λDr. Johnson interest

λDr. Johnson interest, a George II silver-mounted tortoiseshell tobacco box,

circa 1742,

oval form, fluted decoration, plain silver mounts, inscribed 'This I give to my esteemed friend Dr. Samuel Johnson, H.H 1742' and 'When this you see, remember me', length 8.9cm.

Dr Samuel Johnson was an 18th century essayist, lexicographer, biographer and poet. After nine year's work, in 1755, his Dictionary of the English Language was published, and while not the first dictionary, it was the most widely used for over 150 years. H.H. almost certainly refers to Harry Hervey a friend of Johnson's. James Boswell in his Life of Samuel Johnson (1791) records Johnson as saying "Hervey was a vicious man but very kind to me. If you called a dog Hervey I would love him."