This
tankand was purchased from a charity shop in Amersham, Bucks. It is engraved with
some initials and the words "R.Colley, Osborne Inn, East Cowes".
Cowes historian Charlie Taylor was consulted and this is what he found out...
The Osborne Inn started out as a simple beer house and was situated in
Castle Street.
Somewhere between 1861 and 1865 a man called Robert Colley took over as
landlord. It is fair to assume that the tankard belonged to him. In the census
taken on 2nd April 1871 records the Osborne Inn as uninhabited.
The area was eventually redeveloped and an imposing building erected with three
shops on the ground floor and apartments above.
Peter Hayward,
secretary of the Pewter Society was also consulted and provided the following
details:
Your mug was made by Charles Bentley, whose premises were just off Oxford Street
in London. He was in business from approximately 1840 to 1863. His
hallmarks were faked in the 20th century, but these are the genuine ones.
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This tankard has been returned to the Isle of Wight and will soon be on display at the East Cowes Heritage Centre, Clarence Road