Victorian Sterling Silver Winged Griffin Stirrup Cups

• Victorian Period - The Victorian period of furniture and decorative arts design covers the reign of Queen Victoria from 1837 to 1901. There was not one dominant style of furniture in the Victorian period. Designers used and modified many historical styles such as Gothic, Tudor, Elizabethan, English Rococo, Neoclassical and others, although use of some styles, such as English Rococo and Gothic tended to dominate the furniture manufacture of the period.
  
  The Victorian period was preceded by the Regency and William IV periods, and followed by the Edwardian period, named for Edward VII (1841 ? 1910) who was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions and Emperor of India for the brief period from 1901 until his death in 1910.
• Sterling Silver - Sterling silver is a mixture of 92.5% pure silver and 7.5% of another metal, usually copper. Fine silver is 99.9% pure silver, and is relatively soft and the addition of the very small amount of copper gives the metal enough strength and hardness to be worked into jewellery, decorative and household objects.
• Griffin / Griffon / Gryphon - A griffin, also known as a griffon or gryphon, is a mythical creature with the body of a lion and the head of an eagle. It is typically depicted as a powerful and majestic beast, with the body and legs of a lion and the head, wings, and talons of an eagle. The griffin is widely recognized as a symbol of strength, courage, and guardianship, and has been used in a variety of cultures throughout history.
  
  In ancient mythology, the griffin was often associated with the gods and was considered a symbol of divine power. In ancient Greece, for example, the griffin was associated with the sun god Helios, while in ancient Egypt, it was associated with the goddess Hathor. In medieval European heraldry, the griffin was used as a symbol of strength, valour, and protection, and was often featured on the coats of arms of noble families.

This item has been included into following indexes:

• Leuchars, William and Leuchars & Son (London and Paris)
  • precious objects 11
  • silver, maker or retailer 4
• Melba, Dame Nellie (Australia) - property from the collection of Dame Nellie 141
• stirrup cups, other - silver items 10