Fish Knife
1923 (made)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
The Government Hospitality Fund (GHF) was instituted in 1908 to provide official hospitality on behalf of Government when ministers acted as hosts for lunches, dinners and receptions. GHF was centrally funded and remained a semi-autonomous body attached to various departments until 1999 when it became a section within the Foreign and Commonwealth office.
The GHF cutlery and tableware has seen service at important government functions throughout the 20th century. Collectively known as the State Dinner Service, this piece was part of 19,500 items of silver, porcelain, glass and linen still in use today, for official ministerial hosted lunches or dinners. It is looked after by the Government Butlers at Lancaster House, and only used when there is a Butler to supervise and run the event, at Lancaster House, Downing Street, the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, Admiralty House and No 1 Carlton Gardens. It has also been used at Chequers, to host President Yeltsin in 1994, President Chirac in 1995, and at Cardiff Castle in 1998 when HM the Queen hosted a dinner for the European Council.
The GHF cutlery and tableware has seen service at important government functions throughout the 20th century. Collectively known as the State Dinner Service, this piece was part of 19,500 items of silver, porcelain, glass and linen still in use today, for official ministerial hosted lunches or dinners. It is looked after by the Government Butlers at Lancaster House, and only used when there is a Butler to supervise and run the event, at Lancaster House, Downing Street, the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, Admiralty House and No 1 Carlton Gardens. It has also been used at Chequers, to host President Yeltsin in 1994, President Chirac in 1995, and at Cardiff Castle in 1998 when HM the Queen hosted a dinner for the European Council.
Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Materials and techniques | Silver, ivory, the handle engraved |
| Brief description | Fish knife with a silver blade and ivory handle engraved with the cipher GRV, from the Government Hospitality Fund tableware collection, Mappin & Webb, Sheffield, 1923. |
| Physical description | Fish knife with a silver blade and ivory handle engraved with the cipher GRV |
| Dimensions |
|
| Marks and inscriptions |
|
| Credit line | Given by the Government Hospitality Fund |
| Object history | Historical significance: cutlery used by the Government Hospitality Fund when ministers acted as hosts for receptions. |
| Summary | The Government Hospitality Fund (GHF) was instituted in 1908 to provide official hospitality on behalf of Government when ministers acted as hosts for lunches, dinners and receptions. GHF was centrally funded and remained a semi-autonomous body attached to various departments until 1999 when it became a section within the Foreign and Commonwealth office. The GHF cutlery and tableware has seen service at important government functions throughout the 20th century. Collectively known as the State Dinner Service, this piece was part of 19,500 items of silver, porcelain, glass and linen still in use today, for official ministerial hosted lunches or dinners. It is looked after by the Government Butlers at Lancaster House, and only used when there is a Butler to supervise and run the event, at Lancaster House, Downing Street, the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, Admiralty House and No 1 Carlton Gardens. It has also been used at Chequers, to host President Yeltsin in 1994, President Chirac in 1995, and at Cardiff Castle in 1998 when HM the Queen hosted a dinner for the European Council. |
| Collection | |
| Accession number | M.19-2012 |
About this object record
Explore the Collections contains over a million catalogue records, and over half a million images. It is a working database that includes information compiled over the life of the museum. Some of our records may contain offensive and discriminatory language, or reflect outdated ideas, practice and analysis. We are committed to addressing these issues, and to review and update our records accordingly.
You can write to us to suggest improvements to the record.
Suggest feedback
You can write to us to suggest improvements to the record.
Suggest feedback
| Record created | July 5, 2012 |
| Record URL |
Download as: JSON
