Bid to get salver to rightful owner

A MAN who picked up a unique Dundee artefact at an American estate sale has launched a bid to reunite it with its rightful owner.

Jason Hauptman found the antique silver presentation salver, which was gifted to a Dundee Sheriff Court bar officer in 1888, at a yard sale in Long Island last year.

The salver, created by former citybased jewellers and silversmiths Rattray & Co, had been given to Peter McGregor for the “urbanity and courtesy displayed . . . in the discharge of his duties”.

An Evening Telegraph article published on December 22 1888 read: “Today Mr Peter McGregor, who for upwards of 21 years has acted as Dundee Sheriff Court bar officer, and his wife, were presented with a handsome silver salver and a purse containing 30 guineas by the members of the Sheriff Court Bar.”

And now Mr Hauptman, who lives in the Roslyn Heights area of New York, is keen to see the antique back in the hands of its true owner.

He said: “I tried my best to find any information about the individuals that this was presented to, to no avail.

“I would make every effort to ensure that it gets in the right hands.

“I’d love to see this in the hands of a family member once the world officially opens up again.”

A spokeswoman for the Scottish Courts and Tribunals Service said: “This is such a fascinating story and we are intrigued to learn more about how this piece of Scottish history made its way from Dundee to Long Island, New York.

“We’ve been looking further into the life of the man who received the plaque, Peter McGregor, who worked at Dundee Sheriff Court, as bar officer and court house keeper, for more than 21 years.

“Impressively, his obituary tells us he had an ‘unwavering devotion to duty, implicitly carrying out to the letter the command of those under whom he served’ and that behind his ‘gruff exterior, beat a kindly heart’.

“We are hopeful the buyer in America can find it a good home, possibly back here in Scotland.”

Mr Hauptman listed the salver on eBay at $1,000 in the hope it would draw attention to the artefact. Following contact from the Tele, he removed the listing in the hope it can one day be returned to its rightful owner.