The Lockhart ewer and basin

These pieces, of superb quality and preservation, are said to have been given by Louis XIV to Sir William Lockhart of Lee while he was Cromwell's ambassador in Paris, according to Lockhart family tradition. French 17th-century silver is extremely rare, particularly the bigger pieces with lavish decoration, and some types are known only by documentary evidence or from paintings, prints and tapestries. Although their forms are typically French, the ewer and basin are unmarked, which has given rise to doubts as to whether they are indeed French.