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Oval Tub – Kaiser Wilhelm I Bust

Oval Tub 
Kaiser Wilhelm needle case
Needle Case (photograph courtesy of eBay)


Design Representation

Design Details

Needle Case Type:

Figural (diamond mark on needle case matches this design registration)

Patent/Registered to:

W. Avery & Son - Redditch

Patent/Design Representation #:

Ornamental Class1: Metal: #261191

Patent/Design Registration Date:

March 16, 1872

Location of Patent/Design Registration:

The National Archives (TNA) - Kew, UK

Reference #:

TNA Representation - BT 43/31/261191
TNA Register - BT 44/2/261191

Dimensions:

7 x 3.8 x 2.3

Material:

Brass

Name Variations:

W. Avery & Son - Redditch

Other Variations:

a) Butterfly Box - Oval Tub
b) Oval Tub - Diamond Jubilee
c) Oval Tub - Ladies Portrait Bust
d) Oval Tub - Scott’s Monument
e) Oval Tub - Scott’s Portrait Bust

Additional Photographs

Top detail and bottom diamond mark detail

Side view and interior view

William I, German Emperor and King of Prussia

Facts

Wilhelm Friedrich Ludwig of the house of Hohenzollern was King of Prussia from 1861 until his death in 1888.  He was also the first head of state of a united Germany when proclaimed German emperor in the Hall of Mirrors at the Palace of Versailles after Paris was taken in the Franco-Prussian war in 1871.  The German Empire or Kaiserreich of which he was the first head of state was a federation of kingdoms, duchies and free cities that had constituted the Northern Confederation of Germany and lasted until 1918.  Click on the picture below to see a larger version of it.

Goat history

History

Wilhelm I was born in 1797 and as the second son of Friedrich Wilhelm III, the heir to the Prussian throne, was expected to have a military career.  He was appointed a Prussian army officer at age 10 and served with the army from 1814 fighting in the Napoleonic Wars.  He was awarded the Iron Cross and rose rapidly through the ranks eventually attaining the rank of field-marshal in 1854.  This experience made him a strong advocate for the military.  His brother, Friedrich Wilhelm IV, ascended to the throne in 1840 and since he was childless, Wilhelm became the heir.  He became Prince Regent in 1858 after his brother suffered a stroke the previous year which left him incapable of ruling.  In 1861 with the death of his brother, he became King of Prussia.  By 1862 he was in conflict with the lower house of the Prussian legislature over the length of army conscription and appointed Otto von Bismarck as Minister President of Prussia.  He maintained this collaboration with Bismarck, though at times strained, throughout his rule.  Bismarck was committed to the creation of a unified Germany under Prussian leadership and is credited by some with engineering a series of European wars to that end.  The Franco-Prussian War ended when Paris was captured.  Bismarck was able to negotiate to include outstanding independent states to join a unified Germany and have King Wilhelm I proclaimed Kaiser Wilhelm I as leader.

Kaiser Wilhelm history

Miscellaneous

Kaiser Wilhelm misc

Kaiser Wilhelm I is an easily recognisable figure with his handle bar moustache, prominent mutton chops and pickelhaube or spiked helmet.  The pickelhaube was designed by Friedrich Wilhelm IV in 1842 for the Prussian infantry, its use soon spreading to other German principalities.  The Prussian helmet is glossy black hard leather with a metal edged rim and a metal spike.  The spike can be unscrewed and replaced with a plume holder.  The metal front plate displays the identifying emblem.  In the case of Prussian this is the spread winged eagle

Kaiser Wilhelm misc

Note: Right side panel text and photos provided by Lynda Herrod.