Tongs
1982 (made), 1951 (designed)
Artist/Maker | |
Place of origin |
Sugar tongs, silver, pacel gilt, in the form of a stylised fish with long snapping jaws. The tail and fins forming the handle. The fins, tail, eyes and inner jaws are gilt and there is a chased scale pattern on the tail, upper body and fins.
Object details
Categories | |
Object type | |
Materials and techniques | Silver, parcel-gilt, cast and chased. |
Brief description | Sugar tongs, part of the Festival of Britain tea service, made by Leslie Durbin to a pattern by Robert Goodden, British, 1982. |
Physical description | Sugar tongs, silver, pacel gilt, in the form of a stylised fish with long snapping jaws. The tail and fins forming the handle. The fins, tail, eyes and inner jaws are gilt and there is a chased scale pattern on the tail, upper body and fins. |
Dimensions |
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Marks and inscriptions |
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Credit line | Given by Leslie Durbin |
Object history | A replacement pair of sugar tongs made by Leslie Durbin forming part of a tea service designed by Robert Goodden RDI, CBE for the Royal Pavilion at the Festival of Britain and used by King George VI and Queen Elizabeth at the opening of the festival in 1951. According to Professor Goodden, he destroyed virtually all the working drawings for the service when he returned from the Royal College of Art. A few sketch designs for details and one for the missing tongs have luckily survived. Leslie Durbin still has the original casting patterns and offered the tongs as a present to the Museum. |
Subject depicted | |
Association | |
Associated object | M.59-1996 (Original) |
Bibliographic references |
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Collection | |
Accession number | M.80-1982 |
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Record created | June 24, 2009 |
Record URL |
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