What’s the Point?
What is the point of the Inner Temple Silver Collection? It is expensive to maintain in good condition; it has to be stored; it has to be checked and examined twice a year and it involves a number of people in cleaning, transporting to and from Hall. If that were the only answer to the question, we would no doubt be strongly advised to dispose of the collection and put the proceeds towards some good cause – supporting students or opening a care home where elderly members of the Inn could decline gracefully in an alcoholic haze!
Of course, it isn’t the only answer and those of you who attended Richard Parson’s talk in February to the Inn’s History Society will have detected a more uplifting answer. It doesn’t have to demonstrate a purpose or have a ‘mission statement’. It exists. It has been added to over centuries and reflects both important events in our history, and also private gifts by generous members of the Inn – some items are decorative; some had a practical use in times past such as salvers, tankards, bone marrow spoons or asparagus tongs and some have a current use and are also decorative. The collection is therefore an accumulation of the Inn’s involvement in the history of the country, our legal system and, importantly, a social history of the members’ involvement in the life of the Inn. Those who were unable to attend Richard’s talk can now get some feel of the collection’s importance to us in his splendid article on page 128.
The answer above does hint at ‘a purpose’ when it comes to adding to what we have been fortunate to inherit. In this century alone, we have enjoyed generous gifts over the Millennium celebrations and various jubilees – decorative table centres and glorious candelabra to help illuminate those occasions when we gather for our collegiate celebrations.
Past Treasurers have been involved in such gifts and also in building up our collection of drinking beakers. Last year, Master Elizabeth Gloster was keen to recognise Her Late Majesty Queen Elizabeth II’s Platinum Jubilee and commissioned the creation of what we needed to make up to the required number.
The collection is therefore an accumulation of the Inn’s involvement in the history of the country, our legal system and, importantly, a social history of the members’ involvement in the life of the Inn.
Special occasions, such as a jubilee, enjoy an extra essay mark and these beakers look magnificent with a beautifully clear set of marks, together with the dates of Her Late Majesty’s reign as you can see in the photographs. We are hugely grateful to Master Elizabeth Gloster for her generous gift to the Inn in such a memorable year. Perhaps in a hundred or so years’ time someone will enjoy drinking from a slightly battered silver beaker and realise it was given to celebrate the longest reign of one our monarchs. Or, I suppose, wonder why we supported a monarchy for so long when most of the rest of the world chose to support an elected president. Maybe they will also wonder at the origins of dining and the teaching of Law.
His Honour Michael Lawson
Master of the Silver
