Item Description
Original Item: One-of-a-kind Set. As seen on a recent episode of History Channel's Pawn Stars! Watch Alex from IMA evaluate this Victorian era Vampire Slaying Kit then shoot the pistols on History Channel's Pawn Stars.
Sir Philip William Burne-Jones, 2nd Baronet (1 October 1861 – 21 June 1926) was the first child of the British Pre-Raphaelite artist Sir Edward Burne-Jones and his wife Georgiana Macdonald. He became a well-known painter in his own right, producing more than 60 paintings, including portraits, landscapes, and poetic fantasies.
He was born in London, England in 1861 and was educated at Marlborough College. He attended Oxford University for two years, but dropped out. To appease his parents over this failure, he agreed to take lessons in painting in London.
Philip did focus on painting seriously. His level of skill was high and he exhibited his work in well-known galleries in London and Paris. The Royal Academy exhibited his work eleven times between 1898 and 1918, and his work was also shown in the Paris Salon of 1900. There he exhibited his portrait of his father, now in the National Portrait Gallery. He painted the portraits of many well-known individuals of the time.
His most famous work, The Vampire, depicting a woman straddling an unconscious man, was believed to have been modeled by the actress Mrs Patrick Campbell, with whom Burne-Jones had been romantically linked. The painting also inspired his cousin Rudyard Kipling's poem of the same name.
Having a famous father was difficult for him, and it was Philip's fate in life that his work was often compared unfavorably with that of his father.
Upon his father's death in 1898, Philip succeeded to the title of baronet that had been bestowed on his father in 1894. It is said that his father had accepted the title only because Philip was so keen to inherit it.
Burne-Jones visited the United States in 1902, where he was popular in fashionable society. He lived out most of his life in London, where he died in 1926.
During the late Victorian era, even before Bram Stoker published Dracula, Vampires were all the rage in the upper circles of English society. Philip was enamored by the notion of Vampires and was a known associate of Bram Stoker. Stoker, a Londoner, wrote the book whilst in the North East Coastal town of WHITBY which is why the character Dracula used WHITBY ABBEY as the English residence for his coffin.
Interestingly Philip Burne-Jones's most famous Painting titled "THE VAMPIRE" shows an unconscious male figure with a beautiful woman haunched over him. He used the famous actress, MRS PATRICK CAMPBELL, as his model with whom he was having an affair.
This incredible set contains a letter to from someone called Arthur referring to another individual named "PIXIE" who, it is documented, was the nickname of a young female artist named Pamela Coleman Smith. Pamela Coleman Smith was known to be a member of Burne-Jones's and Bram Stoker's social "circle". You can learn more about this "circle" at this link. It is speculated that "ARTHUR" may have been Arthur Conan Doyle the Author of SHERLOCK HOLMES who was also known to be part of this circle of friends.
This set named to Philip Burne-Jones predates the writing of Stoker's Dracula and was commissioned by a wealthy extravagant artist's fascination with the occult. Was it used to galavant around Transylvania hunting vampires? Very unlikely, it was most likely used in the parlors of fine London homes to provide conversation and entertainment to a clique of artists and their wealthy patrons.
Regardless, of the reason it was made, it dates from the late Victorian era and certainly could have been lethal to the wrong Vampire! This custom manufacturered Victorian Era boxed Vampire Defense Set includes the following piece:
- Quality hardwood custom built carrying case with brass locks, bass fittings and a brass carry handle with Brass plaque on the case lid engraved- PHILIP BURNE-JONES. The case interior lined in well-worn purple velvet and is compartmentalized to accommodate the set. Each compartment has a fitted wood cover. The quality go the case is just wonderful craftsmanship.
- Massive wood mallet with inlaid silver crucifix. This hammer would have been used to drive wooden stakes through a Vampire's heart.
- Five silver mounted wooden stakes with engraved numbers 1,2,3,4,5 (Number three is silver tipped).
- Three screw top silver bottle containers with glass apothecary bottles inside each complete with glass stoppers. Each bottle is labeled; Ether, Chloroform (Poison) and illegible.
- Silver snuff box / coin holder with inscribed initials of PBJ.
- A matched pair of small large .45" caliber silver mounted percussion pocket pistols, made by "Reilly of London" circa 1860.
- Brass gunpowder flask.
- Iron bullet mold.
- Victorian era tin full of percussion caps.
- Small supply of "silver" pistol balls which are heavily tarnished.
- Holy Bible, in English, named to Philip Burne-Jones (1880) and published in MDCCCLXIX (1859).
- Metal crucifix with a depiction of Christ.
- Mirror with silver crucifix inlaid to reverse.
- Rosary made up of black beads and a plain small silver cross.
- Original Handwritten letter dated November 15th, 1890 signed by "Arthur" to "friend" describing a fall by a woman named "Pixie".
- Original Post card of WHITBY with postage stamp to a woman named Mrs. Marie Weatherell in London.
- Original empty packet of Manfull's Plate Powder of Nottingham, this contained Silver Polish.
- Original Whitby Apothecary wooden bottle top.
- Original Tin Type photo in frame of whom we do not know, possibly Philip Burne-Jones.
Overall a stunning extremely rare example of a genuine Victorian Era Vampire Defense Set named to a known extravagant artists of the 1890s.
- This product is available for international shipping.
- IMA considers all of our antique guns as non-firing, inoperable and/or inert. Title 18, U.S. Code, Section 921(a)(16) defines antique firearms as all guns made prior to 1899. This law exempts antique firearms from any form of gun control or special engineering because they are not legally considered firearms. No FFL, C&R or any license is required to posses, transport, sell or trade Antique guns. All rifles and muskets sold by IMA that were manufactured prior to 1899 are considered Antiques by the US BATF (United States Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco & Firearms). Therefore, all of IMA's Antique guns may be shipped to all US States and most nations around the world.
These antique guns are not sold in live condition. They are sold as collector’s items or as wall hangers. Any attempt at restoring an antique gun to be operational is strongly discouraged and is done so at the risk of the customer. By purchasing an antique gun from IMA you thereby release IMA, its employees and corporate officers from any and all liability associated with use of our Antique guns.
Pre-1899 Manufacture, no licenses required, allowed to ship to almost any deliverable address across the globe.
- Not eligible for payment with Paypal or Amazon
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