SAMUEL DROWNE, PISCATAQUA, NEW HAMPSHIRE SIGNED SILVER AMERICAN REVOLUTIONARY WAR EAGLE-POMMEL OFFICERS SWORD OF CAPT SAMUEL STORER.

This exact sword is pictured as plate 44 in Harold Peterson’s American Silver Mounted Swords, 1700-1815, 1955. Peterson in his text describes this sword as follows: By Samuel Drowne, Piscataqua (Portsmouth, N.H.) 1749-1815. Belonged to Samuel Storer of Newport, R.I., 1752-1815. A typical form of the weapon with pierced and decorated counterguard. The obverse branch of the counterguard has been broken off. The slightly curved blade has two narrow fullers and is decorated with etched designs for the first third of its length. The scabbard is russet leather tooled with straight parallel lines as well as short punched lines. There are three silver mounts with scrolled edges and decorative bandings. Suspension is provided for by two carrying rings. The reverse side of the throat is engraved “S. Drowne/Piscataqua”. 33-1/2 inches overall, blade 27-1/4 inches by 1-1/8 inches wide at the hilt”. September 1940 article by Stephen Decatur in American Collector Magazine features this sword and other rare silver by Drowne. Excerpts from this article tell a bit of this Patriot silversmiths history. “Undoubtedly, the name of Samuel Drowne is as well known as that of any of the early silversmiths of Portsmouth, NH, but locally, at least, it is more generally remembered because of the prominent part its owner played in the affairs of his community during the period of the American Revolution and in the years immediately thereafter. Like many other American silversmiths of the time, he was an ardent supporter of the patriot cause and, in fact, he was concerned in an affair which, since it antedates the fights at Lexington and Concord, is considered by many historians as marking the true beginning of the Revolution. Early in December 1774, a rumor became current in Boston that the British intended to send troops to occupy Ft William and Mary at the mouth of Portsmouth Harbor. On the 13th of the month, Paul Revere galloped to Portsmouth with letters to the Committee of Correspondence there reporting this expected move. The following evening a party of several hundred men from Portsmouth and neighboring towns went down the river in boats and, in spite of the fire of the small garrison, landed, stormed, and captured the fort. As it turned out there were not casualties on either side, a happy chance which may explain why this exploit has not achieved greater prominence. The originator and one of the leaders of it was Captain Thomas Pickering, Drowne’s brother-in-law, and the silversmith was a member of his company. The principal object of the patriots in this affair was to secure the powder stored in the fort before the British troops could get it and upwards of 400 barrels of the precious material were taken and secretly removed upriver to places of safety. This part of the program was engineered by Drowne and he arranged it so successfully that the authorities were unable to recover a single barrel. Later, some of this powder was used at the Battle of Bunker Hill where, it would seem, there was, unfortunately, not enough. Samuel, the silversmith, a son of a preacher, was born in Providence, RI in 1749 and died in Portsmouth, NH in 1815. He married Mary, a daughter of Capt. Thomas Pickering, one of the largest landowners of Portsmouth, a prominent citizen and a military officer who was killed in battle with the Indians at Casco to the eastward. The Capt. Thomas Pickering of the Ft. William and Mary exploit was, of course, a brother of the silversmith’s wife. He was captain of privateers and was killed in 1779 during the capture of a British letter of marque, a vessel much more powerful than the 20-gun ship Hampden, which he commanded. A few months after the capture of the fort, Samuel Drowne was placed in charge of the leading Tories in his neighborhood to see that they conducted themselves discreetly. In 1778 he was a member of Col. John Langdon’s Company of Light Horses, an organization especially formed from among the gentlemen of Portsmouth, to assist in the operations in Rhode Island, and was with it during the attempted capture of Newport. In 1954 this sword was loaned by Stephen Decauter to the exhibition at the Corcoran Gallery of Art display of American silver mounted swords. Capt. Samuel Storer was originally a cavalryman and later the commander of a privateer. He, like the sword’s maker, was part of a very prominent Portsmouth family and married the sister of Tobias Lear who was George Washington’s long time confidant and secretary. There is a famous incident when George Washington as President visited Samuel Storer at the Lear home and blessed Samuel’s son “GEORGE WASHINGTON STORER”. George Washington Storer would go on to be an American admiral continuing a long line of Storer family American military officers. James Julia Auctions in February of 2010 sold an archive descended in the Lear-Storer-Decauter family, including other Storer swords, uniforms, etc. This archive included a map of the Yorktown battlefield that sold in excess of $1,000,000. PROVENANCE: Stephen Decatur, Estate of Siro R. Toffolon, of Old Lyme, CT. CONDITION: Very good overall. Scabbard is constructed with leather veneer over wooden core with several leather sections missing as can be seen in photos. The “certifiable antique carved walrus ivory” grip has a longitudinal age crack. Branch of guard, as stated in description,is missing and is well patinated at the breaks. Drag missing finial. 49488-4 (8,000-12,000) – Lot 2002

Auction: Fine Art, Asian & Antiques - Winter 2016

Please Note: All prices include the hammer price plus the buyer’s premium, which is paid by the buyer as part of the purchase price. The prices noted here after the auction are considered unofficial and do not become official until after the 46th day.

Image	Lot	Price	Description
	2002	$24,292.50	SAMUEL DROWNE, PISCATAQUA, NEW HAMPSHIRE SIGNED SILVER AMERICAN REVOLUTIONARY WAR EAGLE-POMMEL OFFICERS SWORD OF CAPT SAMUEL STORER. This exact sword is pictured as plate 44 in Harold Peterson’s American Silver Mounted Swords, 1700-1815, 1955. Peterson in his text describes this sword as follows: By Samuel Drowne, Piscataqua (Portsmouth, N.H.) 1749-1815. Belonged to Samuel Storer of Newport, R.I., 1752-1815. A typical form of the weapon with pierced and decorated counterguard. The obverse branch of the counterguard has been broken off. The slightly curved blade has two narrow fullers and is decorated with etched designs for the first third of its length. The scabbard is russet leather tooled with straight parallel lines as well as short punched lines. There are three silver mounts with scrolled edges and decorative bandings. Suspension is provided for by two carrying rings. The reverse side of the throat is engraved “S. Drowne/Piscataqua”. 33-1/2 inches overall, blade 27-1/4 inches by 1-1/8 inches wide at the hilt”. September 1940 article by Stephen Decatur in American Collector Magazine features this sword and other rare silver by Drowne. Excerpts from this article tell a bit of this Patriot silversmiths history. “Undoubtedly, the name of Samuel Drowne is as well known as that of any of the early silversmiths of Portsmouth, NH, but locally, at least, it is more generally remembered because of the prominent part its owner played in the affairs of his community during the period of the American Revolution and in the years immediately thereafter. Like many other American silversmiths of the time, he was an ardent supporter of the patriot cause and, in fact, he was concerned in an affair which, since it antedates the fights at Lexington and Concord, is considered by many historians as marking the true beginning of the Revolution. Early in December 1774, a rumor became current in Boston that the British intended to send troops to occupy Ft William and Mary at the mouth of Portsmouth Harbor. On the 13th of the month, Paul Revere galloped to Portsmouth with letters to the Committee of Correspondence there reporting this expected move. The following evening a party of several hundred men from Portsmouth and neighboring towns went down the river in boats and, in spite of the fire of the small garrison, landed, stormed, and captured the fort. As it turned out there were not casualties on either side, a happy chance which may explain why this exploit has not achieved greater prominence. The originator and one of the leaders of it was Captain Thomas Pickering, Drowne’s brother-in-law, and the silversmith was a member of his company. The principal object of the patriots in this affair was to secure the powder stored in the fort before the British troops could get it and upwards of 400 barrels of the precious material were taken and secretly removed upriver to places of safety. This part of the program was engineered by Drowne and he arranged it so successfully that the authorities were unable to recover a single barrel. Later, some of this powder was used at the Battle of Bunker Hill where, it would seem, there was, unfortunately, not enough. Samuel, the silversmith, a son of a preacher, was born in Providence, RI in 1749 and died in Portsmouth, NH in 1815. He married Mary, a daughter of Capt. Thomas Pickering, one of the largest landowners of Portsmouth, a prominent citizen and a military officer who was killed in battle with the Indians at Casco to the eastward. The Capt. Thomas Pickering of the Ft. William and Mary exploit was, of course, a brother of the silversmith’s wife. He was captain of privateers and was killed in 1779 during the capture of a British letter of marque, a vessel much more powerful than the 20-gun ship Hampden, which he commanded. A few months after the capture of the fort, Samuel Drowne was placed in charge of the leading Tories in his neighborhood to see that they conducted themselves discreetly. In 1778 he was a member of Col. John Langdon’s Company of Light Horses, an organization especially formed from among the gentlemen of Portsmouth, to assist in the operations in Rhode Island, and was with it during the attempted capture of Newport. In 1954 this sword was loaned by Stephen Decauter to the exhibition at the Corcoran Gallery of Art display of American silver mounted swords. Capt. Samuel Storer was originally a cavalryman and later the commander of a privateer. He, like the sword’s maker, was part of a very prominent Portsmouth family and married the sister of Tobias Lear who was George Washington’s long time confidant and secretary. There is a famous incident when George Washington as President visited Samuel Storer at the Lear home and blessed Samuel’s son “GEORGE WASHINGTON STORER”. George Washington Storer would go on to be an American admiral continuing a long line of Storer family American military officers. James Julia Auctions in February of 2010 sold an archive descended in the Lear-Storer-Decauter family, including other Storer swords, uniforms, etc. This archive included a map of the Yorktown battlefield that sold in excess of $1,000,000. PROVENANCE: Stephen Decatur, Estate of Siro R. Toffolon, of Old Lyme, CT. CONDITION: Very good overall. Scabbard is constructed with leather veneer over wooden core with several leather sections missing as can be seen in photos. The “certifiable antique carved walrus ivory” grip has a longitudinal age crack. Branch of guard, as stated in description,is missing and is well patinated at the breaks. Drag missing finial. 49488-4 (8,000-12,000) – Lot 2002 Auction: Fine Art, Asian & Antiques - Winter 2016 Please Note: All prices include the hammer price plus the buyer’s premium, which is paid by the buyer as part of the purchase price. The prices noted here after the auction are considered unofficial and do not become official until after the 46th day.

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SAMUEL DROWNE, PISCATAQUA, NEW HAMPSHIRE SIGNED SILVER AMERICAN REVOLUTIONARY WAR EAGLE-POMMEL OFFICERS SWORD OF CAPT SAMUEL STORER.