Small Silver Frame

A unusual arch topped picture frame made of, unmarked, silver. With enamel flag painted on mother-of-pearl and original velvet covered back. Circa 1910.

The flag is that of the Royal Mail Steam Packet Company. First granted a Royal Charter in 1839 to carry mail to the West Indies and Central America. On 3 January 1842 the first mail, passengers, and high value cargo set sail.

During difficult times, the services survived with the support of the Admiralty Mail Contracts. Part of the contract required the vessels to be available for use as men-of-war. The Crimean War saw some of the company’s steamers sent to the Black Sea as transports and during both World Wars some of the RMSP ships were converted to Armed Merchant Cruisers. Towards the end of the nineteenth century, increasingly, RMSP acquired interests in other shipping companies. By 1927 the Royal Mail Steam Packet group had acquired the shares of the White Star Line and had become a huge shipping conglomerate.

Dimensions: (Frame) 11cm/4⅜ inches (max. height) x 9cm/3⅝ inches (width) x 1cm/ ⅜ inch (depth).
(Glazed Area) 7cm/2⅝ inches (width) x 7cm/2⅝ inches (height).