ORIGINAL WATERCOLOUR DESIGNS FOR DUNHILL 'AQUARIUM' BOXES AND HUMIDORS

Nineteen drawings. Pencil, watercolour and gouache on paper, depicting the lid and side panels of 'Aquarium' boxes, the reverse signed by the artist Margaret Bennett, some annotated by Mr Baker of Dunhill designating the size of the finished box and panel position. The drawings are various sizes, the smallest measuring 16 x 13.5cm, the largest 39 x 24cm. A couple of artworks have torn corners, here with a removable painted underlay. Each artwork is mounted on card and bound into a bespoke quarter green morocco album, housed in a green solander case. A rare group of original designs for much prized Dunhill cigarette boxes, owners and collectors of which included the British Prime Minister Winston S. Churchill who kept a Dunhill 'Aquarium' lighter on his desk at Chartwell Manor, as well as a rare cigar box.

Dunhill's 'Aquarium' lighter range first appeared in 1949. The mastermind behind these extraordinary lighters was Ben Shillingford, a master engraver who perfected the art of carving and painting lucite panels (a material developed by the American air force during the Second World War) and assembling them to resemble miniature fish tanks, the thick layer of Lucite providing an illusion of movement. Shillingford was soon joined by the husband and wife team of Margaret and Allan Bennett who worked from a studio in their south coast home. From the early 1950s until the late 1960s most Dunhill 'Aquarium' pieces were produced by the Bennetts. While Margaret was responsible for the pencil and watercolour blueprints, it was Allan who carved the panels once the designs had been approved by Dunhill. Like Shillingford, Allan Bennett used dental tools to complete the intricate work, before his wife undertook the back painting of the panels, ensuring every piece was unique. Very few 'Aquarium' boxes were ever produced for Dunhill and the Bennetts were only told of the recipient once the box had been completed. They recall being informed of a commission by Sir Bernard and Lady Docker, for a box for Winston Churchill, the submitted design for which Margaret Bennett believed to be present in this collection (noted in the Bonhams sale of the Bennett archive, 10 December 2008). The most recent appearance of a Dunhill 'Aquarium' box (also a gift of Sir Bernard and Lady Docker) came to market in February 2025 (Lot 554 in Bonhams, Connoisseur's Library Sale Part II, selling for £40,960.00).