Liverpool Law Society can trace its history back almost 200 years, and in such a long time you’re bound to accumulate a fair few trinkets and souvenirs.
So when the organisation opted to vacate its Helix office in the city centre earlier this year (staff will now be fully remote), the problem was where to house this treasure trove of artefacts?
A few items have found new homes in libraries and charities, but some of the society’s most prized possessions will not disappear from view.
A silver salver and engraved silver box will both be stored and displayed at The Racquet Club hotel in Liverpool. Members of the society will use the hotel for meetings and events, so they will be able to view the items then.
The silver salver dates back to 1827, the year in which LLS was founded as a law library, and was gifted by one of the society founding members and its first president, Joshua Lace (whose name was until recently still reflected in the firm Berrymans Lace Mawer). The box is from 1920 and is engraved with a dedication to JGK, who historians believe may have been long-serving treasurer and secretary Mr J. Graham Kenion).
Alas, there was no way of accommodating probably the most dramatic of all the items previously displayed in the LLS office: an 18th century Polish cavalry sabre. The weapon was received on a visit to Lodz in 1991 and has now been returned to its true home, after a ceremony in which president Jeremy Myers presented it to Patryk Gowin, the Polish vice consul in Manchester.
1 Reader's comment