$43,200
Holtzapffel Exhibition Ivory-handle Turning Tools, London, c. 1850, sixty-four fluted ivory-handled turning tools of varying patterns, engine-turned silver ferrules and cast threaded rosettes for blade attachment, all stamped Holtzapffel on the hardened steel blades, displayed in a double-door mahogany cabinet with fielded panel interior and doors, cabinet closed: ht. 36, wd. 18; open: wd. 36 in., tools lg. 6 1/2 to 9 1/2 in. Provenance: Tools of Arts and Metiers Sale, Drout Richelieu, Paris, July 1, 1991; Theodore R. Crom. Note: These are likely the tools that were shown in the London Exhibition of the Works of Industry of All Nations by Holtzapffel in 1851, described in the Prospectuses of Exhibitors as "Tool Cupboard with Glazed Doors, containing a selection of sixty-four tools for hand-turning, in ivory fluted handles." The present fielded panel cabinet is period and consistent with other known cabinets housing Holtzapffel turning tools, some of the wooden tool holders are replacements, tools show little evidence of being used.
Auctioneer:
Skinner
Date:
2012-12-01
