Georgian Miniature Bilston Enamel Tape Measure Circa English Circa 1780s AF Brighton Gift

We are delighted to offer our sewing collectors this most charming little object for your sewing box. This teeny, tiny little fully working tape measure would have been produced in the Bilston area of England and retailed at the very fashionable 1780s tourist attraction Brighton on the South Coast of England. If you could not meet the Prince Regent yourself, you could own a memento from the resort that he frequented.

Brighton is a seaside resort located in the county of East Sussex, England. In the Georgian era, Brighton developed as a highly fashionable health resort. During the 1730s Physician Richard Russell ‘sang the praises of sea-water very loudly,’ and published a work named A Dissertation on the Use of Sea-Water in the Diseases of the Glands. It was the patronage of the Prince Regent, later King George IV, that really made the town boom. The Prince Regent spent much time in the town visiting his uncle Prince Henry, Duke of Cumberland and together they indulged in all of the delights that the fast paced, fashionable town had to offer! The Prince Regent setting up accommodation in the town for his long time mistress Mrs Maria Fitzherbert. In 1787 the Prince Regent began the construction of exotic looking Royal Pavillion which remains as a popular tourist destination to this day.

We see a white and cobalt blue enamel over copper design. The blue enamel central band gilded with the saying 'A Present From Brighton'. To the top is the original brass winding handle which you turn to unwind the replaced 26 inch tape measure. The design likely based upon a fishing reel.

Size: 7/8 inch tall by 3/4 inch diameter.

Condition: Good and sound. The original old cloth tape measure has been replaced in the past which makes this item fully working. However, you will note that an additional top washer can be seen under the original winder, presumably added afterwards to hide the access point to the inner workings. Gilding worn to blue band, small hole in white enamel repaired, general fine hairlines to enamel base as is common with 300 year old enamels.

Item id: TA15461