The Wynyard Testimonial is a stunning sterling silver Victorian epergne which is now displayed in Encounter, the New Zealand design and decorative arts gallery.

 The Testimonial was made by the renowned London silversmiths Smith & Nicholson in 1859 for Colonel Robert Henry Wynyard (1802 - 1864), who held military and administrative offices in New Zealand from 1845 to 1858, including Colonel of her Majesty’s 58th Regiment and the first Superintendent of the Auckland Province. He was also Patron of the Auckland Museum when it opened in 1852. Wynyard purchased the tablepiece with “three hundred gold sovereigns” donated by the citizens of the Province of Auckland in appreciation of his service. It is now on loan from the family of Colonal Wynyard (1992.7, S963, (S1003)).

An epergne is a centrepiece for a ceremonial dining table and this example would have held fruit, nuts and other small items in its three suspended cut glass bowls. The naturalistic design represents nineteenth-century New Zealand themes – the figures of a Maori man, woman and child, and a soldier from the 58th Regiment beneath a central ponga tree (silver fern) which is wrapped with vines that branch out to hold the glass bowls.

Conservation

Over the years the silver had become disfigured by a layer of tarnish, so the epergne was bought to the Conservation lab for cleaning. Originally it had been constructed in individual sections – the figures, tree fronds and vines were separate from the base to which they were attached with silver screw threads and bolts. During its lifetime several of these parts were soldered together, but it was still possible to remove the four figures to make it was easier to clean the difficult to reach areas.

Removing the tarnish from the intricate design was a time consuming process. Cotton wool buds were used to swab small areas of silver with a chemical ‘silver dip’ made up in the laboratory, which was then thoroughly rinsed off with distilled water. On lightly tarnished areas a commercial silver foaming paste was gently applied, and the residues and grease rinsed away with distilled water and acetone.

Each time silver is cleaned a microscopic layer of the surface is removed so that over time the detail is worn away. To reduce the rate of tarnishing and the need for cleaning, the epergne has been coated with two layers of a clear conservation grade lacquer which will not yellow with age, and is easy to remove in the future. So now the epergne can remain of display for far longer before it will need conserving again.

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