Voewood Rare Bookshop List 6, 7
Our latest selection from the shelves of the Voewood Rare Bookshop in Holt, North Norfolk.
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Great Seal of the Realm
Original price
£950.00
-
Original price
£950.00
Original price
£950.00
£950.00
-
£950.00
Current price
£950.00
A large wax Great Seal of the Realm. On one side is Queen Victoria on the throne, with two female figures at her side. On the other side is a depiction of the young Queen riding a horse. Around this image are the words "VICTORIA DEI GRATIA BRITANNIARUM REGINA FIDEI DEFENSOR" (Victoria, by the Grace of God, Queen of Britain, Defender of the Faith). Diameter 158mm. Housed in a custom round metal tin.
The Great Seal of the Realm is the chief seal of the Crown, used to show the monarch's approval of an Act of Parliament or other official document including patents. Approved by the Privy Council on 18th July 1838, Queen Victoria's earliest Great Seal of the Realm was designed following her 1837 accession. Featuring a young Queen Victoria enthroned with the allegorical figures of Justice and Religion on the obverse and the Queen on horseback on the reverse, the seal marked the start of an important chapter in English history. Judging by the youthful image of Victoria, this seal would indeed appear to be from early in her reign.
[ref. 4185]
