A Fine Pair of 19th Century Bronze 5 Stage Ships Cannons With Flared Muzzle

Fine pair of mid-19th century English bronze cannon with tapering 41" barrels and flared muzzles, the top of each breech engraved with the family crest o...

A fine pair of English bronze signal cannon, the tapering 36 inch two stage barrels set upon original mahogany carriages with bronze fittings and ...

Pair of antique English naval cannon each with a tapering three stage barrel flanked by plain trunnions, with a knob shaped cascabel button before a shaped rectangular raised vent and ending in a 3 1/2” bore muzzle, enclosing a removable conforming wood plug, circa 1800. Stood upon a naval type bronze-mounted four wheeled wooden carriage, including its wedge shaped quoin with knob handle. The Earls of Lonsdale, Lowther Castle, Cumbria, presumably by descent to Hugh Cecil Lowther, 5th Earl of Lonsdale (1857-1944), until sold by his heir and brother, Lancelot, 6th Earl, as part of the contents of Lowther Castle, Maple & Co. Ltd./Thomas Wyatt, Tuesday 14 April 1947 and two following days, lot 558: ‘A pair of Old Gun Metal Cannons on teakwood carriages, 3ft. 6in. long’. Mrs. P.M. Adie-Shepherd, sold Christie’s, London, 29 May 1970, lot 96. Lowther Castle is a castellated mansion built by Robert Smirke between 1806 and 1814 for William Lowther, 1st Earl of Lonsdale (1757-1844). It was constructed on the foundations of the former 17th century family seat, Lowther Hall, but it was only in the early 19th century that it was afforded the name ‘castle’ in keeping with the Europe-wide fashion for romanticism and which was promoted by influential characters such as William Beckford at Fonthill Abbey, Wiltshire in England and by the writer Sir Walter Scott at Abbotsford, Roxburghshire, Scotland. While it’s not known when these naval cannon were acquired for Lowther they would have been entirely fitting in the castle or its approaches and it’s likely that they were in place soon after the castle was completed, or perhaps acquired later by the 5th Earl. A tantalising possibility is that the cannon were originally aboard the East Indiaman Lowther Castle which was active in the early 19th century. HUGH CECIL LONSDALE, 5TH EARL OF LONSDALE (1857-1944) AND THE DEMISE OF LOWTHER CASTLE In 1882 at the age of 25 Hugh Lonsdale (1857-1944) unexpectedly inherited the earldom and with it the extensive Lonsdale estate, including tens of thousands of acres of Cumberland and Westmorland and coalfields at Whitehaven. However, despite his spectacular inherited wealth – he was suddenly one of the wealthiest men in England, over the course of his lifetime he managed to decimate the family fortune. He led a full and colourful life, one of adventure and luxury. An early intrepid escapade took place in July 1888 when, as part of an expedition called the Scotch Naturalist Society, he set embarked on horse sleigh...

A fine pair of bronze cannon by McAndrew and Woore, set on their original brass bound black painted oak carriages with brass spider wheels, also with a p...

Please note these are faux cannons - they do not work, they are simply a decorative pair. You are viewing a wonderful pair of French cannons cast from the bronze and mounted on woode...

A magnificent pair of 19th century British Artillery signal cannons, each with tapered bronze barrel segmented by hoops, cannon muzzle and stepped breechblock with drop-shaped cascab...

Set of bronze artillery cannons with Italian royal insignia. Set of three vintage patinated bronze artillery models including a larger cannon on hand ca...

A 19th century presentation desk signal cannon. This is a superb medium scale model of a fortress battery cannon made in the 19th century, circa 1850. The antique presentation signa...