Object in Focus - Key

This key belonged to William Hemmings, who served as Sir John Evans’s butler in the 1800s. The key would have been used to open the wine cellar.
Evans was a famous archaeologist, philosopher and scientist. At the age of 17, he began working at John Dickinson's Apsley paper mill. Dickinson was Evans’s uncle and later became his father-in-law.
Hemmings was described as a well-loved and respected man who had gained for himself the reputation of the perfect butler. Originally from Piccotts End, he was the eldest son of a large, well-known family. His father was a gardener to the Gadebridge Estate for many years.