A George III silver presentation silver box

A George III silver presentation silver box,

by John Reily, London 1822,

circular form, the cover engraved with a coat of arms, the base engraved: 'To Sir John Henry Pelly on his appointment as Governor of the Hudson Bay Company from his friend & colleague Earl Bathurst Secretary of State (War & Colonies) 1822,' gilt interior, the side with a crest, diameter 9cm, approx. weight 4.9oz.

Provenance: Fine Silver and Objects of Vertu, Bonhams, 25th November 2009, lot 28.

Bonhams footnote: 'John Henry Pelly of Upton, Essex (31 March 1777-13 August 1852) was Governor of Hudson's Bay Company for 30 years. He was a fourth-generation sailor turned London merchant appointed to the Hudson's Bay Company at the time of its merger with the North West Company. Instrumental in enlarging the company's trading rights and active Arctic exploration led to Pelly's name commemorated on many geographical features in the Yukon and Arctic.

He was created baronet in 1840, eighteen years after the date on the present lot. As a director and, finally (1841-2), Governor of the Bank of England, Pelly solidified the deep relationship between the Company and the Bank.

By his marriage (1807) to Emma Boulton of Thorncroft, Surrey, he had nine sons, six of whom also reproduced vigorously, and two daughters who did not. Pelly inherited the Upton estate from the family of his grandmother, née Hinde'.