Provenance; Removed from Admiralty Arch, Whitehall. This iconic
London building at the opposite end of the Mall to Buckingham Palace
was commissioned by King Edward VII in memory of his mother, Queen Victoria,
and designed by Aston Webb. Completed in 1912, in the past, it served as residence of the First Sea Lord and was used by the Admiralty. Until 2011, the building housed government offices. In 2012, the
government sold the building on a 125-year lease for £60m for a proposed
redevelopment into a Waldorf Astoria luxury hotel and four apartments.
The
firm of Thurston and Co was established in 1799 and have been leading manufacturers of snooker
and billiard tables since as well as being granted four consecutive Royal
Warrants from William IV to George V. The company still holds records of all
the tables made and have confirmed that this table was made in 1913 but
that unlike virtually every other table made, the name of the purchaser is
blank in their records. One can only assume that since it was made for the
residence of the First Sea lord at Admiralty Arch, there was a degree of
secrecy involved.
When
it was installed, the First Sea lord between
1912-1914 was Prince Louis of Mountbatten, father of Earl Mountbatten who held
the same appointment from 1955-1959. The roll call of First Sea
Lords during the 20th century
encompasses many well known historical figures and one can only
speculate who else may have played on this table.
Accessories: The balls come with
the table but no other accessories or
equipment.
Snooker
