Original British Napoleonic Hallmarked Large Pewter Bowl marked to H.M.S. NEPTUNE 1797 – Trafalgar Participant Original Items

Original Item: Only One Available. This is a very nice large pewter bowl, measuring 10 3/4″ in diameter, with a depth of about 2 1/2 inches. It is clearly marked H-M-S NEPTUNE 1797 on the top, indicating service on this vessel during the Napoleonic Wars. This is quite a large bowl, and may have been a serving bow, as it is far to large for a single person.

The top of the dish is also marked with Pewter Hallmarks, which look to be a “Dragon”, a “Rose”, and a “seated person”. There also is a larger “Rose” on the back over a partly struck LONDON. These markings definitely are from a London manufacturer, as the Rose is the pewterer mark for London. Unfortunately the system for the marks on pewter is much more complex than those on silver. We searched but were unable to identify the maker. There are the initials T. / H. W. on the rim as well, however these could be maker as well as owner marks.

A very nice Napoleonic Wars Era large serving bowl, offered in fine condition and ready to display!

History of the H.M.S. Neptune-

HMS Neptune was a Neptune class 88-gun second rate ship of the line of the British Royal Navy, measuring 185 feet in length on the gun deck. She ordered from Deptford Dockyard on 15 February 1790, to a design developed by Surveyor of the Navy Sir John Henslow. She was one of three ships of the Neptune class, alongside her sisters HMS Temeraire and HMS Dreadnought. The ship was laid down during April 1791 and finally launched 28 January 1797.

The ship was immediately involved with mutiny at the Nore, being tasked with intervention should the mutiny continue. It died out, and the Neptune joined the channel fleet, and then moved to the Mediterranean in 1799, spending the rest of the French Revolutionary Wars in operations with Vice-Admiral Lord Keith’s fleet. 

After refitting, and spending time on blockades, the Neptune then took part in The Battle Of Trafalgar in 1805 under the command of Captain Thomas Francis Fremantle, sustaining 44 Casualties (10 killed and 34 wounded).

2 years later, after repairs were completed, the Neptune went out to the Caribbean, and served there for years, before becoming part of the reserve fleet. After serving as a prison ship for a while, she was broken up in 1818.