Design for a silver fruit stand by Edward Hodges Baily (1788- 1867) c. 1820

A drawing of a silver fruit stand by Edward Hodges Baily, circa XXX.
The central bowl supported by three dancing female figures, their arms raised supporting the basket.
Feet formed as lions' paws and scrolling acanthus.
Profile, Full size, 490 x 271.

The foot on this design is present on the base of a pair of silver gilt candelabra in the Grand Service in the Royal Collection (RCIN 51977- 51976), showing figures of Mercury presenting the infant Bacchus to the nymphs of Nysa and The serpent Laden being fed by the three daughters of Erebus and Night, designed by John Flaxman (E.3037, 3038- 1927; 2413; Ionides 989, Ionides 100-103).
The Royal candelabra combine bases made in 1809-10 with Flaxman's upper sections made in 1816-17. The 1809 lower part was originally surmounted by a group of dancing figures holding up a basket which may be reflected in this design.

The dancing figures on this design appear on a dessert stand made by Paul Storr in 1809-10 with glass bowls and two branches (Michael Clayton, Collector's Dictionary of the Silver and Gold of Great Britain and North America, 1971. Fig.271).

Similar figures are used in E.118-1964.
This design is on folio 24 verso included in an album containing 55 designs drawn directly on 27 sheets (sometimes several to a page), for gold and silver plate, including wine-coolers, tureens, inkstands, a teapot, a kettle, candelabra etc., related to the production of the Royal goldsmiths Rundell, Bridge and Rundell between c.1809 and c.1820. (E.70- 124-1964) The album pages are of white wove paper watermarked 1806, full-bound in blue leather, gold tooled, lettered on the spine ‘Designs for Plate etc. by John Flaxman’. With the bookplate of John Roland Abbey (1894 –1969). Bound by William Wood. The back fly- leaf is inscribed “JA, 1070/ 13:9:1935”. All the drawings are by one hand, most probably that of the sculptor Edward Hodges Baily. He became a pupil of John Flaxman in 1807, at a time when Flaxman was designing silver for Rundell, Bridge and Rundell. He joined Rundell Bridge and Rundell in 1815 as “a modeller and designer” and in 1826 became its chief modeller and designer. In 1833 he began working for the firm of Storr and Mortimer. Some of the drawings are most probably copies by Baily of his own designs, while others are copied or adapted from designs by John Flaxman and Thomas Stothard, as well as other, anonymous, designers. The clean condition of the album, and the range of dates of the pieces shown, in addition to their unchronological arrangement, suggest that the album was made as a fair-copy record of pre-existing design drawings, all made about 1820, although some of the drawings seem also have been used as part of a design process. The drawings copied from John Flaxman and Thomas Stothard imitate the graphic styles of the originals. The album was bought from Marlborough Rare Books on 24th March 1964 for 550 pounds.

E.119-1964