Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1910-07-01

King George inherits is almost ines
timable. The so-called gold pantry
at Windsor consists of two large fire
proof storerooms in which Is kept
plate of an estimated value OF
f1,750,O00. =.
The gold plate which is used for
state banouets weighs over five tons.
1t is not, of course, all solid gold. If
the larger pieces were gold they
would be too heavy to move at all.
Some of the epergnes take four men
to lift. These are Of silver-gilt. IL
takes one man to carry two dishes
or eight plates. The latter are Of
pure gold.
There is not much ancient English
plate in the gold pantry. Charles L.
melted down all the plate of his day
and coined it into money. But there
are some exquisite foreign pieces,
among them a great silver fiagon
taken from the flagship Of the Span
ish Armada, and the famous Nauti-
lus cup, made BY that master OF the
art, Benyenuto Cellini. There Is a
shield by the same great Italian. and
the wonderful gold tigers head taken
from Tippoo Sahib's throne after the
storming of Seringapatam in 1893.
This tigers head is marvellous
work Of art. 1t is ife-siZe, and its
teeth and eyes are cut out of pure
rock crystal Another relic captured
at the same time is the jeweled bird
called the Una. In shape 1t is like
pigeon, with a peacock's tail. Its
feathers blaze with precious stones.
and a magnificent emerald hangs
from it's breast. According to an old
Indian legend, whoever owns this
bird will rule India.
There is also a shield formed OF
snuff boxes and valued at $4,000, and
a great quantity of beautiful cups
and salvers, among them rosewa-
ter fountain of silver designed by the
late Prince Consort, and weighing
nearly 5000 ounces.
Detectives who reside at the castle
as ordinary officials guard these vast
treasures of plate. and also the jew
els which are locked in another un-
derground safe. These jewels have,
of course, nothing to do with the
Crown jewels, which are kept In the
Tower. They are the private proper
ty Of the royal family. Queen Alex
andra's personal jewelry is of i'm
mense value. and for precautions s
sake has, we believe. been all dupli-
Gated in paste. But Windsor Castle
is not the place for the enterprising
burglar to go "a-burglng." There is
an old law, still unrepealed, which
enables the reigning sovereign to put
to death any person or persons
through whose carelessness any or
his gems may be lost. What would
happen to a burglar one shudders to
contemplate
The royal library at Windsor con-
tains over 100000 volumes, among
them many that would fetch enor-
nous prices If put up to auction.
There is a Metz Psaler, for which a
collector would sell his last stick.
Charles l. Shakespeare. magnih-
cent CaXton on vellum. and other
treasures too numerous to mention.
Below the library is a room con-
tanning one of the finest collections
Of prints in existence. These alone
would probably fetch fifty to seventy
thousand pounds. if sold. In the same
room are no fewer than 10000 draw
ings of the old masters and a collec-
ton of over 1000 miniatures. The
late Queen Victoria collected these
miniatures.
Besides all these ancient treasures.
King George will presumably inherit
the great collection of valuable OBJ
iects got together by his father.
These include the coronation pres
ents. valued at over a quarter of
million. and many Indian works OF
art. including a wonderful embossed
shield of gold given by a number of
rajahs.
There is no reigning monarch in
the world, not even the cZar of all
the Russias, who is master of such
an amazing collection of beautiful and
valuable objects as is George "
Pearson's Weekly.