A silver-plated meat cloche which once served Queen Victoria, Prince Albert and the Duke of Wellington, is expected to make £600-£800 at auction.
The impressive platter was used at a lavish 500-guest banquet to celebrate the opening of Lincoln’s Inn’s Great Hall and Library in 1845 at which the queen, Prince Albert and the duke were guests of honour.
The opulent seven-course French menu included Pigeons a l’Italienne, roast woodcock and even baby rabbits. Appealing to the royal diners the gastronomic offering also included Potage à la Victoria and Les pâtes à la Regent.
The cloche was owned by Neil Williams a retired barrister from Littleover, who having been called to the bar in 1984, had himself eaten at the Great Hall.
He said: “A few years later I became aware that the hall was to hold a sale of silver plate from the collection it only used for special occasions. I had dined there many times and was keen to acquire a piece, and so bought the cloche.”
The domed platter, which is 63cm (30in) long, 45cm (17¾in) wide and 36cm (14in) high, went on to form the sumptuous centre piece of every family Christmas dinner with goose usually on the menu.
Mr Williams, who practiced on the Midlands and Oxford circuit for 26 years before taking up a career in photography, continued: “It was a marvellous feeling knowing we were using the same serving dish that Queen Victoria was served from.”
The luncheon served 500 esteemed diners mostly from the legal profession, with the food for the head table provided by the Mayfair caterers, Gunter & Co.
The feast was such a hit with the queen she marked it in her diary writing: “Luncheon (in fact a dinner) was served in the Hall, where there must have been nearly 500 people seated at table. Our Suite, the Ministers & Benchers all sat at our tables. The rest of the company were solely composed of Barristers & Law Students. After serving me with soup, I desired the Treasurer, to sit down next to me.”
But the opening of the Great Hall and Library isn’t the only link the cloche has to Queen Victoria.
The dish bears the name William Selwyn QC (1775–1855) who was appointed treasurer of Lincoln’s Inn in 1840.
Mr Williams continued: “Selwyn was a well-known barrister, legal author and constitutional lawyer and held in high esteem by Queen Victoria.”
Soon after she married Prince Albert the queen asked Selwyn to assist her beloved husband in his role as a prince consort.
At the time his naturalisation was a complex legal matter facing opposition largely due to anti-German sentiment in parliament and beyond.
Auctioneer Charles Hanson said: “Whichever way you carve it up this is a tasty piece of UK history as well as being a practical piece of tableware which would still impress diners today.”
Lincoln’s Inn is one of four historic Inns of Court in London, serving as a professional society for barristers in England and Wales.
Auction Details
Auction: Day One | Derby September Four-Day Antiques & Collectors Auction
Auction date: 18th – 23rd September 2025 | 9:30am
Location: Hansons Derbyshire Saleroom
Auction contact: [email protected]
Catalogue/bidding: www.hansonslive.co.uk | www.the-saleroom.com
