A pair of mother-of-pearl cufflinks, Royal Interest

each of oval outline, the mother-of-pearl ground with the applied cypher of Queen Mary, in a yellow metal surround with curb links, in a fitted box for Collingwoods of London

(Terminals: 1.6cm x 1.1cm)

Provenance: The cufflinks were gifted to the family of the vendor by Queen Mary for looking after her silver during the First World War, with accompanying papers and letters.

Note: The letters included in this lot detail the interesting history of these cufflinks and the reason why they were given to Mr. Wall. During the summer of 1941 Her Majesty Queen Mary was looking to store the royal silver collection, ‘45 cases’ of it, outside of London and safely away from the Blitz. The cases found their way to Mr. Wall, who had enough room to store them without ‘inconvenience’ so the correspondence tells us. They travelled by van on 17 June 1941 and were safely under the protection of Mr. Wall until the end of the war. As a token of her gratitude, Queen Mary gifted the cufflinks along with a handwritten letter to express her ‘gratitude’ for the ‘safe keeping’ in ‘all these long years of war’. Transcript of the handwritten letters Marlborough House, London, July 27th 1945 Dear [x] Wall, It was so kind of you to afford my plate to be in your safe keeping all these long years of war, I assure you I am more than grateful for your kindness and I send you my warm thanks. As a small remembrance I send you these cufflinks with my cypher hoping you will often wear them. With gratitude, Believe me, Yours very sincerely, Mary R Crosswood, Cardingshire, 28 July 1945 Madam, Your majesty’s gracious letter and gift brought to me profound pleasure and satisfaction. I [xxx] to assure your majesty that what little I have been privileged to do for you, will always been regarded by me as an honour. Your Majesty’s more than kind thoughts and generous appreciation serves to my respectful affection. To wear these beautiful links at any time would be a pleasure. To do so at the express wish of your majesty will be a very greatly enhanced delight. With my most respectful and warmest thanks. Your ever obedient servant. Archibald Wall