MARK OF PAUL STORR, LONDON, 1815

The right to assumed the additional name and arms of Taylor was granted by royal license in 1815 upon inheriting the Taylor estates following the death of her brother Sir Simon Bissett Taylor Bt. George Watson Taylor, already well off financially through his family's sugar plantations in Jamaica, found himself in control of a vast fortune. He embarked on a successful political career and between 1816 and 1832 was Member of Parliament for Newport, Isle of Wight, Seaford, East Looe and finally Devizes. He was considered one of the greatest collectors and connoisseurs of the 19th Century and he spent lavishly on art. Despite his enormous wealth he squandered his income, estimated in 1815 to be £95,000 a year. This decline in fortunes forced him to part with his collections, until finally the contents of his lavish home, Erlestoke Park in Wiltshire, were dispersed in an auction sale containing 3,572 lots (9th July-1st August 1832).