A Charles I Irish provincial silver chalice dating from 1643 is among the lots at Sotheby’s Decorative and Fine Art online sale which runs until May 20. From the collection of the late Garech Browne at Luggala, Co. Wicklow it is estimated at £4,000-6,000. The inscription reads: ‘This Challice was made for Terlagh O Briene and Ellinorie Brieñe of Comoragh the 26th of 8bre [i.e. October] 1643′. Comoragh Castle was in Co. Waterford.
The year 1643 found Ireland in turmoil at the beginning of the Confederate Wars (1641-1652). Hostilities had begun in 1641 when a group of Catholic landowners unsuccessfully challenged the English administration in Ireland under Charles I. Their aim had been to gain concessions for Catholics but their defeat led to widespread unrest when English Protestant settlers suffered attacks by the native Irish population. It is believed that Terlagh and Eleanor O’Brien sought safety in Kilconnell, co. Galway, 110 miles north of the disturbances in the vicinity of their native Comeragh.
