A George III wine glass commemorating Admiral Byng, c.1763, ...

Hammer

£70

A George III wine glass commemorating Admiral Byng, c.1763, the round funnel bowl engraved with the admiral hanging from a gibbet flanked by the initials A B with the reverse inscribed JUSTICE (damaged), on a swollen airtwist stem, 15.3cm

Provenance: Private UK Collection, assembled until c.1955 and thence by family descent.ÿ

Note: Admiral John Byng was a Royal Naval officer and an MP from 1751 until his death in 1757. During the Seven Years War, Byng was sent to relieve a besieged garrison at Minorca. With his ships in a poor state of repair, Byng opted to return to Gibraltar to see to his ships and await further promised resources. On his return to Britain he was court-martialled for failing to "do his utmost" to prevent the loss of Minorca. He was executed by firing squad on 14th March 1757 - the engraving on the glass being symbolic rather than accurate - despite appeals to King George II for clemency. Byng was seen by many as a scapegoat for the Admiralty's inefficiency and the execution in this way of such a high-ranking officer divided the country.ÿ

More Information

As can be seen from the online photograph and mentioned in the cataloguing, the reverse side of the bowl has a large loss almost entirely removing the engraved 'JUSTICE'. Otherwise, a small chip to the foot and light general surface wear.ÿ