A magnificent collection of antique silver objects from England and France and Italy is presented in this unusual catalogue. Its tablet format signals the crucial role played today by state-of-the-art electronic media in the service of silver collecting. Among the silversmiths whose work features in the book are: Paul de Lamerie; Jacques-Nicolas Roettiers; Rundell, Bridge & Rundell; Paul Storr; Edward Feline; Lewis Mettayer, and David Willaume II. Each object is given a full technical and historical description. Paul Storr's great dinner service made for Sir John Gladstone, father of the former prime minister, is also given several pages of illustrations, while the Italian Renaissance tazza with central figure of Vespasian made for Cardinal Pietro Aldobrandini is discussed at length. A panoramic view of a selection of items from the Gladstone Dinner Service is shown in a colourful fold-out.

Illustrated by: Karen Bengall