Remnants of a lost empire to be auctioned

Jacket said to belong to Duleep Singh

Auctioneers will on December 9 auction heritage items belonging to Maharajah Duleep Singh

The first item under the hammer will be a velvet jacket that belonged to Maharajah Deleep Singh along with matching shoes described as ‘foliate decorated gold braid raised work on a crimson velvet ground’

These items remained the property of  Maharajah Duleep Singh until 1893. In 1894 his executors sold Elvedon Hall and its contents to Edward Cecil Guinness, 1st Earl of Iveagh.

Originally Purchased by John Bly Antiques in 1952 from Elveden Hall, Suffolk, England (the former residence of Maharajah Duleep Singh). The Bly family have been dealers in Hertfordshire, since the beginning of the 19th century.

The auctioneers Lyon & Turnbull, established in Edinburgh in 1826, have researched Maharajah Duleep Singh with the assistance of  historian Peter Bance. Full details of the 4 items of Sikh heritage and the auction can be found here.

Born on the 4th September 1838 Duleep Singh, was the youngest son of the legendary Ranjit Singh the ‘Lion-of-the-Punjab’.

In 1843, the infant Duleep Singh  found himself at the head of the one of the most powerful independent Kingdoms in the Indian sub-continent and an impediment to the advancement of the British Empire in India.

With misleading ministers and irresponsible guardians, two wars were fought against the British, resulting in the minor Duleep Singh being separated from his mother, surrendering the famed Koh-i-Noor diamond and removed from power by the underhand-means of the East India Company.

He was effectively exiled to Britain, where he became an instant favourite of Queen Victoria and the ideal party accessory. He passed his time with the crème de la crème of Victorian high society; regularly shooting game with the Prince of Wales at his numerous Highland and English estates, and led a most extravagant and lavish lifestyle often above his means.

Duleep Singh in the height of his days as a Suffolk Squire, was an untouchable shooter, and a fashionable gent with a taste for the finer things in life, be it canvases, sculptures, gems, or women. His appearance in dazzling jewels and semi-European dress were an essential part of him being the eye-turner at every event of its day. Invitations would flood from all over Britain and in some cases Europe too, to bring a touch of the exotic.

This lot is a fine example of the richly embroidered velvets worn by the Maharajah for his formal court events, showing the high quality of workmanship fit only for an Indian Prince. A similar style jacket is pictured in a lithograph of the Maharajah from a photograph taken by Mayall in 1859.

But after trying his hand at writing a West End play, standing for Parliament, playing the field, and remonstrating with the British Empire for the shortfall of his stipend, the deposed Sovereign became disillusioned by his surroundings and sought to make a stand against the tyrannical establishment under the watchful eye and encouragement of the disaffected Fenians, the French underworld, and Tsarist Russia. His plans for resurrecting himself failed and he was tragically struck down with a stroke, dying alone and penniless in a Paris hotel room on the 22nd October 1893 far from the riches of the Punjab.