POLICY OF ASSURANCE REGISTER FOR TABLE BAY, CAPE TOWN

107 pre-printed leaves - printed by G. Greig in Cape Town and bound into a volume of half leather with marbled boards which are very worn, a portion of the spine is missing at the top, there is a handwritten title on the upper cover - Policy book, the contents are in good condition.

The details of each assurance policy transaction are handwritten in the relevant spaces on the document which covers ships entering and leaving Table Bay. The name of the ship, its destination, the Ships master and the cargo are details required. The costs of insurance for the ship and its goods and merchandise are filled in accordingly.

Although the name of the Assurer is not specifically mentioned - Lombard Street, and in the Royal Exchange are printed on each form.

Lombard Street, London, is a street notable for its connections with the City of London's merchant, banking and insurance industries, stretching back to medieval times. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lombard_Street,_London.

Lloyd's of London. The market began in Lloyd's Coffee House, opened by Edward Lloyd in 1686 on Tower Street in the City of London. This establishment was a popular place for sailors, merchants, and ship-owners, and Lloyd catered to them with reliable shipping news. The coffee house soon became recognised as an ideal place for obtaining marine insurance.

Just after Christmas 1691, the small club of marine insurance underwriters relocated to Lombard Street; a blue plaque on the site commemorates this. This arrangement carried on until 1774, long after Lloyd's death in 1713, when the participating members of the insurance arrangement formed a committee and moved to the Royal Exchange in Cornhill as The Society of Lloyd's. The Royal Exchange was destroyed by fire in 1838. The building was rebuilt by 1844, but many of Lloyd's early records were lost. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lloyd%27s_of_London

Cape of Good Hope Almanac for 1839: One of the entries in this ledger for the ship Reform dated 6 July insured from this day until the 6th day of January 1834 from Table Bay to all ports and places wheresoever and whatsoever was driven on shore at Dassen Island on 6 July.