Frank Ellis Collection - Thomason Grapes Corkscrew

Thomason  Grapes Corkscrew

Rare example of a Thomason corkscrew with the simple bunch of grapes with leaves decoration on the front and back.  The bronze barrel has leaf decoration along the top and has the Thomason badge showing the Royal Crest and marked “Thomason’s Patent Ne Plus Ultra”.  This is for the 1802 British Patent of Edward Thomason, Birmingham.  The turned bone handle has a brush which can be unscrewed for replacement.

See Wallis – British Corkscrew Patents – page 17 and Ellis & Ellis – Corkscrews – page 151 for similar example.

Condition – Good, there is a small crack underneath the badge but this is only on the top surface.  The two barrel seams are poorly joined and can be seen as lines, but are intact.  The bone handle has a few cracks and ingrained dirt.  The fluted worm may be missing its tip.  Not a perfect example, but quite rare.