 1675, however, he did not obtain his freedom from the Goldsmiths' Company until 1697. He held the post of Subordinate Goldsmith to both King William III and Queen Anne and remained one of the most prominent Huguenot goldsmiths into the early years of the reign of King George I.
Amongst the major surviving works by Rollos is the Marlborough Cistern, 1701, in the collection of the Earls Spencer, the Chudleigh Kingston Cistern, circa 1705, in the Hermitage Museum, St. Petersburg and the Burghley Cistern, circa 1710, at Burghley House, Stamford. There are a number of his royal ambassadorial commissions in existence, including a pair of Queen Anne silver-gilt tazze, attributed to Rollos, circa 1705 and a set of three Queen Anne silver-gilt casters, 1705, both made for Thomas Wentworth, 3rd Baron Raby and 1st Earl of Strafford (1672-1739), a George I ewer and basin, 1717, from the Dukes of Cumberland, The Bingley Ambassadorial cups, covers and stands, circa 1714, now in the Victoria and Albert Museum, a set of Queen Anne dinner plates, 1701, originally in the collection of the Dukes of Devonshire, and an inkstand of 1716 given to Sir John Rushout 4th Bt. as Lord of the Treasury. Other private commissions include a wine fountain of 1708 made for the Duke of Leeds, and a chamber candlestick of 1711 from the collection of the Earls of Clanwilliam.