Paul Storr Platter from Historic Duke of Hamilton Service, 1808

Superb craftsmanship as befitting the heir to the preeminent Scottish peerage, Alexander Hamilton, future 10th Duke of Hamilton (1767–1852). He looked forward to a life of pleasure and responsibility as well as a large and diversified fortune. (The local coalmines were one source of income.) There were the conventional milestones: Oxford, the grand tour, and Parliament. He was also a member of the Privy Council and a trustee of the British Museum.

One of the most extraordinary episodes in this life was his appointment as ambassador to Russia during the Napoleonic Wars. He was in his late thirties and had not yet come into his inheritance (his father lived until 1819). He was a questionable choice to represent King George III, given his fanciful assertions about being the true heir to the Scottish throne and his outspoken support for Napoleon. But he possessed the wealth necessary for the largely self-financed expedition. He set off in 1807 for the imperial court in St Petersburg with a silver service comprising nearly 300 pieces that had been commissioned from Rundell Bridge with everything necessary in the event Catherine the Great came to dinner. His embassy lasted a mere six months, during which time he added to his art collection and got up to all sorts of milord-abroad foolishness, like trying to wed a forty-something courtesan and Russian agent.

Back home, Hamilton added to the ambassadorial service. This platter, which was made the year he returned from St Petersburg, is engraved with the Hamilton arms. If he was no longer expected to entertain Russian boyars, he still had to maintain standards, especially after he made a suitable marriage to the daughter of William Beckford, who was one of the richest men in England, with a fortune based on the Jamaican sugar harvest. To the Hamilton coalmines were joined the Beckford slave plantations.

The silver service stayed in the Hamilton family until 1919, when it was sold at auction. The largest part was donated to the White House in 1963, during the Kennedy Administration, when First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy undertook the White House renovation.

Fully marked. Heavy weight: 52 troy ounces.