Set of 12 Gorham silver-plated bronze 'Queen' hand-bells

Made by the Gorham Manufacturing Company of silver and silver-plated sculpture, these twelve pieces, in six pairs of two, date from approximately the early 1970's and depict six women said to have changed the course of history, in the form of small dinner table hand-bells.

Crafted in silver-plated bronze, they depict Elizabeth I, Mary Queen of Scots, Catherine the Great, Marie de' Medici, Isabella of Castille, and Marie Antoinette, leading royal women from the late 15th to the 17th centuries. Many such works were made, but it is rarer to find a set of all six, and indeed, a set of six pairs. They constitute a fine opportunity for the keen collector, either of historical memorabilia or American silver.