1 " ' t i l I I h r U L L U ^ ^ •

MALLETT IN B O N D STREET

Mallettwas founded in Bath in 1865 and has been established in Bond Street

in London since 1910. Here there are five floors of showrooms and galleries

displaying the finest English antique furniture, as well as objets d art,

paintings and glass. Every item, large or small, is selected for its quality,

rarity and individual charm.

141 NEW B O N D STREET L O N D O N W1S 2BS

T: +44 (0) 20 7499 7411 F: +44 (0) 20 7495 .3179

MALLETT AT B O U R D O N H O U S E

In 1962 Mallctt acquired Bourdon Hou.se in Mayfair, which houses the

second major part ot .Mallett's business. Wi th in its 18th century interiors is

shown a fascinating and more eclectic range of high qualit)' continental

furniture, together with precious and decorative objects. There is even a small

courtyard for garden furniture and statuary.

2 DAVIES .S LREET L O N D O N W I K .^DJ

T: +44 (0) 20 7629 2444 F: +44 (0) 20 ^^499 2670

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MALLETT IN MANHAT TAN

In the spring of 2003 .Mallett opened new premi.ses at 929 Madi.son Avenue,

New York, where there are extensive showrooms offering a regularly changing

selection of fine pieces drawn from the nvo London shops. Lhis business

operates as a close link with London and acts as a portal to the treasure

houses of our international business.

929 MAD ISON AVENUE, AT •^4TH S I REEL NEW YORK NY 10021

L: +1212 249 F: +1 212 249 8^84

Website: www.mallettantiqucs.coni E-mail: info(?'mallcttantiques.coni

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M A L L E T T L O N D O N • N E W YORK

141 NEW BOND STREET, L O N D O N W1 B O U R D O N HOUSE, 2 DAVIES STREET, L O N D O N W1

929 MADISON AVENUE, NEW YORK, NY 10021

MA I. L E T T IN B O N D S T R E E T

M l N K W B O N D SI R E K T

L O N D O N W I S 2BS

•| K l . i : i ' H O N K : +44 (0) 2 0 7 4 9 9 741 1

1-AX: +44 (0) 20 7 4 9 5 3 1 7 9

M A L I . E T T AT B O U R D O N H O U S E

2 DAVl l -S S T R E F . T

I . O N D O N W I K 3 D J

T I - L E P H O N E : +44 (0) 20 7 6 2 9 2 4 4 4

I'AX: +44 (0) 2 0 7 4 9 9 2 6 7 0

M A L I . E T T IN M A N H A T T A N

9 2 9 M A D I S O N A V E N U E

N E W Y O R K

T E L E P H O N E : + 1 2 1 2 2 4 9 8 7 8 3

PAX: +1 2 1 2 2 4 9 8 7 8 4

W e b s i t e : w w w . m a l l e t t a n t i q u e s . c o m

E - m a i l : i n f o @ m a l l c t t a n t i q u e s . c o m

Contents

E N G L A N D

T H E EAST

E U R O P E

Deta i l f r o m a m a g n i f i c e n t I n d i a n ivory h o w d a h

(.sec p a g e 7 6 - 7 9 )

F ron t i sp i ece :

Mal le t t ' s s t a n d at l l ic 2 0 0 4 I n t e r n a t i o n a l F ine

A n & A n t i q u e Fair, Palm Beach

O p p o s i t e page:

An i m p o r t a n t ( i e o r g e 1 gilt gesso b u r e a u c a b i n e t .

H e i g h t 9 4 7 , in / 2 4 0 . S c m

ACQUIRING THE BEST New York has given us a wonderful welcome:

our new gallery on Madison Avenue at 74th

Street has had sensational support from old and

new clients alike. This has been most heartening

and it is a great joy to welcome all our friends

there and to show them a wide cross-section o f

treasures drawn from the two businesses in

London. T h e stock is changed regularly and

should be viewed in conjunction with much

more which is to be seen at Bond Street and at

Bourdon House, and also on our website and at

Fair exhibitions.

We have just now especially magnificent English

fiirniture, perhaps to an extent we have not

achieved before, alongside good continental

furniture and paintings. I still maintain that the

B E S T is great VALUE, a good investment, and

if it must be pointed out, reasonable in price.

T h e cost o f our great gilt gesso bureau bookcase

made for the Portuguese Royal family, for

example, is about equal to that o f a minor

impressionist drawing - that must make it a

good buy!

But above all we believe in offering things o f the

ultimate quality in both design and

craftsmanship, whatever the period, that will be

a delight to own and be enriching to live with.

We very much hope you may be enticed to

consider some o f the remarkable pieces we have

selected for this catalogue. We are proud o f

them and our aim is to share with you an equal

enthusiasm for the truly wonderful works o f art

which we have at present.

a u v .

Lanto Synge

Chie f Executive

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T H E LEICESTER H O U S E PIER M I R R O R S

A very important pair of late 17th century

carved giltwood and lacquer pier mirrors, the

arched, bevelled and divided plates within a

black japanned cushion pattern frame with

hatched and gilded border, surmounted by a

finely carved and pierced cresting with scrolling

foliage and hatched strapwork centred by a

cartouche containing a pheon below an Earl's

coronet, flanked by cherubs and turned vase

finials.

English, circa 1695

Height: 57V4 in/147 cm

Width: 22 in / 56 cm

PROVENANCE:

Commissioned for the Sidney family. Earls of

Leicester, either for Leicester House, London or

for Penshurst Place, Kent

Throughout the 16th and 17th centuries the

Sidney family stood resolutely at the centre of

political and court life spanning six tumultuous

reigns. Rewarded with the Earldom of Leicester

in 1618, they were already established at their

seat, Penshurst Place in Kent, that had been

presented to them by Edward VI in 1552.

However, in order to consolidate their influence

at Court, a splendid new house was planned in

London and in turn created one of today's most

famous squares in London. Between 1631 and

1635, after acquiring a plot of land and on the

proviso that the square was enclosed and planted

with trees for the public good, Robert, 2nd Earl

(1595-1677) began building Leicester House. It

was a huge palace that dominated the entire

northernmost end of the square and was

described as 'a large building having three wings

and a comparatively narrow main portion

projecting at the centre of these wings the whole

occupying the four sides of a square and

enclosing a quadrangle'.

During the 17th century each successive eari

changed or embellished the structure. On

succeeding to the earldom, Robert, 4th Earl of

Leicester (1649-1702) embarked on an extensive

programme of refurbishing the London house.

Over £2,000 was spent on repairs and almost

£1,500, was on 'chairs, tapestries, glasses, tables

and furnishing materials'. It would seem most

likely that it was during this lavish programme

of works that these important and splendid pier

glasses were ordered, along with a great verre

eglomise mumr with identical cresting that today

hangs in the Drawing Room at Penshurst. The

fineness of the carving and originality of the

design would indicate that they are the work of a

metropolitan workshop, perhaps even that of

Jean Pelletier or of John Gumley, who were the

principal suppliers of such grand mirrors.

According to the Sidney inventories, the best

furniture and pictures were displayed in London

rather than at the rather sparsely furnished

Penshurst Place. As a powerful nobleman, it

seems very likely that Lord Leicester imitated the

formal layout of King William Ill's new

apartments at Hampton Court in his

remodelling of the house. These mirrors may

therefore have been intended for the series of

important parade rooms that are known to have

existed. These were approached through a series

of interconnecting chambers, diminishing in size

but increasing in importance, and it is perhaps

for one of these smaller but significant rooms

that this pair was made. Lord Leicester's

familiarity with the Court style is revealed

further by the influence of the King's Master of

Works, Daniel Marot (1663-1752), in the design

of the foliate strapwork cresting. Marot was

engaged in the rebuilding of the State

Apartments at Hampton Court between 1694

and 1698 and Lord Leicester, as a regular visitor

to Court, would almost certainly have known of

him and his designs.

The richness and density of the carved cresting is

contrasted with the simplicity of the dark,

ebonised, cushion moulded frame that would

have sat well with the other looking glasses with

ebony frames that are listed in the 17th century

inventories and which were fashionable at the

time. This original black surface was created

using lamp black mixed with shellac, as

advocated by John Stalker & George Parker's

publication of A Treatise of Japanning and

Varnishing o( 1688 and analysis has shown that

the border was built up in two layers: the first

composed of numerous layers of shellac tinted

with lamp black and then sealed with a coat of

clear varnish over the top. Remarkably the

cresting still retains almost all of the original

gilded surface, which has been confirmed by

micro-analysed samples.

Glimpses of how lavish the interiors of Leicester

House were can still be gleaned from the

inventories of 1644 and 1677, with their

references to successive parade rooms hung with

rich green silk damask hangings, tapestries, old

master pictures, looking glasses, sets of gilt

leather chairs and armorial hall furniture, among

other pieces. These mirrors would have looked

particularly splendid against the dark damask in

candle light, with the glittering, ornately gilded

cresting and dark sheen of the black japanned

frames creating an exotic and rich statement

underlining the family's rank and wealth to

guests and visitors.

Shortly after the beginning of the 18th century

the male line of the Sidneys died out and

Leicester House, although remaining in the

family, was let out to various tenants of note

including Frederick, Prince of Wales, before

being demolished in 1788.

A WILLIAM AND MARY LACQUER CABINET ON STAND

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A magnificent late 17th century chinoiserie

lacquer cabinet with its original baroque stand

and cresting; the cabinet decorated throughout

in polychrome 'bantam work' with gilded

highlights, simulating Chinese Coromandel

lacquer, depicting, on the doors, figures in

idealised garden scenes and huntsmen among

wild animals and, on the sides, vases of peonies

and blossom and mythical beasts; the cabinet

mounted with elaborate brass lock escutcheon

and engraved brass corner pieces and hinges; the

interior fitted with an arrangement of ten

drawers, each with an individual landscape or

garden scene with figures, animals and birds, the

interior of the doors with exotic pheasants and

smaller birds, blossom and flowers. The pierced

giltwood cresting is carved with putti amidst

swags, scrolling foliage and flower-heads, with

urn finials at the corners. The base has a deep,

pierced frieze similarly carved with putti, leaves

and flowers, the legs with scroll knees, large scale

stylised acanthus and ending in scroll feet.

the Coromandel coast of India. The technique

consisted in overlaying a base of wood with a

series of increasingly fine white clays and fibrous

grasses. Over this surface, lacquer was applied

and polished before the design was incised and

the hollowed out portions filled with colour and

gilding.

This cabinet retains its original giltwood cresting

and stand. In the 17th century it was fashionable

to mount oriental and chinoiserie cabinets in

such a manner. The pierced giltwood cresting is

richly carved with putti amidst intertwined

swags, scrolling foliage and flowerheads, with urn

finials at the corners. The base has a deep,

pierced frieze, similarly carved with putti, leaves,

flowers and strapwork, all of which make up the

vocabulary of the high baroque. All has been

executed with an intensity and exuberance which

not only reflects the fantasy of late 17th century

court life but also the high quality of cabinet

making which existed in England at this time.

This cabinet was formerly in the collection of Sir

Henry Price. Price was born in Leeds in 1877

and began life in the North of England as a Tifty

Shilling Tailor', in the days when a suit cost as

little as £2.10 shillings. In the years immediately

after the Second World War he increased his

already sizeable fortune, predominately from the

sale of de-mob suits for men coming out of the

forces. He had decided to move south and in

1936 bought Wakehurst Place in Sussex, which is

now owned by the National Trust and

administered by the Royal Botanic Gardens at

Kew. Price was fortunate in collecting during a

period when the dispersal of prominent

collections was commonplace. The result was an

excellent collection that included this lacquer

cabinet on stand.

English, area 1690

Overall height: 76 in / 193 cm

Overall width: 45 in / 114 cm

Width with doors open: 78 in / 198 cm

Depth: 23 in / 58 cm

PROVENANCE:

Sir Henry Price, Wakehurst Place, Sussex

Lacquer-ware was first imported to Europe by the

Portuguese from Japan at the end of the 16th

century and was highly prized; an unknown

medium and greatly admired for its beauty.

Lacquer could not be made in Europe for the

simple reason that the lacquer tree was not

indigenous. It had, therefore, to be imitated. In

the West, this imitation is called japann, and is

made from the deposit left by an insect, coccus

laca, on tree branches. The first European

imitations of oriental lacquers originated in

Venice during the late 16th century and the

fashion for chinoiserie quickly spread. By the

end of the 17th century japanning was well

established throughout Europe and the craze for

chinoiserie continued throughout the 18th

century. Lacquered and japanned furniture held a

very high status and pieces such as this would

have been placed in the most important room of

a palace or house of the highest order for the

private enjoyment of family and selected guests.

The present cabinet simulates Coromandel

lacquer, which, with its characteristic incised

decoration, was made in central and northern

China from the latter part of the Ming dynasty.

Coromandel lacquer was exported to Europe

before the end of the 17th century through the

English East India Company's trading posts on

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11

A BURR WALNUT C H E S T OF DRAWERS

A Q U E E N A N N E SPINET

A small George I burr walnut chest of drawers

of rare form, the quarter veneered top with

cross-banded and feather-banded border and

with indented corners, above an oak lined

brushing slide and four graduated drawers with

rounded ends, cross-banded and feather-banded

borders and retaining their original pierced brass

handles and key escutcheons, raised on unusual

bracket feet with rounded and indented corners.

English, circa 1715

Height: 30 in / 76 cm

Width: 31 in / 79 cm

Depth: 19 in / 48 cm

A rare Queen Anne period spinet attributed to

Francis Coston, the shaped case with lifting top,

veneered and cross banded with walnut, with

brass strap mounts, on its original turned stand

with stretcher, the keyboard in ebony and ivory.

English, circa 1710

Height closed: 32 72 in / 82.5 cm

Length: 7172 in / 182 cm

Depth: 24 in / 61 cm

Francis Coston is recorded at Brownlow Street,

Drury Lane, London between 1700 and 1738.

The word spinet is derived from the Italian

spinetta, which itself comes from spina, a thorn,

for the plucking quills of the mechanism are like

thorns, rather than the leather or metal plectra

which had been used earlier.

'Bentside' spinets were popular in England in the

early 18th century as they were smaller and

easier to maintain than the larger harpsichords

and yet produced a powerful tone. They had one

set of strings plucked by crow quills. The fine

brass-work hinges are another early feature. For

further historical background, see Early Keyboard

Instruments, by Philip James, 1930.

12

13

A GEORGE II RED WALNUT CENTRE TABLE

An early 18th ccntury red walnut centre or 'silver' table, the dished top with raised and moulded edge and indented corners, above a plain frieze, raised on elegantly tapering cabriole legs terminating in pad feet.

English, circa 1730 Height: 27 ' / j in / 70 cm Width: 32 74 in / 82 cm Depth: 2074 in / 52.5 cm

14

A PAIR OF QUEEN ANNE WALNUT STOOLS WITH NEEDLEWORK SEATS

A rare pair of early 18th century walnut stools raised on cabriole legs, the knees carved with shell decoration flanked by scrolls and terminating in pad feet, the rectangular padded seat covered in period floral petit point needlework depicting stylised flowers including carnations and tulips amongst scrolling foliage on a pale gold ground.

English, circa 1710 Height: 18 in / 46 cm Width: 22 74 in / 56.5 cm Depth: I6V4 i n / 4 2 . 5 cm

P R O V E N A N C E : The Hochschild Collection until 1978 Mallett & Son (Antiques) Ltd Private collection,UK

15

A PAIR OF GILT GESSO SIDE TABLES

A pair of Queen Anne gilt gesso side tables of excellent proportions and retaining much of their original gilding, the tops carved with strapwork and scrolling foliage, the frieze with acanthus leaves and central, bowed apron, on cabriole legs headed by acanthus and ending in carved pad feet.

Height: 33 in / 84 cm Width: 45 in / 114 cm Depth: IdUi i 52 cm

mil

A BOOKCASE FROM BURTON CONSTABLE

A very rare George II bookcase of small and

shallow proportions, in burr elm of superb

colour and patination, with dentil cornice above

two glazed doors, retaining their original glass

and enclosing adjustable shelves, the lower

cupboard doors with fielded panels, opening to

reveal a fitted interior with an arrangement of

small drawers veneered with burr elm and with

their original gilded handles.

English, circa 1750

Height: W h in / 219.5 cm

Width: 77'/2 in / 197 cm

Depth: B 'A in / 34 cm

PROVENANCE:

Burton Constable Hall, Yorkshire

Burton Constable Hall, along with Burton

Agnes in the East Riding of Yorkshire, has long

been considered among the finest examples of

Elizabethan architecture in England. The house

has remained in the Ccrflstable family since it

was first built in the 12th century and still

houses one of the great collections of English

furniture, including Thomas Chippendale's

greatest complete commissions of the 1770's.

This beautifully figured bookcase was originally

made to house part of the enormous library at

Burton Constable that extended through various

rooms including the impressive Long Gallery,

occupying the whole of the upper floor of the

west front. Although ostensibly of Jacobean

style, this part of the house is actually largely

Georgian, having been remodelled in 1736 by

Cuthbert Constable. The earliest of this splendid

series of bookcases was probably designed by

1747.

Later, William Constable commissioned Thomas

Chippendale to supply furniture for his new

interiors, transformed from the original

Elizabethan rooms. In the 18th century York

and its surrounding towns had a thriving

cabinet-making industry and William liked to

engage local craftsmen. Apart from Chippendale

himself, from Otley, other Yorkshire contributors

to Burton Constable were Reynoldson and

Farrar, both of York, Wrightson of Beverly and

Walker of Hull. It was, however, Thomas

Higham, the estate joiner at Burton Constable

who was entrusted with making the library

bookcases, all constructed in a combination of

elm and mahogany, as is the present example.

and of similarly shallow proportions. As the

original thirteen bookcases of the Long Gallery

remain in situ it would seem that this particular

bookcase was made for one of the other interiors

before being removed as the use of the room

changed.

Bookcases in the Long Gallery, ( C o u n t r y Life Picture Ga l l e ry )

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A MUSICAL BRACKET CLOCK BY ROGER DUNSTER

A rare and important George II brass mounted ebony bracket clock of large scale and with repeating musical movement; the arched dial inscribed Roger Dunster, with calendar aperture and with four subsidiary dials for strike/silent, chime/silent, days of the week and rise/fall regulation, each enclosing a painted personification of Dawn, Day, Dusk and Night respectively; the arch with gilt Pegasus spandrels within the tune selection dial and with a rotating moon phase sphere within an astral background and with a dial indicating the moon's age; inscribed on the engraved backplate Roger Dimster, the case with brass female caryatid corner mounts, pineapple finials, pierced sides and brass carrying handles, having a rotating base raised on brass ogee bracket feet.

English, circa 1740 Standing on modern, brass mounted tapered pedestal

Height of clock: 30 in / 76 cm Height with pedestal: 70 in / 178 cm Width of clock: 18 i n / 4 6 cm Depth: 1172 in / 29 cm

The substantial movement has verge escapement and plays the selected music with twenty-five hammers on thirteen bells. It plays on the hour followed by the hour strike, and at the half hour followed by the next hour strike on a smaller bell. The tunes are as follows:

King George March Dam nos Champs D'dans mon petit Geminiani's Minuett Minuett in Jupiter & Europia March in Scipio Bergamasco Whitehall Cottillion Bacchus Bellsize Mimiett Prince Eugene's March

Roger Dunster was born in London in 1695. He went into partnership with Christopher Clarke in Amsterdam in 1722. From 1730 he worked on his own until his death in 1747.

20

mm.

A MAGNIFICENT PAIR OF NEEDLEWORK ARMCHAIRS

22

A pair of extremely fine George III mahogany library armchairs of large scale, the armrests carved with flowerheads and trailing foliage, the padded backs, seats and arms all upholstered in 18th century needlework of brilliant colouring, raised on cabriole legs carved both at the front and at the back with scrolls and stylised foliage and with cartouche ornament on the knees and toes.

English, circa 1760 Height: 40 in / 102 cm Width: 28 in / 71 cm Depth: 25 in / 64 cm

23

A LARGE GEORGE II MAHOGANY PIECRUST TRIPOD TABLE

A very fine mid 18th century mahogany tripod cable of grand scale, the circular tilt top with moulded piecrust edge on birdcage support, raised on a fluted and acanthus carved baluster stem above a band of egg and dart moulding, on boldly curved tripod supports with strapped acanthus leaf carving on the knees, ending in claw and ball feet inset with brass cup castors.

English, circa 1755 Height: 29 in / 74 cm Diameter: 33 in / 84 cm

A GEORGE III MAHOGANY CELLARETTE

A late 18th century mahogany cellarette of rare form, having canted corners, carved blind fret frieze and deeply fluted sides, the flat cover with moulded edge and top of solid, flame figured mahogany of superb, faded colour; with original lead lining.

English, circa 1780 With later brass feet Height: 18'A in / 47 cm Width: 24 in / 61 cm Depth: 21 in / 53 cm

24

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A GEORGE III MAHOGANY WRITING DESK

A very fine late 18th century George III mahogany library writing desk with brass swan's neck handles, the leather lined top with a lifting book-rest, above a long, single drawer in the frieze which opens to reveal a writing shelf with pigeon holes and small drawers; the kneehole flanked by drawers at the front and by cupboard doors on the reverse, supported at the corners by stop-fluted carved columns adorned with acanthus carving and laurel leaf capitals; the desk with conforming moulded panels on all sides, the corners being carved with roundels and harebells.

English, circa 1790 Height: 35'/2 in / 90 cm Width: 5372 in / 136 cm Depth: 33 72 in / 85 cm Height of writing shelf: 27 72 in / 70 cm

26

27

HE NEWHAILES LIBRARY CHAIRS

mm

An important pair ot mid 18th century carved

mahogany hbrary armchairs, the rectangular

backs and seats and the armrests all upholstered

in their original Aubusson tapestry depicting on

one a cockerel and a k)x and on the other a

pheasant and a hare, within wreaths of flowers

and arabesques; the arms with outcurving hand

rests and moulded, sloping supports with

flower-head terminals and beading, raised on

square, pierced legs at front and back, with fret

brackets embellished with entwined flowers and

leaves, ending in guttae feet and joined by four

pierced fret stretchers. The cockerel chair back

is inscribed M.R.DAUBUSSON.MAGE

English, circa 1755

Two stretchers replaced on each

Height: 39V, in / 101 cm

Width: 2972 in / 75 cm

Depth: 30 in / 76 cm

Depth of seat: 24 in / 61 cm

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I H E N E W H A I L E S L I B R A R Y C H A I R S comhwed

P R O V E N A N C E :

The Dalrymple family at Ncwhailes House,

Mid loth ian , Scotland unti l 1928

Partridge 1928

Pcrq' R I')'nc, New York

Mrs Robert C, Elbert, New York

Partridge, New York

Walter P Chrysler |r, sold Parke-Bernet Galleries,

New York, May 1960

The Gerstenfeld Col lect ion, Washington D C

1 I T E R A T U R E :

1. Weaver, NewlMiles, Midlothian^ Coin i t ry Life,

8 September 1917

P Duncan , Newhailes, East Lothian, Coun t ry

Life, 29 January and 5 February 1987

J (A)rnforth, Newhailes, East Lothian, Coun t ry

Life, 21 and 28 November 1996

I Cow, Scottish Houses and Gardens, London 1997

I Cornforth , Newhailes, Midlothian, Coun t ry

Life, 22 August 2002

These chairs, originally part o f a set o f four,

remained in the Dalrymple family from the

mid 18th century until 1928. (The second pair

was sold in New York in 1998.) Such an

established provenance is rare when so many

examples o f great English furniture remain

undocumen ted.

They were acquired by either General the H o n

James St Clair, who died in 1762, or his widow,

Janet (nee Dalrymple) , for her home at 60 Greek

Street, London . After her death in 1766 they

were purchased at the auction o f the Cireek

Street house by her nephew, David Dalrymple

(1726-1792), Lst l.ord Hailes, for Newhailes

House in Scotland. There they remained unti l

1928 when tliey were sold by Sir David

Dalrymple.

Newhailes Hou.se stands .some four miles cast o f

Edinburgh and takes its name from the ruined

Hailes Castle in East Lothian, another

Dalrymple family property. Original ly named

Whi teh i l l , it was built by the architect James

Smith, as his own home, around 1686. In 1709

it was purchased by Sir David Dalrymple, the

youngest son o f the l- arl o f Stair, who renamed it

Newhailes.

James Smith designed the original house as a

iieo-Palladian villa, with int imate interiors and

small windows commensurate to its overall

proportions, l^y 1720, Wi l l i am Adam had

completed a new wing for Sir David , making

space tor a magnilicent library o f far grander

scale ihan any other room in the house, with

large sash windows that filled it wtth light. It

was in this great room that the 1st Lord Hailes,

grandson o f Sir David , later placed his tour

tapestry covered chairs. Further addit ions and

embell ishments were made at Newhailes in the

18th century, including a .second wing to

balance the library extension and some very

fine rococo plasterwork. Fhe hall was re-

decorated in 1742 by the stuccoist, James

Clayton, w h o also provided an elaborate,

architectural overmantel for the chimney-piece

in the library. Al though .some 19th century

alterations took place, much at Newhailes today

remains as it has been since the early 18th

century and the house retains a remarkable

atmosphere ot its era.

A celebrated collection o f books and

manu.scripts was formed over the years,

reaching its height under Lord Hailes, when

the library at Newhailes was de.scribed by D r

Johnson as 'the most learned room in Europe'.

A l though certain items were sold in 1937, it is

nonetheless considered to be the most

impor tan t contemporary collection to survive

from the period o f the Scottish En l igh tenment .

There are approximately 7 ,000 volumes ot

British and foreign works from the 16th to the

18th century, plus numerous pamphlets and

prints, maps and music. Particularly strongly

represented are history and biography, politics,

economics and theology, as well as much

classical and contemporary literature. A m o n g

Da l rymp le papers are the manuscr ipt ot l.ord

Hailes' Annals of Scotland, annotated by Samuel

Johnson , and letters ot his contemporaries,

inc lud ing H u m e , Robertson, Beatty and Burke.

Upon the death o f Sir Mark Da l rymp le in

1971, the contents o f the library were allocated

to the Nat ional Library o f Scot land, having

been accepted by the Government in lieu o f

estate duty. N o w a property o f the Nat ional

Trust for Scotland, Newhailes has been

undergo ing restoration and it is intended that

this great literary collection be returned to its

rightful place.

rhe grand scale ofthe.se chairs, their overall

design and the detail thereot are all strongly

indicative ot their time. I hey repre.sent

C.hippendale in the 'Modern ' manner, as

described and illustrated in his Gentleman and

Gabinet-Maker's Director, br inging together, in a

chair form he calls 'French', both Chinese and

Roman ornament in one model . 'Fhe pierced

fretwork may also be seen in his 'Goth ick ' chairs

and the foliate entwined supports on his design

tor a 'C!hinese' china cabinet.

wm

The [.ibrary at Ncwhailcs. (C'oiintn- Life Picturc Library)

Wh i l e demand for English tapestry had declined

by the m id 18th century, the fashion for the

French alternative had grown. Woven scenes

drawn from the fables o f La Fontaine appealed

to the picturesque, fantasy mood ot the rococo

era and were widely ujied on F^nglish seat

furniture. The tapestry on these chairs was made

by Pierre Mage o f the Aubus.son factory, where

he worked for no le.ss than tifrv vears, unti l

General St Clair was a distinguished soldier and

politician. In 1748 he was returning trom his

post as Mil itary F^nvoy in Vienna and it is

possible that he purcha.sed the tapestries in Paris

on that trip (Cotitts Bank records show they

arranged credit for h im in Lyons and Paris at

that time) and had the tapestries put on the

chairs upon acquir ing them at a later date. The

l ikelihood is that the chairs were actually

upholstered by one o f the Bradshaw family o f

London furniture makers and tapestry makers.

Soho was the centre o f London tapestry mak ing

in the 18th century and CJreek Street was at its

heart. It happened that the St C^lair's home at

60 (ireek Street was once part ot the curtilage o f

the Bradshaws' premi.ses at 27 Soho Square, so

they were clo.se neighbours. Wi l l i am Bradshaw,

although primarily an upholsterer, was al.so a

prominent furniture maker in the 1730's and

174()'s. However, given their later date, their

sophistication o f design and their quality, the

chairs themselves were most probably made by

one o f the leading makers o f the nearby St

Martin's Lane coterie, which included

Ch ippenda le himself.

i

32

A GEORGE II MAHOGANY GATE-LEG TABLE

A mid 18th century mahogany rectangular

gate-leg table, the top of most unusual, gently

curving serpentine outline and of very fine

colour and patina, raised on cabriole legs carved

with acanthus at the knees and ending in large

claw and ball feet.

English, circa 1750 Height: 2 9 7 , in / 74 cm

Width: 5 0 ' / 4 i n / 127.5 cm

Length: GVI2 in / 156 cm

TWO QUEEN ANNE COVERLETS

A Queen Anne embroidered coverlet, the cream

cotton covered with diaper stitch and surrounded

by a deep border of flowering tendrils, separated

from the centre by a secondary running frame of

yellow embroidered flowers and leaves. Further

flowers and foliage decorate each corner and the

centre of the coverlet and small sprigs of flowers

and exotic birds are placed evenly over the rest of

the ground.

English, circa 1700 Framed: 66 x 62 in / 167.5 x 157.5 cm

An early 18th century coverlet worked with a

running border of scrolling, shaded foliage. At

the centre is a hillock from which branches grow,

blooming with a wide variety of flowers of exotic

form, worked in a multitude of patterns and

shades of pink. Oriental simurghs fly amongst

the branches.

English, circa 1715 Battened: 65'A x 68 in / 166 x 172.5 cm

33

A CHIPPENDALE CABINET

A very fine mid 18th century Chippendale

period mahogany breakfront bookcase cabinet;

the upper section surmounted by an

architectural broken pediment with central

pedestal and dentil cornices, flanked by pierced

fretwork galleries ending in foliate scrolls, above

four tall panelled doors with corner quadrants

and turned roundels, each door enclosing

adjustable shelves and a shallow drawer at the

base; the lower section having a finely gadrooned

top edge above three long and six short drawers,

all retaining their original swan's neck brass

handles, raised on a moulded plinth base; the

mahogany of superb colour, figuring and patina

throughout.

English, circa 1760

Height: 97 in / 246.5 cm

Width: 67 in / 170 cm

Depth: 2172 in / 54.5 cm

34

35

. . .

A are pair of G e o ^ UI m a h o g ^ y ha!l chair anribi i ted to Thomas Qiippendale with circular, pierced backs beaitng at the centiv the painted crest and maCD of the Blunt family Inter lacrymas mkat ('SunshrTtc airritht teanr), stipported on a ^aoiaed splat wifli fluted base, the d ishoi , serpatine seat widi fluted (iieze, raised on sqnare, fluted le^ headed paterae s the front and on splayed le^ at the back.

English, circa 1775 Height: 40 inches / 101.5 cm Width: 19 inches/48.25 cm Depth: 18 inches / 45-75 cm

PROVENANCE:

General Blunt, Adderbury House, Oxfordshire

The Countess of Cromartie, Castle Leod, Ross

and Cromarty

LITERATURE: cf: Christopher Gilbert, The Life and Work of Thomas Chippendale, p96, figs 154 and 156, p97, figs 157 and 159

Stylistically, these chairs are very closely related in design and execution to a small group of documented neo-classical hall chairs known to have been supplied by Thomas Chippendale. The most obvious similarity is represented by the round backs of the chairs with the painted medallions depicting the coats of arms of the commissioning family

The pierced back of the present chairs is a more extravagant progression from the carved backs of the set of chairs supplied to Sir Gilbert Heathcote for Normanton Park and the square, neo-classical fluted legs are an embellished variation on the chairs supplied to the Lascelles family at Harewood House in 1773. There are again strong similarities here with the waisted splat that supports the round chair back. The present chairs have neo-classical paterae at the tops of the legs which are also very similar to those supplied to Normanton Park and to the Winn family at Nostell Priory.

bblc excqKian of the » t of eight It chairs suppKed to Nostelt and the set

l i ^ g a i n with arms, supplied to Hatewood Htmi^, the pieseiM chai s - in partimJar among the armless variety are the most extrava^nt and ambitiously designed o f the j^mmi

Castle Leod. the seat tf the clan Mackenzie is thoi^ht Eo JMVC faces buih on aiie sac of an a n o e n t Jfeisfa fort in the 1 2 l h C H i t u r y and

CDn^i;red t i e oidest intact e ^ l e iit=the British Isles. It w remodelled in 1606 by Sir Roderick Mackenzie: George Mackenzie, statesman and politician, was created the 1st Earl of Cromartie in 1703. He served under Charles II. James II, William III and Queen Anne. He was a supporter of the union between England and Scotland, though certain of his descendants served the Jacobite cause: The 3rd Earl and his son. Lord Macleod, suffered imprisonment and Macleod had to give up any claim to the estates. He later redeemed them after a distinguished military career, which included the founding of what is now the Highland Light Infantry.

There followed two childless generations and the estates then passed to Macleod's sister, Isabel, wife of the 6th Lord Elibank. In 1861, Isabel's descendant, Anne, wife of the 3rd Duke of Sutherland, was created Countess of Cromartie with remainder to her second son Francis, who became Earl of Cromartie in 1888. In 1895, two years after the death of Francis, his daughter, Sibell Lilian Mackenzie, was granted by letters patent the tide of Countess of Cromartie, despite the tide having fallen into abeyance.

In 1899 she married Lt Col Edward Walter Blunt, who adopted the name Mackenzie. This was presumably the time that these chairs, bearing the Blunt crest and motto, entered the Mackenzie family. The title then passed to their son Roderick Grant Francis Blunt-Mackenzie MC TD, who became 4th Earl of Cromartie, and as High Sheriff of Ross and Cromarty lived at Castle Leod, Easter Ross, which remains the family seat.

One of a set of eight hall chairs supplied by Chippendale to Harewood House

36

•.illi

I-T,.

A FANTASY PAINTING A:pRJBUTED TO HENRY ANDREWS

A ^ V

mm

m l

•5.V V

An early 19th century landscape depicting an exotic twilight vignette of natives dancing around a fire with European and tribes people watching. In the background is a walled city and a chinoiserie tempietto and in the foreground is a figure on horseback protected from the sun by a parasol, holding an exotic bird on her arm. The scene possibly represents visitors to the Americas. Attributed to Henry Andrews.

English, circa 1835 Now in a fine quality carved gilrwood Regence frame Oil on canvas: 25 x 40 in / 63.5 x 101.5 cm Framed: 35 x 51 in / 89 x 129.5 cm

Henry Andrews (1794-1864) was a London painter of genre and historical subjects. His works are always wistful, often in the manner of Watteau and, as in this case, evoke the flamboyance of the mid baroque; the costume

' ^ depicted is of the early 17th century. Andrews I f f i V exhibited at the Royal Academy between 1830

and 1858, the British Institution and the Suffolk Street Galleries of the Royal British Society of Artists.

. • •< -

A PAIR OH C O M M O D E S ATTRIBUTED TO WILLIAM M O O R E OF DUBLIN

An extremely fine pair of late 18th century

harewood and marquetry demi-lune

commodes attributed to William Moore of

Dublin; the top with segmented veneers inlaid

with a fan with pendant bellflowers and with

ribbon tied swags of husks, the border cross-

banded and inlaid with scrolling bay leaves

and berries and a central bow; the satinwood

frieze with similar bcribboned swags

interspersed with anthemia; each commode

with a central drawer above a single cupboard

door with large central fan reflecting the

design of the top, surmounted by a classical

urn hung with swags; the sides with further

conforming swags and with vertical, cross-

banded and anthemion inlaid panels leading

to square, tapered feet.

Irish, circa 1785

Height: 32 in / 81 cm

Width: 37 72 in / 95 cm

Depth: 18 i n / 4 6 cm

PROVENANCE:

Mallett &; Son (Antiques) Ltd 1961

UK Private Collection

This highly important pair of Irish Georgian

harewood and marquetry demi-lune commodes

are decorated throughout with elegant and

superbly drawn neo-classical ornament.

Dcmi-lun£i^commodes such as these, together

with similarly decorated half-round pier tables,

became increasingly popular in the interior

t l l ^

:t t

schemes of the second half of the 18th century.

Hepplewhitc described their design as having

'become an article of much fashion' and admit,

with great propriety of much elegance and

ornament'.

I'hese commodes were conceived as 'commode

pier tables', and are characteristic of the work

produced by the skilled Dubl in cabinet-maker,

Will iam Moore. Moore trained in the

workshops of the celebrated London

partnership o f Wil l iam Ince and John Mayhew

and decided to settle in Dubl in some time

before 1782. His first important commission

there came from the newly appointed Viceroy

of Ireland, Wil l iam Henry Cavendish, 3rd

Duke of Portland, to supply a harewood and

satinwood half-round commode, inlaid in the

fashionable neo-classical style. A similar but

more elaborately decorated commode is in the

collection of the Victoria and Albert Museimi

in London.

There are striking similarities between all of

these commodes. Each uses the ubiquitous

anthemion or honeysuckle motif, the classical

urn, husks suspended from Hower-head paterae

and garlands of flowers and leaves. These

features were used extensively by the leading

neo-classical architect of the day, Robert Adam,

after his return from Italy in 1758 until his

death in 1792 and became the most fashionable

language of ornament in England, fhis

ornament appears as the principle decoration on

II I I" III,11 !

t^TS^SI^- - I I

I

' f t

1 € r-m

A PAIR OH C O M M O D E S ATTRIBUTED TO WILLIAM MOORE OF DUBLIN commued

• u i t i i S M , ;

J "gtkgiMB^HU^'J.M j j a t l l i l i t t l ^ ' i l f M l ' l j ] ^

m

mimm

42

p I

the present commodes. Tied garlands of husks

on the top are treated with an almost painterly

quality and the frieze is united by the same

decoration of husks tied with ribbons,

punctuated by anthemia.

By way of advertising his Dubl in arrival in 1782,

Moore placed the following in the Dubl in

Evening Post:

William Moore most respectfully acknowledges the encouragement he has received, begs leave to inform those who want inlaid work, that by his close attention to business and instructions to his men, he has brought the manufacture to such perfection, to be able to sell for almost one half his original prices; as the greatest demand is for Pier tables, he has just finished in the newest taste a great variety of patterns, sizes and prices, from three guineas to twenty; card tables on a new construction (both ornamental and plain) which appear like small Pier tables, with every article in the Inlaid way, executed on shortest notice, and hopes from his long experience at Messrs. Mayhew and Ince, London, his remarkable fine coloured words, and elegant finished work, to meet the approbation of all who shall please to honour him with their commands.

Having settled in Abbey Street at ' T h e Inlaid

Cabinet Wareroom', Moore moved to the

fashionable area of Capel Street, where he

remained until his death in 1815. His signature

appears on a semi-elliptical pianoforte case, that

displays his trademark paterae frieze. T h e fact

that he switched to supplying pianoforte cases at

the end of his career highlights the demise in

demand for the extravagantly inlaid commodes

and pier tables that had become his speciality.

Their fine proport ion in execution and exquisite

workmanship proved too expensive to sustain, in

an age where painted furni ture was cheaper to

manufacture. However, Moore's small but

remarkable group of inlaid furni ture can be seen

as the conclusion of the greatest age of English

marquetry furni ture product ion.

William Moore c o m m o d e in the collection of the Victoria and Albert Museum

43

A PAIR O F A R M C H A I R S A T I R I B U T E D l O T H O M A S C H I P P E N D A L E

An exrrfmcly fine and elegant pair of carved

giltwood oval back armchairs, attributed to

Thomas Chippendale, the curved back and

sloping arm supports carved throughout with

bands of husks, the cresting in the form of a

delicately carved anthemion Hanked by rose

buds, the arm rests outlined with guilloche and

ending in fohate hand rests; the broad,

serpentine seat rails having running bands of

pearl beading and guilloche, raised on tapering

and Huted legs headed b\' foliate paterae and

carved with acanthus, husks anci beadintr.

English, circa 1775

Height: 407. in / 102 cm

Width: 27 in / 68.5 cm

Depth of seat: 22 in / 56 cm

This magnificent pair of armchairs is

characteristic of the work of the celebrated

cabinet-maker, Thomas C'hippendale. The

design is close in comparison to a set of eight

giltwood armchairs ordered from Chippendale

by Sir Rowland Winn in 1778 for the salon at

Nostell Priory, Yorkshire. A cletail from a

manuscript design for an armchair tor Burton

Constable, inscribed 'Chipindale' in Will iam

Constable's hand, shows the same husk

decoration used as the principal motif to

decorate th( frame and arms. Also of interest is

m

Vt^ fi

I '

e comparison between a set of six painted and

It armchairs at Harewood House, Yorkshire,

ter a design dated 1775 by John Linneil.

o cabinet-maker other than Chippendale

ndertook major commissions at Harewood and

is likely that these were supplied by

hippendale as adapted from the Linnell

rawing, on the instruction o f Edwin Lascelles.

nother intriguing comparison is with a set o f

eight giltwood armchairs at Osterley Park,

Middlesex, designed b\' Robert Adam and

possibly supplied by Chippendale. The divisions

between the horizontal bands o f runn ing

ornament and the carved husks incorporated

within the fluting on the turned legs are treated

in a similar fashion in each case.

The overall design o f this pair o f chairs is based

on the seat furniture o f the court o f Louis XV I ,

yet the back legs are splayed in a typically

English manner. A rounded seat was more

c ommon in France rather than the t\'pical

English treatment o f the serpentine front rail, as

seen to great effect on this pair o f chairs. The

ornament is classical and used with a lightness

and sensitivity that is representative o f work ot

the highest calibre. I he carving o f neo-classical

ornament is particularly delicate, for example the

band o f guilloche around each foot, the carved

i lis

I f '

A MINIATURE CHIPPENDALE CLOTHES PRESS AS A H U M I D O R

A charming and rare mid 19th centur)' miniature mahogany clothes press after a design by Thomas Chippendale, the moulded cornice above two panelled doors decorated with carved scrolls and foliage, the canted corners carved with trailing flowers and acanthus, above a bombe shaped base with two short drawers and one long drawer, all with original rococo silver handles, the boldly curved corners carved with beading and terminating in foliate scroll toes. The interior is now fitted with cedar lined drawers, as a humidor.

English, circa 1860 Height: 1274 in / 31 cm Width: 10 in / 25.5 cm Depth: 8 in / 20.3 cm

m^-: d

Thomas Chippendale's design dated 1753 for a 'Commode Clothes Press", from The Gentleman & Cabinet-Maker's Director q( \ 7'iA, plate 104.

;.

I ^

^ V-. • V : ' I

47

A PAIR OF D E M I - L U N E TABLES WITH SCAGLIOLA TOPS

A pair of late 18th century demi-lune console tables, the scagliola tops decorated with musical and martial trophies and flowers and foliage between three graduating bands, the carved giltwood bases each with acanthus frieze and bead and reel borders, raised on four fluted tapering legs headed by paterae and terminating in stylised laurel feet.

The tables English, circa 1780 The tops Italian, circa 1770 Height: 3272 in / 82.5 cm Width: 4272 in / 108 cm Depth: 1872 in / 47 cm

-l T iijiivi M iiftl. H .ittillt'ft (V>m>»>«i <'' >'

It n-

48

y

m

A PAIR OF DEMI-LUNE TABLES WITH SCAGLIOLA TOPS continued

Scagliola is a material that has been used since

Roman times to imitate marble and, later, pietra

dura. Gypsum, also called pietra di luna

(moonstone) or scagliola in its finest version,

is hydrated calcium sulphate, found in great

quantit) ' in the calcareous rocks around Modena.

Because of its ductility, it is highly suitable for

modelling. The following description by

Guiseppe Pelli Bencivenni (1729-1808) provides

a good overview of the material and its uses:

Scagliola is made of a type of transparent calcareous

stone which scientists follow Vallerio in classifying

with the gessi, calling it selenite. It is, however,

popularly known as specchio d'asino (ass's mirror),

or dog's mirror. The gesso is ground to the finest

powder and then made into a paste and smoothed:

when it is dry and hard, designs can be carved in

it and then filled ivith the same material mixed

luith whatever colour suits the kind of work it is

intended to imitate. When the final result is

cleaned and polished, a solid, gleaming picture

appears which shines as i f covered ivith crystal.....

It is not my business here to describe the many uses

to u'hich scagliola can be put, but i f you consider

that it can be used to imitate all d i f f e r e n t marbles

and all the rarest stones, and from it can be

composed pictures of animals, flowers, scenes from

history, and views of landscape and buildings, then

you will have some idea of the great esteem in

which it is held.

These fine console tables typify the shift in taste

that occurred towards the end of the 18th

century. The earlier excesses of the rococo

movement had by then been brushed aside to

make way for a new classical order. Robert Adam

was the chief proponent of this new movement.

Before the middle of the 18th century there had

been little serious archaeological excavation, but

the gentlemen dilettanti who enjoyed the Grand

Tour exposed themselves to Roman ruins and

soon realised the sophistication and complexity

of decoration in Roman buildings.

The two dominant British architects of the late

18th century, Sir Wil l iam Chambers (1723-

1796) and Robert Adam (1728-1792) found

much of their inspiration in these exciting new

archaeological discoveries in Italy. Wi l l iam

Chambers was generally more sober in his

approach, while Adam worked out a new

vocabulary of classical decoration of great beauty

and refinement that made him the most popular

architect and decorator of his time.

These tables with their fine scagliola tops

demonstrate this new taste for the Antique. They

are entirely Roman in concept. The tops are

beautifully decorated with trophies and musical

instruments in a deliberately imperial style. The

palette of the scagliola is strikingly similar to a

floor executed bv Robert Adam for the Lx)ndon

seat of the Duke of Northumberland, Syon

House, which Adam extensively re-modelled. He

started work in 1762 and it is in the Ante Room

where his extravagant use of scagliola can be

seen. Besides the floor there are also twelve Ionic

columns veneered with verde-antico scagliola.

They were obtained by James Adam in Rome in

1765 and brought to Syon by boat.

The floor in the ante-room is a remarkable

example of highly polished scagliola, beautifully

executed with vivid colours. The centre of the

floor is of similar design to the fans on the tables.

T h e scagliola Hoor at Syon H o u s e

50

A PAIR OF GEORGE III GILTWOOD ARMCHAIRS

An pair o f late 18th century gilrwood armchairs,

each carved crest rail centred by an elaborate

shell with scrolling acanthus and trailing

harebells within a channelled frame, the bowed

seat rail with fluting and centred by an oval

patera, the padded arms with scroll hand rest

leading to further trailing harebells, raised on

square tapering legs headed by scrolls with swag

drapery, terminating in carved block toes and

brass castors.

English, circa 1765

Height: 38 74 in / 9 7 c m

Width: 28 i n / 7 1 c m

Depth o f seat: 21 'A in / 54 cm

These very grand but small scale carved gi l twood

armchairs are early and sophisticated examples

o f English furniture in the neo-classical style,

influenced by Parisian fashion. T h e confident ,

classical form is a direct reaction to the lighter

and s inuous styles o f the rococo period.

By the late 1760's the gout grec, a pure and more

linear classical style, was being embraced in

Paris, championed by such designers as Jean-

Charles Delafosse . T h i s elegant and more severe

style harked back to the grandeur and dignity o f

the Antique, making the forms more

architectural and impressive. Delafosse's

publ i shed engravings became very influential

with the classical vocabulary o f swags, husks,

volutes and scrolls being easily adapted to

furniture, silver and other decorative arts. T h i s

form o f bold classicism predates the more

decorative and fanciful classical ornament led in

England by Robert A d a m .

T h e influence o f Delafosse's engravings spread

quickly to L o n d o n and they were taken up by

cabinet-makers including J o h n Linnell, to w h o m

these chairs may be ascribed. Linnell, with his

premises in Berkeley Square, in the heart o f

fashionable L o n d o n , suppl ied s o m e o f the

grandest houses as they were developing rapidly

in the new streets and squares o f Mayfair. A

group o f LinnelFs surviving drawings,

particularly o f chairs, show a direct knowledge o f

Delafosse's designs.

These chairs previously formed part o f a suite o f

seat furniture, which compri sed a set o f at least

eight armchairs with further side chairs and

window seats. Two pairs o f armchairs were

formerly in the collection o f Mrs J o h n E

Rovensky, whilst Mallett had a further set o f

four armchairs and three side chairs in 1967,

including the present pair o f armchairs. A

h a n d s o m e pair o f window seats f rom the s ame

suite, be longing to H R H T h e Prince o f W d e s , is

now in the morn ing room at his L o n d o n

residence, Clarence House .

Interestingly the design for these chairs was

adapted for the Dukes o f Nor thumber l and .

A set o f eight carved mahogany hall chairs o f

a lmost identical design and bearing the family

crest, may be seen in the f amous hall ot their

magnif icent L o n d o n villa, Syon House ,

Middlesex. T h e chairs were m a d e either for Syon

or possibly for the now lost Nor thumber l and

H o u s e in L o n d o n .

51

A

- = = o

Vt e a 'J

A handsome George III pedestal desk in a combination of figured mahogany and plum pudding mahogany, with old brown leather surface with gilt tooled border, having three drawers with brass swan's neck handles on both sides, interspersed with carved paterae above pendant swags of husks; each pedestal on either side having cupboard doors with fielded panels framed within diagonal cross-banding and ebonised mouldings, each enclosing four drawers with original lacquered brass handles, each end of the desk panelled and carved in conforming design.

English, circa 1790 Height: 30 in / 76 cm Length: 68 in / 173 cm Depth: 39V4 in / 101 cm

On the desk is a very fine Sheraton period

musical bracket clock by John Grant, London,

circa 1790

« t ' I .

BY BETTALLY OF LONDON

M O I H X

•m.'x •r \

54

blowers. Towards the end of the 18th century,

England was a prosperous place, presenting

opportunit ies for craftsmen and traders, and

around 1770 these Italians began to arrive in

London.

Prior to this time, cistern tube or stick'

barometers had been predominant in England

and it would appear that the new arrivals

brought with them the new style of the wheel or

'banjo' barometer, which was already fashionable

and popular in France.

C Bettally was among the first of such Italians to

set up a business in London, where he had two

premises, 1 Charlot te Street in Pimlico and 292

Oxford Street, as well as maintaining his shop in

Paris. His trade card announces him as

'Constructor of all sorts of Barometers,

Thermometers , Hygrometers and all sorts of

Phisical Instruments of Glass'.

Bettally instruments vary from most other late

18th century banjo barometers. T h e most usual

shape of case had a rounded top but Bettally

seems to have favoured the elegant swan's neck

pediments such as on this pair. Another single

Bettally banjo barometer of similar date is

recorded, made in mahogany with satinwood

cross-banding and with swan's neck pediment .

All three lack the usual pendant base of other

banjo barometers.

See overleaf

i

M f ^ - ' . i -

&

g m

A BAROMETER AND HYGROMETER BY BETTALLY OF L O N D O N conthwed

T h i s barometer and its compan ion

thermometer/hygrometer arc outs tanding, both

for the quality o f the cases, veneered as they are

with the best figured sat inwood and with

intricate marquetry ornament , and for the

standard of the instruments themselves, which

have highly sophisticated mechanisms and are

considereiT to be particularly fine. T h i s pair was

originally intended to hang on the wall. T h e

stands are o f later date but made in the neo-

classical style prevailing in the latter part o f the

18th century.

T h e dials are 12 inches in diameter, which is

unusually wide. T h e y are engraved with the

traditional barometer scale and weather

indications: O n the barometer: STORMY,

MUCh RAIN, RAIN, CHANGEABLE, FAIR.

SETdFAIR, VERY DRY. O n the hygrometer:

JUST FREEZ, TEMPERA TE SUMMER Ht,

BLOOD Ht. FEVER HEAT O n the

thermometer : VERY IMMP, DAMP, MOIST

DRY, VERY DRY.

T h e pair were made by Bettally for the E,arl ot

Bute in 1787. John Stuart , 3rd Earl o f Bute

( 1 7 1 3 - 1 7 9 2 ) was a Scottish statesman. H e

succeeded his father in 1723 and around 1737

was m a d e one o f the Lords o f the Bedchamber

by Frederick, Prince o f W a l e s . In 1751 he

became G r o o m of the Stole to Cieorge 111. H e

was a s trong influence on the K ing and became

the main instrument hir breaking the power of

the Whigs and establishing the personal rule ot

the monarch through parl iament. H e was m a d e

Prime Minister in 1762 but resigned the

fol lowing year, at the end o f the Seven Years

War. T h e family seat o f the Marquess o f Bute

remains M o u n t Stuart , Rothesay, on the Isle

o f Bute.

Bcttullv's trade card of 1787

AN A S T R O N O M I C A L TELESCOPE BY J O H N CAIL

A 19tli ccimiiy Four-inch rcHccting astronomical

tclcscopc in brass by Joiin C'ail, together with

original mahogany ease and original accessories

including lens cap, alternative eye pieces and

reHectors, sighting telescope and brass tripod

table stand. The telescope is raised on a mid

18th century carved mahogany telescope stand

with Ionic capital, Huted and reeded stem and

tripod base with rocaille and cabochon carving

and ending in most unusual feet carved with

foliate scrolls. The tele.scope is inscribed

JOHN CAIL NEWCASTLE-UPON - lYNE

The stand: [English, circa 1750

The telescope: English, circa 1840

Overall height as shown: 58 in / 147 cm

Length of telescope: 28 in / 71 cm

Height o f stand: 357.. in / 90 cm

Wid th acro.ss ba.se: 24'h in / 62 cm

John (".ail is recorded as working From 1825

until 1865 in Newcastle-upon- Tyne, where he

traded from four difTerent addre.s.ses dur ing that

period. He was a maker of various optical and

other inslruments which are of high quality, but

scarce. None are found in the Royal

Microscopical Society, nor in the [killings

Microscope Collection in Washington D C .

According to C'liFton's Directory of British

Scientific Instrument Makers 1550-l^'SI, he is

known to have .sold barometer, circtmiferentor,

clinometer, hydrometer, level, miners dial,

octant, pantograph, sextant, spectacles'.

His trade label From 1855 reads:

"f hK

JOHN CAU.

Mathematical & Philosophical

INSikUMENi MAKER

Optician &c

CREYSTREET

NEWCASTLE UPON TYNE

MARINE CHRONOMEIERS

CHRONOMETERS RATED liY TRANSIT

OliSERVAnONS

Surveying & Drawing histruments

SEA CHARTS

Ivory Scales, Sextants, (luaelrants, Eelescopes,

Compasses,

Harometer, Ihermometers, Spectacles, cH'. drc.

A SE I OF T E N LYRE BACK A R M C H A I R S

A very rare set ot ten Adam period, brass

mounted mahogany armchairs, the top-rail with

leafy cresting and finials above a leafand Hower

carved, lyre shaped back splat with slender brass

rods as strings", the scrolled arms with swag,s of

husks and acanthus and supported with

matching brass rotis, the seats with link and leaf

pattern brass borders, raised on tapering, cluster

column front legs with foliate capitals and feet

and headed bv brass roundels.

English, circa 1770

Height: 34 74 in / 87 cm

Width: 2274 in / 58 cm

Oepth: 21 in / 53 cm

Depth of seat: 18 in / 46 cm

f

iS'' HCiP PROVENANCE :

J. Pierpont Morgan Collection, sold Christie's

22 March 1944, lot 86

Brian Jenks Collection, Shropshire

L lTERArURE :

(•/Helena Haj'ward &: Pat Kirkham, Willutm

and John LimielL London ! 980, pp36-40

Ralph Edwardj.^ The Dictionary of English

Fttrtiiture, revised edition 1954, vol 1, fig 212

The lyre dates as tar back as the first half of the

3rd milleniuni BC ancl examples have been

recovered from the royal tombs at Ur. In ancient

Greece it was the instrument of Apollo and of

the poet Orpheus. There, the purity of the lyre's

p . .

m ^ z m m .

^ r f i ' t i . I A

ft

tone represented the contrasts in human nature:

the enlightenment and restraint of the

Apollonian ideal, as opposed to the orgy and

passion of the Dionysiac.

It is not surprising that this potent classical

symbol found its way into the vocabulary of the

classical revival in the third quarter of the 18th

century. The lyre appears in many

manifestations on furniture in the neo-classical

manner, from the designs of Robert Adam and

John Linnell to the later Regency era. Linnell is

particularly associated with the use of the lyre

motif in his chair designs, notably the two sets

of armchairs made for Robert Child for the

breakfast room and library at Osterley Park.

There are a number ot Linnell drawings, dated

1765-1770, preserved in the Victoria and Albert

Museum, each depicting a variation on the lyre

theme in chair backs.

A single armchair of the same lyre design to the

present set of ten, but with square, tapering legs,

is in the Victoria and Albert Museum and

illustrated in The Dictionary of English Furniture. Another four chairs of identical design to this

single example were sold at Christie's in 1968.

These came through Mallett's hands and remain

in a private collection.

Lyre back chair in rhc c«! l t 'ct ion o f the Victoria a n d Albert M u s e u m

t ' I ' » (

wm

A VERY RARE 18TH CENTURY GREEN GLASS CHANDELIER

A sixteen-light chandelier in green glass with

ormolu mounts, the 'S' shaped arms arranged in

two layers of eight. The chandelier is of

traditional, late 18th century form with canopies

above and below, cut stem pieces surrounding a

central urn and with the receiver bowl, the urn

and the top finial retaining their original ormolu

mounts.

English, circa 1790

Height: 72 in / 183 cm

Width: 40 in / 101.5 cm

The notch-cut arms date this chandelier towards

the end of the 18th century. It is likely that it is

by the London firm of John Blades which had

extensive contacts in India, where this chandelier

was found many years ago. A very similar,

slightly later green chandelier has, until recently,

been hanging in the Durbar hall in Lucknow,

once the capital of the kingdom of Awadh

in India.

The survival of this chandelier is remarkable.

Originally it would have had green storm shades

to make it 'punkah p r o o f , but these shades have

long gone and been replaced by nozzles as would

have been used on chandeliers for the European

market. Similarly all the original drops are now

adorning Indian temples and have had to be

replaced. Otherwise the chandelier has only had

the normal repairs of age, a few pans replaced

when cracked and likewise a few sections of the

arms. The remaining arms, all stem pieces and

all metalwork are original, with the metalwork

being re-gilded after nearly two hundred years in

the Indian climate.

The arms are all in two parts, joined by a cast

ormolu collar of leaf form, this method of

manufacture giving strength, particularly in the

lower, 'S' shaped arms.

John Blades is first mentioned in a London

Directory in 1783, when he opened his

showrooms at 5 Ludgate Hill. He remained there

until his death in 1829. He received many large

commissions including that of a pair of

chandeliers for the hall of the Drapers' Company

where they still survive today. Blades was unusual

in using an outside designer, the well known

architect J B Papworth. He was also the first

English glass company to open a branch in India,

in Calcutta. After John Blades' death the business

was continued by Francis Jones and his sons.

John Blades' Upper Showroom, pubHshed in Ackerman's Repository of the Arts

60

61

A P A I R O F C A R V E D G I L ' I W O O I ) S W A G S

A rare and very finely carvcd pair o f George III

giltwood swags, the pendant arrangement o f

large roses, hiinches ot grapes and other fruits

and seed pods, all entwined with delicately

curling leaves and surmounted by a ribbon bow.

Knglish, circa 1765

Height: 6 5 in / 165 cm

Width: 6 7 . in / 16.5 cm

^ J.

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mm

1v \ m

WB:'

# t-f/^ •Ik

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/ A ' . .

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P P r I l l j p I w

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A R E G E N C Y R O S E W O O D SIDE C A B I N E T

A large Regency rosewood and parcel gilt

breakfront side cabinet, the top with a border ot

mahogany and boxwood and ebony stringing

and edged with a brass moulding with pierced

gallery of gothic arcading, the four doors all with

diamond pattern brass grilles lined with yellow,

knife-pleated silk and enclosing adjustable,

sliding shelves, flanked by spiral fluted, tapering

columns, raised on turned, tapering feet.

English, circa 1810 Height overall: 37 in / 94 cm

Length: 6172 in / 156 cm

Depth: 20 ' / : in / 52 cm

. t

Mf^m

A PAIR OF R E G E N C Y SOFA TABLES

An extremely fine a n d rare pair o f early 19th

century m a h o g a n y so fa tables, the tops with

central r o s e w o o d inlay, brass s t r ing ing a n d cross-

b a n d i n g a n d with m o u l d e d edge ; o n e table with

a r e m o v a b l e central section o p e n i n g to reveal a

central well c o n t a i n i n g a b a c k g a m m o n b o a r d

a n d with a chess board on the reverse, the frieze

with o n e long d u m m y drawer a n d two shor t

drawers o n bo th sides; the s e c o n d table with a

s ingle l o n g drawer a n d two shor t drawers to

bo th s ides ; bo th tables o u d i n e d t h r o u g h o u t with

b o x w o o d s t r ing ing a n d raised o n pierced e n d

s u p p o r t s j o i n e d by a turned stretcher, o n sp layed

feet e n d i n g in brass castors .

Kngl i sh , circa 1 8 2 0

H e i g h t : 2 8 74 in / 7 3 c m

L e n g t h : 5772 in / 1 4 6 c m

D e p t h : 2 4 in / 61 c m

u

66

67

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p i

'lilli? Ji/, miy^

'II 1 mm^m^ p ' f t - ' i i t t i

J V - . ^ i ^ - i J t ' - J

A ' • .

- - i i

5

t;

AN OSLER C H A N D E L I E R A N D M A T C H I N G WALL L I G H T S

A cut glass chandelier with twelve ropc-twist

arms arranged in two tiers and with cut nozzles

and drip pans, the upper receiver holding six

shepherd's crook arms, each surmounted by a

spire, the stem pieces and receiver bowls all

decorated with vertical cutting, the whole

festooned with button drops and pear drops.

All the metal work is silver plated and the

receiver plate is stamped F & C Osier.

Together with Four three-arm wall lights en suite,

with silver plated brackets with cut covers.

English, circa 1870

Height of chandelier: 48 in / 122 cm

Diameter: 33 in / 84 cm

Height of wall lights: 17 in / 43 cm

Widths 20 in / 51 cm

Depth: 17 in / 43 cm

T§

Mi %

r.

' J

m

A REGENCY MAHOGANY EXTENDING DINING TABLE BY MORGAN AND SANDERS

An early 19th century 'Imperial' patent extending dining table by Morgan and Sanders, the 'D ' end sections extending with telescopic action to accommodate three additional leaves, the top of finely figured mahogany with reeded edge, the frieze having, at each end, a large brass swan's neck handle, at one end engraved Patent / Morgan & Sanders / Inventors & Manufacturers / 16 & 17 / Catherine Street Strand / London. The table is supported on six ring-turned and reeded legs terminating in brass castors. The leaves, when not in use, are stored inside the table.

English, circa 1815 Height: 2874 in / 73 cm Length fully extended: 16674 in / 4.22 m Length closed: 77 72 in / 197 cm Width: 64 in / 162.5 cm

PROVENANCE: M F Phillips, Milford Lodge, Stafford Sir E Thompson, Gatacre Park, Shropshire

LITERATURE: ^Chris topher Gilbert, Pictorial Dictionary of Marked London Furniture, 1700-1840, London, 1996, p345 Christopher Stevens and Stewart Whittington, 18th Century English Furniture; The Norman Adams Collection, Antique Collectors' Club, 1983, pp278-279

Around the table is part of a set of fourteen Regency mahogany dining chairs comprising twelve side chairs and two armchairs, formely at Ewhurst Park, Hampshire.

71

IMPORTANT PAIR OF G L O B E S

T

A fine pair of early 19th century standing globes by John Gary &C Sons, one celestial and the other terrestrial, both inscribed and dated, with geographical additions to 1815, supported on reeded mahogany legs joined by a stretcher with a central compass and terminating in brass castors.

English, circa 1815 Height: 47 in / 119.5 cm Diameter of stand: 28 in / 71 cm Diameter of globes: KVli in / 52.5 cm

I 'ROVENENCH: Formerly at Sheffield Park, Sussex, possibly supplied to the 1st Earl of Sheffield

The emergence of globe making in Britain closely mirrored the great cultural and economic changes in the 16th and 17th centuries. The exploration of previously unknown continents, the expansion of ocean-going trade and the growing popular interest in science all combined to make desirable a graphic representation of newly discovered knowledge. Terrestrial and celestial globes provided an ideal medium for conveying and making use of this new knowledge. By the late 17th century they had become the principal instruments for teaching geography and astronomy. Globes were not only used to teach physical location and the relationship of various continents and

constellations but also to demonstrate the concepts of spherical trigonometry required for both navigation and astronomy.

By the beginning of the 18th century the British globe making industry was concentrated in London, and the capital remained the principal centre of manufacture until the 20th century. In London, John and William Gary, two brothers who worked in partnership, established themselves as the leading manufacturers of all varieties of globes.

John Gary (1755-1835), from Gorsiey in Wiltshire, was apprenticed to the map engraver

Will iam Palmer and made a Freeman of the City

of London in 1778. He started his globe making

business in 1791 when he advertised 3,5,9,12

and 21 inch terrestrial and celestial globes 'from

entire new Plates'. In 1812 he added a celestial

planisphere and in 1816 a pair of 18 inch globes.

In making globes and planispheres Gary co-

operated with his brother Wil l iam {circa 1759-

1825), a London instrument maker, who had

learned his trade as an apprentice to Jesse Ramsden.

John and Wi l l i am Gary and the firms of Bardin

and Newton, were soon in command of the

English market. Gary produced globes in a

variety of designs. Library globes were mounted

on high mahogany stands with turned, reeded

legs, or with a tripod. Table globes were

usually supplied mounted on a low stand

with four legs.

The present globes demonstrate the quality of

John Gary's work. The elegant stands are

constructed using the finest Guban mahogany

and the cradles which house the globes are

veneered with figured mahogany, now having

faded to a rich colour with fine patination. The

design of the stands is deliberately restrained and

simple to create a feeling of lightness.

Of particular note, Gaptain Gook's voyages are

marked on the terrestrial globe, showing the sea

routes and tracks that he took on his

expeditions. The terrestrial globe also marks the

spot where he finally met his fate in the

Sandwich Islands. It is inscribed: Here Captain

Cook was killed by the natives February I4th

1779 and Captain Clerke succeeded him in the

command of the Resolution.

From the days of antiquity the constellations were

shown on maps of the sky and celestial globes as

people, animals and objects. Their elaborate

execution often dominated the cartography. In the

18th century people started to see this type of

cartography as unscientific and unhelpful. The

figures were gradually drawn more and more

scientifically and faintly, then finally disappeared

completely. The boundaries between the areas

outlined by the constellations are marked with a

line. Because such scientific cartography looked

less attractive on a globe, Gary supplied celestial

globes in two different designs.

In their other projects the two brothers

maintained separate businesses. From 1792 the

globe firm was located at 181 Strand. Around

1 820, John moved to 86 St James's Street,

leaving the old premises to his sons, George and

John junior, who, by that time, had also become

involved in the globe making business.

Sheffield Park was the seat of John Baker

Holroyd, 1st Earl of Sheffield (1735-1821) , who

purchased the property in 1769. In 1775 he

commissioned James Wyatt to prepare new

designs for the house in the gothic style.

However, it was Benjamin Henry Latrobe,

architect of the Gapitol in Washington DG, who

actually completed the re-modelling, based upon

Wyatt's plans. Latrobe, who had been born in

England, later emigrated in 1796 to America,

where he became established in Philadelphia as

an architect in the Greek Revival manner. His

style and talent were noted by Thomas Jefferson

and he was summoned to Washington in 1803

to complete the Gapitol, a project which

occupied him for the rest of his life.

Lord Sheffield, a soldier and politician, was an

int imate friend of the great historian and

author of The Decline and Fall of the Roman

Empire, Edward Gibbon. Gibbon stayed

regularly with the Sheffield family and was even

buried nearby, at Fletching, upon his death in

1794. Gibbon never completed his memoirs

himself; it was Sheffield, Gibbon's literary

executor, who collated the various

autobiographical pieces, although he has often

been criticised for his somewhat over zealous

editing. One of Lord Sheffield's two daughters,

Maria Josepha, whom Gibbon describes as 'a

most extraordinary young woman', reputedly

assisted her father in this task. It would appear

the household at Sheffield Park was one of

culture and learning. Associating this with his

political responsibilities at a t ime of British

power overseas and increasing geographic

knowledge, it would not have been unlikely for

Lord Sheffield to commission a pair of high

qual i ty and up-to-date globes from London's

leading maker for his own and for his family's

use and enjoyment.

73

A VICTORIAN MARQUETRY CARD TABLE

A mid 19th century card table with elaborate brass mounts throughout, the revolving rectangular top inlaid with a panel of richly figured amboyna, and bordered with other precious timbers including sycamore and tulipwood with boxwood stringing and trefoil edge, the top opening to reveal a green baize-lined playing surface bordered by gilt tooled leather and ebony, with a central mahogany lined well for holding cards and other game pieces; raised on ebony barley twist supports joined by a turned stretcher, and down-curving feet with etched brass mounts and brass castors.

English, circa 1850 Height: 30 in / 76 cm Length: 39 in / 99 cm Depth: 20 in / 51 cm Open: W h x 39 in / 100 x 99 cm

74

A W H I T E MARBLE GROUP BY JOSEPH G O T T

A rare and fine quality white marble group by

Joseph Gott depicting a spaniel resting upon a

basket of fruit with a cat looking on. Both

animals are rendered in fine naturalistic detail, as

is the basket with its tumbling cornucopia of

fruit. The whole is mounted on an integral oval

plinth constructed in two pieces and supported

by a Campan Rouge marble block.

Signed J GOTT Ft.

English, circa 1855

Height: 13 in / 33 cm

Width : 26 in / 66 cm

Depth: 1 r/2 in / 29.5 cm

Joseph Gott (1786-1860) was born at Calverley,

near Leeds and worked in John Flaxman's studio

as an apprentice for two or three years. He knew

great success whilst still at the Royal Academy

Schools, winning various prestigious medals and

awards, including a second Gold Medal in 1819

for his Jacob Wrestling with the Angel. Sir Thomas Lawrence was one of his most illustrious patrons.

Another patron was Benjamin Gott (no relation)

of Armley House, Leeds, who sent Joseph to

Rome in 1824 where he remained until his

death in 1860. He exhibited at the Royal

Academy from 1820 to 1848, the British

Institution in 1821 and 1822 and his Ruth

Gleaning ii the Paris Exhibition in 1855.

Amongst his many executed works arc: Head of

Bacchante, 1820, Dog and Puppies, 1825, Ariadne for Chatsworth House, Bust of Hogarth,

1824, for Sir Thomas Lawrence and Bust of

Columbus, now in the Capiti lone Museum,

Rome.

75

Y^dTfTTftfTnTrrnf;

Ss yvv

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A MAGN IF ICENT IVORY H O W D A H

iC ^^

^

•''•^JK ' i

t

A very rare early 19th century carved ivory

howdah with double domed canopy.

Indian, probably Murshidabad, circa 1830

Height: 87 in / 221 cm

l.ength: 867: in / 220 cm

Width: 45 in / 114 cm

Elephants have, for centuries, been associated

with Royalty in the Indian subcontinent and

used in ceremonial parades and religious festivals

to carry important dignitaries. The elephants

would be beautifully decorated and caparisoned,

bearing persons of consequence in a specially

constructed howdah.

These howdahs took various forms, some

relatively simple and others very grand.

Howdahs were a symbol of social standing and

the quality of the howdah depended upon the

rank of the owner. Indian Princes ordered

sumptuous examples in ivory, in silver or in fine

hardwoods decorated with polychrome

decoration to demonstrate their importance and

to create an impressive spectacle at court. Beauty

of workmanship literally fiir outweighed

practicality.

The mahout, who would be responsible for

controlling the elephant, .sat on its neck and his

passengers in the howdah, furnished with carpets

and cushions. The howdah provided a highly

elaborate carriage, the equivalent of a State

(^oach. Most were open but others had a tent-

like construction of cloth abcwe the seating area

to protect the important occupants from the

sun. The domed structure of the pre.sent

example is most unusual and would indicate an

owner of considerable prestige.

The form of this particular Howdah is very

individual, being architectural in concept,

echoing the great 'onion' domes so prevalent in

Mughal architecture. The extravagant u.se of

ivory indicates that this was a very important

commission. It would have been very expensive

to construct, requiring a great number of highly

skilled craftsmen to carve the superbly worked

ivory panels.

The quality of the car\'ing is exceptional and

relates to a throne chair and footstool in the

Royal collection at Windsor Castle, presented to

Queen Victoria by the Maharajah of Travancore

in 1851. This throne chair was subsequently

exhibited at the Great Exhibition in that year,

and a very similar howdah is seen illustrated in

the India Court at that same exhibition. Both the

throne chair and this howdah demonstrate the

great skill of the Indian craftsmen and the

sophistication of their work.

The richness of the construction and detail

would suggest that this howdah was used for only

the most important of ceremonial occasions. It

may have been used for a great State wedding or

visit, or perhaps as an amba.ssadorial gift.

IVoni [)ickinson's ('oniprfhanrvc Pictures oflhe (imtt Exhibition of IS5I. Indi;i C'ourt . ( H u l t o n Archivt-)

A-

m f- ^

A SET OF TWELVE JAPANESE HAWK PICTURES

Two troni a set of twelve late 19tli centur\'

Japanese scrolls representing hawks sent annually

bv the regions of Japan in homage to the

Emperor, each depicted on a perch with

elaborate cloths and knotted ropes, the rope

knots indicating, in a lost code, the region of

Japan from which the hawks come.

Japanese, circa 1880 Framed: S5 x 28 in / 140 x 71 cm

A BRONZE HARE

A finely modelled bronze of a hare in lifelike

form, seated and with one paw raised. Signed on

the underside.

Japanese, circa 1900

Height: 7 in / 18 cm

T W O PAIRS OF BRONZE GEESE

A pair of early 20th century standing geese with

polished bills, eyes and feet and silvered

highlights on the wings.

Both signed on the underside.

Japanese, circa 1900

Height of gander: 15 in / 38.5 cm

A pair of early 20th century multi-patinated

bronze geese, the gander standing and the goose

lying down, naturalistically cast and with

polished bills and feet.

Both signed on the underside.

Japanese, circa 1920

Height of gander: 13 in / 33 cm

81

I "f.

I

A REMARKABLE ANGLO-SINHALESE CENTRE TABLE continued

of the Bath and it is possible that it was commissioned by a British Governor of Ceylon. The Order of the Bath was established by George I in 1725, a single class Order comprising the Monarch, a Prince of the Blood Royal and thirty-five Knights of Companion. At the end of the Napoleonic wars in 1815 it was reorganised into two divisions. Military and Civil.

Ceylon became a British colony in 1796, when the British East India Company took control of the island from the Dutch. Its Governors were drawn from military backgrounds up until 1830, after which they tended to be civil servants. It is recorded that a number of the British Governors in Ceylon and other officials and merchants commissioned local cabinetmakers to produce furniture for their own houses as well as government buildings.

J ?

The insignia of the Order of the Bath could apply to two Governors of Ceylon, both of whom were military men: Sir Robert Brownrigg (Governor 1811-1820), on whose grave is inscribed 'Knight Grand Cross of the Most Honourable Order of the Bath', and Sir Edward

Barnes (Governor 1824-1831), also KCB. The contents of the Governor's residence in Colombo, the King's House, were described in an inventory of 1833 and included 'One table with different woods of Ceylon, with ebony feet', the earliest known reference to specimen wood tables in Ceylon. After his death in 1838, Sir Edward Barnes' property was sold at auction in London, including a quantity of Ceylonese furniture. There were a number of tables, one described thus: 'A three feet circular centre table of ebony, the top inlaid with various specimen of fancy wood, the edge finished with ivory and ebony a la Greque border, on turned pillar, and finely carved claws, terminating with peacock's heads'.

Galle was an active commercial centre in the 19th century. The highly skilled artisans working there produced outstanding pieces of furniture, ranging from small boxes to large and individual specific commissions, such as this table. One of the most striking features of 19th century Ceylonese furniture is the diversity and beauty of the indigenous cabinet making woods, including calamander, Ceylon teak, tamarind, iron wood, pol-coconut and ebony. Much of this furniture

design derived from English pattern books but the carved and inlaid work was of local origin. The Ceylon Times in 1850, published an editorial section relating to the forthcoming Great Exhibition in London the next year: 'Like India, Ceylon possesses many manufacturers who would hold their own with the productions of more favoured countries. Her infinity of carved wood and manufacturers, the beauty of various specimens of inlaid work in wood and ivory... are well known to many.'

Mallett in Bond Street

85

86

i

o

I M W Hi r

I H E H A R E W O O n H O U S E W A L L P A P E R

rhc panoramic polychrome Chinese wallpaper

from the 'Ch intz Dressing Room' at Harewood

House, painted in shades of blue, green, brown

and red on a bu f f ground, depicting an idealistic

scene ol pleasure gardens with accompanying

scenes o f rural pursuits and pastimes in the

foothills of a mounta in range, including fishing,

rice cultivation and weaving.

Chinese, circa 1765

Height: 9 ft 8 in / 3.02 m

Total length: 41 ft 8 in / 12.8 m

P R O V E N A N C E :

E.dwin Lascelles Esq, Harewood House,

Yorkshire, thence by descent

l . r r E R A T U R E :

Christopher Cjilbert, The Life and Work of

Thomas Chippendale, London 1978, vol 1,

pp l9S-220

Thomas Chippendale's commission o f 1767 to

1778 to furnish Harewood House for Edwin

Lascellcs was not only the most valuable of his

career but also the most sumptuous. I he

commission was a complete decoration of the

house and included the hanging o f wallpaper

and supplying o f damask and paper. The

Chippendale bill for the early years o f the

commission is now missing but, in 1772,

£3 ,024 19s 3d was carried forward on to the

existing bill.

It is not possible to ascertain whether

Ch ippenda le himself provided this wallpaper, as

was the case at Nostell Priory, or, as was more

normal because of its rarity, whether l.ascelles

acquired it personally. Series of such panoramic

paper became fashionable in the midd le o f the

1 8th century and were exported from Ch i n a via

Can ton , by ships o f the East India Company . A

similar pattern o f ' I nd i a ' paper at Blickling Hal l

in Norfolk is recorded as having been 'admired

by l.acfy Proctor' in 1764. Ch ippenda le

comments in his Gentleman and Cabinet-

Maker's Director\\)\\7b2 that his chairs in the

Chinese taste are Very proper for a Lady's

Dre.ssing Room , especially if it is hung with

India paper'.

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THE HAREWOOD HOUSE WALLPAPE /• . a •V

1 H h H A R H W ' O O D H O U S h W A L l . P A l ' L R commued

It is the Day Vl'ork Book kept by l.asccllc.s"

steward. Samuel Popelwell, not ing how

Clhippendale's workmen spent their t ime From

1769 to 1775 wiiich enables us to identih' this

wallpaper. It is known that a .\1r James arrived at

Harewood on 18th Oetober 1769 and 'stayed

until Christmas fullv empl tned papering,

unpaeking and Hxing Furniture'. Between 14th

and 16th December that \ ear. he spent twent\ -

eight lioin's "Hanging the India paper in the

( !h in tz pattern cotton bedchamber and between

21st and 23rd December he spent twent\-six

hours 'At the patterns in C'.hintz pattern cotton

room'. This suite oFrooms with their oriental

India' paper inspired the green japanned

lurni t iue made lor them b\' C'hippendale,

comprising a clothes press, dressing commode ,

pier glass, shaving table, night table and two

bedside tables. This furniture was recorded a.s

still in the.se rooms in an inventory of 1795.

However, at some t ime in the 19th century,

probabl)- dur ing the remodell ing oF the house b\'

Barry in the 184()'s, the wallpaper was removed

and put into storage. This wallpaper From the

C!hint/ Dressing Room was di.scinered in 1988.

rollecl tip in the carpenter's shop at Harewood.

together with the wallpaper From the C'hintz

Bedroom. It has since undergone a programme

oFcareFul conservation. The bedroom paper

remains at Harewood.

I IX- M.iIIl'K M.NUL .11 i!k- 1 unipL-.in I iiic AN l\iir. M.i.iMiiLlit

A S I I I H A Y A M A l . I . I ' . IM I A N I

A f i i i c i|ii.ility 19 ih (.c-iiliM v S l i i h a y a m a (.•li.|>liaMl

of .small s t a l e ik-pit icc l w i i h i is t r u n k raist-d a m i

ornanicMic-d in i l i c i r a i l i l i ona l m a n n e r w i i l i

clal ioraic- m o i l i c r - o l - i x a r l an i l semi |)ri-cii)ns

s l o n c f i i r i t l i nK-n i s , l )ra|Ktl over l l i e e l e p h a m ' s

back is a b l anke t bordered w i th a key pa t t e rn

a n d h a v i n g e l abo r a t e tassels at tbe ends . Tiie

b o d y of each has a r ieh p a n o p l y ol c a rved

m o t h e r - o f - p e a r l f l ower he ad s in d i f fe rent na tu r a l

co lour s . Ar the c en t r e of the back is a f ine l y

ca rved lo tus f lower , w h i c h s u p p o r t s a rock crys ta l

m e d i t a t i o n ba l l . I 'he e l ephan t s t a iu l s on its

o r i g ina l c a rved w o o d e n p l i n t h .

Japane.sc , circa 1 8 7 0

Overa l l h e i gh t : 1 2 7 ; in / ?>2 c m

W i d t h : 10 i n / 2 6 c m

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A SE T O F I H R K K I ^ A I N I H I ) W A L l . I ' M ' H R I ' A N H I . S O N S I L K

A set ot tlia-c- tall panels ot late 1 8tli ccntiiry

Chinese painted silk depicting exotic birds and

butterHies amidst flowering branches with

blossom, peonies and hydrangeas, the

polychrome colouring ot remarkable strength

Chinese, ami 1770

Height: 88 in / 223 cm

Width: 29 / ' i n / 75 cm

A PAIR OF CHINESE GLASS PAINTINGS

A pair of mid 19th century Chinese export glass paintings depicting genre scenes with figures in an interior which opens on to a garden. Many of the figures and motifs can be seen mirrored between the two paintings, with shght detail differences.

Chinese, circa 1840 Framed: H'A x 18'Ain / 36.5 x 46.5 cm

A CHINESE EXPORT GLASS PORTRAIT

A very rare late 18th century Chinese export glass portrait depicting the goddess Terpsichore, after Sir Thomas Lawrence, within a landscape with subsidiary figures playing musical instruments and attendant putti.

Chinese, circa 1790 Framed: 25 x 19 in / 63.5 x 48 cm

Mirror and glass pictures were made in China for export to Europe from the middle of the 17th century. It was universally recognised that the technique of back painting required great skill. Typically subjects featured fell into four groups: still-lifes of flowers, trees, utensils and birds, figural groups or single figures, often by a river or in domestic settings, Chinese scenes with Chinese figures and also European scenes or portraits.

The majority of Chinese glass paintings are anonymous. None have been recorded with a signature and only one or two early 18th century examples have been found to bear their maker's labels on the back. Frames for Chinese glass paintings varied from simple oriental hardwood and lacquered softwood frames to more elaborate European-made carved giltwood examples.

96

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A BRONZE EQUESTRIAN STATUE OF LOUIS XIV

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elaborate ceiling decoration for the chateau at Vaux-le-Vicom"te and also at Fontainbleau, as well as the King's Apartment at the Tuileries. After a second trip to Italy in 1667 he returned to supervise the decoration of the Kings ships and submitted several models for fountains and statuary at Versailles.

However, it was from 1684 until the turn of the century that Girardon was most influential, acting as Superintendent of Sculpture for Louis XIV. It was during this period, when Girardon was at the height of his powers, that he designed this equestrian sculpture.

A number of bronze reductions are known to have been made. At least one was made under Girardon's personal supervision but most date from the 19th century. The two oldest reductions still known today are those at Windsor Casde and in the Hermitage in St Petersburg. Another, formerly in the London collection of Sir Philip Sassoon and latterly in the collection of the Marquess of Cholmondeley at Houghton Hall, Norfolk, came through Mallett's hands in 1995.

A renowned mid 19th century bronze equestrian statue of Louis XIV after Francois Girardon (1628-1715), the King in heroic pose, seated on a prancing horse and dressed after the Antique, his right arm raised and left hand holding the reins, the horse's hind leg trampling underfoot a sword and acanthus cast pelta centred by a Medusa's head; on a rectangular chamfered plinth inscribed Girardon.

French, circa 1850 Mounted on a modern black lacquered pedestal with brass mounts. Height of bronze: 437: in / 10.5 cm Plinth: 26 x 14 in / 66 x 36 cm Height of pedestal: 36 in / 91.5 cm Length: 3072 in / 77.5 cm Depth: 18 74 in / 47.5 cm

The original, monumental statue of Louis XIV, the 'Sun King', by Francois Girardon stood in

the Place Louis-le-Grand (now Place Vendome). This work, cast in bronze in a single piece, was commissioned in 1686 and finally unveiled in 1699. It is represented in a number of contemporary drawings and paintings. It was destroyed in 1792, at the time of the French Revolution. Only one hoof of the horse remains and that is now preserved in the Louvre.

Francois Girardon (1628-1715) was born in Troyes, son of a metal founder, and was apprenticed to the cabinet maker and sculptor Bandesson. He became the protege of Chancellor Seguier who sent him on his first trip to Rome in 1648. In 1651 he returned to Paris and soon became a 'Sculpteur du Roi'. He was elected to the Academy in 1657, becoming Professor of Sculpture in 1659 and Rector of the Academy in 1674.

During these early years in Paris he worked closely with the artist Ix- Brun, completing Installation o f the orieinal .statue in IMace I .ouis- lc-Grand

rrcntn, circa i /ou

Height: 23'/: in / 59.5 cm

Length: 42 in / 107 cm

Depth: 167: in / 42 cm

Height oFseat: 16 in / 41 cm

P R O V E N A N C E :

Madame Heidelbach, sold in Paris December 193

Alfred Wallach, collection sold in Paris, April 196

L ITERATURE:

lean de H i l l e r in , Les Styles Frau^ais, Le Mobilier,

Dti Moyeii Age au Modern Style: 1500-1900,

Paris, 1964, n65, fia 3

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A PAIR OF FAUTEUILS BY JEANSELME FRERES continued

The Jeanselme family were an important cabinet-making firm whose business flourished for over a century. In 1824, under the name of Jeanselme Freres they started to manufacture all types of seat furniture from their premises in rue des Deux-Portes. This line prospered and allowed them to buy triumphantly the business and stock-in-trade of the renowned firm Jacob-Desmalter. This enabled them to add the production of tables and cabinet furniture to their output. At this stage, in 1840, the company's name changed to simply Jeanselme and went from strength to strength, being one of the major suppliers to the Garde-meuble under Louis-Philippe and Napoleon III. Around 1852, Joseph-Pierre-Fran^ois was joined in business by his son, Charles-Joseph-Marie, and the company operated under the name Jeanselme Pere et Fils. The grandson, Charles-Henri, took the business on and bought the firm of Lemarchand in 1893, thus uniting two of the

most prestigious cabinet-making firms of the 19th century.

The two founders, the brothers Joseph-Pierre-Fran^ois and Jean-Arnoux Jeanselme set up their workshops initially in rue des Deux-Portes, then rue Neuve-Saint-Gilles followed by rue de Saint-Louis-au-Marais in 1828. The business finally settled in rue de Harlay in 1837. The company exhibited at the Expositions des Produits de I'lndustrie Frangaise in 1834 and in 1849 received a silver medal. At the Exposition Universelle \n 1855 the following glowing review was published:

L'execution de ces meubles est excellente; cela se con(oit, M.Jeanselme a d'habiles ouvriers et sait les conserver; il en occupeplus de 300...M.Jeanselme est un de ces homes qui doivent tout au travail et a la probite et qui s'est s'en souviennent glorieusement. Fondee en 1824, cette maison s'est successivement elevee au point ou elle est arrive.

A BRONZE LION AND LIONESS

Two fine 19th century bronzes of a prowling lioness and a roaring lion by Antoine Louis Barye, each incised on the base BARYE.

French, circa 1855 Height: 8'A in / 21.5 cm Length: 1574 in / 39 cm Width: 4 in / 10 cm

Antoine Louis Barye (1796-1875) was the first and acclaimed by most as the finest sculptor of the French Animaliers School. His work is almost exclusively studies of wild animals, but he also produced equestrian groups and mythological figures. Many of his animal sculptures are of a violent nature, particulary the big cats. He was an accomplished artist as well as sculptor. His models are technically competent and based on studies of actual wild animals at the Jardin de Plantes in Paris, where he spent much of his time.

106

107

A S E T OF F O U R EMPIRE WALL A P P L I Q U E S

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A set of four Empire gilt bronze three branch

wall appliques, the side arms of scrolling

trumpet form and enriched with anthemia and

laurel leaf, the ccntral arm of simpler form, with

a mask below its lamp form terminal. The back

plate is of shield form and has a lion's mask at

the centre to attach the arms and is enriched

above and below with arabesques of neo-classical

decoration.

French, circa 1815

Height: 12 in / .30.5 cm

Width: 11 in / 28 cm

m

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eighteen year old Paul Oppi tz in Bohemia in

1 845. T h e engraving shows views of two

Rhineland castles, Stolzentels and Burg

Rheinstein

Bohemian, circa 1845

Height: 2 0 7 , in / 60 cm

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A G L A S S C O B L E I B Y A U C i U S T B O H M

All imposing Bohemian covcrcd goblet with a

portrait ot F ricdrich von Schiller, engraved and

signed by August Bohm.

Bohemian, circa 1845

Height: 23V, in / 52.5 cm

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WM August Bohm was born in 1812 in the village

formerly called Mestersdorf and since Wor ld

War II known as Novy Oldf ichov, which is near

Ceska Lipa in northern Bohemia. This small

village was also the home o f the I'elikan fiiniily

o f glass engravers, o f which F A Pelikan

(1786-1858) was the most famous member,

and probably Bohm's teacher and mentor.

Bohm travelled widely, almost certainly taking

his engraving lathe and tools with h im. As well

as Stourbridge in England he is also recorded as

having visited or lived in Hamburg , London and

in New York.

His known signed and dated works include

Ricbnrd Coer de Lion at the Battle ofAsailon,

engraved in England in 1845 and now in the

Kiuistgewergemuseimi, Cologne, and Alexander

The Great overthrowing the Persians at the battle

ofArhela. after the painting by I.e Brun, now on

loan to the Broadfield House Glass Museum.

The latter is signed and dated Gravirt v. Aug.

Biihm aus Meistersdorf in Bohmeti 1840. This

goblet belonged to the glass-maker Apsley

Pellatt, who wrote in his Curiosities of

Glassmakingof 1849:

'A most beautifully engraved vase by a Bohemian

artist, is in the posession of the author; the

ivorkmanship is even more elaborated than that of

the Portland Vase; the subject is from Le Brim's

painting of the conquest and the final overthrow of

the Persians at the battle of Arbcla, by Alexatidre

the Great. For depth of workmanship and artistic

execution, as a modern intaglio engraving, this

vases is unrivalled.'

rhe present goblet was one of a series, each

engraved b\' Bi ihm with a portrait o f a notable

German. The owner o f this goblet was Paul

Opp i t z , the celebrated bohemian engraver who

came to l .ondon in 1845, famed for the

Copeland vase which is now in the Victoria and

Albert Museum. It is possible that Opp i t z

introduced August Bohm to Apsley Pellatt, ihe

owner of one of M r Bohm's master-works.

Friedrich Von Schiller was born on lOth

November 1759 in Marbach, (lerniany, the son

of an army officer. He was forced to enter the

Duke o f Wiirtemberg's military academy, the

Karisschule, at the age of thirteen. He studied

law and, later, medicine. At the age of tweni\ -

one he was appointed to a Stuttgari regiment.

More a literary man, than military, he composed

his first play. The Robbers, in 1782. Still with the

regiment, any further writing was to be

supre.ssed, which resulted in his desertion and

move to Mannhe im . Here, Johann Wolfgang

von Cioethe befriended h im, and, as part o f the

Sturm und miwemetit, Schiller was to

write many more plays. He died of tuberculosis

on 9th May 1805 at the age o f 46.

A C H A P U I S S I D E C A B I N E T

An unusual Empire mahogany side cabinet with two brass bordered glazed doors flanked by neo-Egyptian pilasters with sphinx capitals in lacquered brass and similar block feet standing on shaped pad feet. Stamped CHAPUIS.

Belgian, circa 1820 Height: 40 in / 102 cm Width: 537. in / 136 cm Depth: 16 in / 40 cm

Jean-Joseph ("hapuis was without doubt one of Belgian cabinet-making's most illustrious sons. Born in 1765, he died just short of a hundred years later in 1864. At the time of writing, not

much is really known of his life and works. However, in the last couple of years his fame has been re-discovered. He lived in Brussels and there exercised a great deal of influence. In 1806, he is recorded as going to Chateau Laeken where, with other Belgian experts, he checked over and valued furniture coming from Paris for the Chateau. Unsurprisingly, his valuations were significantly lower than the prices paid by the government in Paris. This afforded him the opportunity of supplying pieces himself.

Chapuis' most prolific period was the first three decades of the 19th century and by 1831 he had

more or less ceased to be active. His work is characterised by elegant forms, often making use of brass and ebony as an embellishment. The designs show tremendous playfulness and innovation and were certainly influenced by the work of the Roentgen family. Mechanisms and cabinet-making surprises were very dear to Chapuis' heart and he manifested his pride by stamping his name on every piece.

The cabinet contains a good collection of unusual marbles, semi precious stones and minerals including lapis lazuli, jasper, numerous agates, serpentine and others, reputedly collected in the 19th century.

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A CHAPUIS M E C H A N I C A L CHEVAL MIRROR

An Empire period mahogany mechanical cheval

mirror, the plate Hanked by caryatids

surmounted by gilt bronze heads and with

articulated candle holders on each side. The

cheval frame slides forwards and backwards on a

brass track. Below, two further caryatid supports

flank three tiers of drawers, the top tier

containing a writing slide and a gla/xd

compartment with a simulated tambour top,

above four small half drawers.

Stamped J J CHAPUIS.

Belgian, circa 1825 Height: 73 in / 185 cm

Width: 26 in / 66 cm

Depth: 22 in / 56 cm

M

A PAIR O F E M P I R E SETTEES

A highly uiiusiuil pair of mahogany canapes de

billards. The sides are richly carved with an

elaborate scroll, which transforms into a wing

and terminates in a hoof foot. The carving is in

high relief and enriched with subsidiary scrolls

and stylised foliate patera. 1 he canapes are

supported by a stepped block plinth with a

gestural hoof foot at the back.

French, circa 1830

Height of back: 45 in / 11 5 cm

Height of seat: 17 in / 43 cin

Width: 58'/. in / 149 cm

Depth: 24 in / 61 cm

a .

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117

A PAIR OF EMPIRE HALL CHAIRS

A rare pair of small scale Empire hall chairs, the

coved backs fashioned as a recessed circular panel

mounted with gilt bronze rosettes and supported

by square cross-section uprights, the seat rails

mounted with further neo-classical gilt bronze

ornament, standing on double baluster turned

legs enriched with gilt bronze collars at the front

and sabre legs at the back.

Stamped JACOB DESMALTER RUE MESLEE

French, circa 1810 Height: 36 in / 91.5 cm

Width: 16 i n / 4 1 cm

Depth: 16 in / 41 cm

A BRONZE AND ORMOLU GUERIDON

A Charles X bronze and ormolu gueridon, the

frieze mounted with vine leaf in gilt bronze, set

against a bronze frame, supported on a bronze

baluster column mounted with boldly modelled

gilt acanthus leaf, terminating in a tripod of

bronze animal legs with claw feet. The table

retains its original grey marble dished top.

French, circa 1835 Height: IS 'A in / 72.5 cm

Diameter: 37' / : in / 95 cm

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120

i A CHARLES X OVAL TABLE

An unusual Charles X oval rosewood breakfast table, the top inlaid at the outside and at the centre with multiple borders of herringbone marquetry bands and boxwood stringing and between these with an elaborate interlocking geometric pattern of exceptional delicacy and complexity. The table has a tilt top and is supported on a concave triangular stem and scroll legs terminating in brass castors. The stem and legs are equally profusely inlaid with geometric pattern boxwood stringing and herringbone marquetry.

French, circa 1825 Height: 2911 in / 75 cm Width: 40 in / 102 cm Depth: 36 in / 91 cm

121

V O N E C H E GLASS

A pair of silver mounted vases and covers on square bases and a glass covered compote on saucer shaped stand, decorated all over with cut diamonds and mounted with indistinctly marked silver bands. The lids are decorated in a conforming manner.

Attributed to the Voneche factory.

Belgian, circa 1830 Height of vases: 11 '/i in / 29 cm Height of compote and stand: 9 in / 23 cm

122

A PAIR O F EMPIRE CASSOLETTES

A pair of Empire bronze and gilt cassolettes, taking the form of a column supporting an antique oil lamp with a swan handle and a flame issuing from the spout, the cover reversing to reveal a candleholder. The supporting column stands on a concave sided triangular plinth mounted on each face with a vase, subsidiary scrolls and ram's head capitals to the flanking pilasters.

French, circa 1810 Height: 1372 in / 34.5 cm .^SBi

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123

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A M A R B L E C O N S O L E TABLE

A very rare late Louis X V I Campan Vert marble

console table, the top enriched with a finely

carved white marble frieze o f a guilioche pattern

in high relief, Hanked above and below with an

ogee moulding, the supports o f neo-classical

scroll form and having recessed panels on the

sides enhanced by low relief subsidiary scrolls.

1 he front face o f each is decorated with

elaborate foliate paterae and stopped fiutes in

further white marble. Throughout the carving is

o f the finest quality.

Campan comes from the Hautes Pyrenees in

the south west o f France. T h e quarry was first

exploited in Antiquity but was most actively

mined in the 18th century, though uses can be

seen both earlier and later. Today it is closed,

though deposits still exist. O n e o f the most

famous uses o f the marble is at Versailles where

it is seen in the fireplaces of the Salon de la Paix.

French, circa 1790

Height: 34 'A in / 87 cm

Width: 6 4 72 in / 164 cm

Depth: 15 ' / , i n / 4 0 cm

I

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A M A K H l . h 1 A ( . , 1 K L 1 IN

FANCIFUL. C O S T U M E

A late 14tli ccnturv white marble bust depicting

a young girl in costume inspired by traciitional

O t t oman dress, wearing an elaborate headdress

with a coronet and a central jewel set within a

pltmie. The textile element Hows down and

drapes over her shoulders, and she is also

wearing an eiaborateK' worked jacket and

blouse, with an ornate brooch at the centre.

Possibly I'rench, i m w 187()

Height: 33 in / 84 cm

W id th : 19 i n / 4 8 cm

IX-pth: 8 in / 20.5 cm

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A TRANSITIONAL C O M M O D E BY STUMPFF

A transitional breakfront commode of small scale

with two drawers, having gilt bronze corner

mounts and feet, the front inlaid with kingwood

panels against a rosewood background sans

travers. The legs are surmounted by kingwood

marquetry flutes and are of cabriole form with a

single inlaid flute on the front edge and

kingwood veneer on the inner face.

Stamped StumpfmA JME.

French, circa 1760

Height: 3 3 7 ; in / 85 cm

Width: 32 i n / 8 1 cm

Depth: 1772 in / 44 cm

Jean Chrysostome Stumpff (1731-1806) was

originally from Schweigern, Souabe, Switzerland.

He was married in 1760 in Paris at the Swedish

Embassy, as was typical of other protestant

Swedish compatriots. He was a friend of the

cabinet-maker, Ferdinand Schwerdfeger and

established himself in rue Saint-Nicolas where he

remained all his life.

He produced pieces in the Louis X V style, the

transitional style and the Louis XVI neo-classical

style. His work was always constructed to a very

high standard and he had a particularly

successful and prolific output of transitional and

neo-classical commodes and neo-classical

secretaires.

Typically his work was embellished with

marquetry and parquetry veneers where he

deployed geometric motifs such as small cubes

and Greek key pattern cross-banding, quartering

and shapes arranged in patterns in opposing

directions, all of which often contributed to

creating a trompe I'oeil effect and which is

evident in this commode. Several cabinet-

makers, including Pierre Roussel, Charles

Chevallier and Jean Lapie used similar devices

but none perhaps to the extent of S tumpff The

simulated fluting that appears on this commode

was a decorative effect used often by Stumpff on

some of his finest transitional commodes. The

mounts on the shoulders, legs and apron are also

typical in design - often tapering vase shapes

with swags of husks or fabric, stong gadrooning

and paterae, and, overall, boldly and roundly

modelled.

126

A PAIR OF GILT B R O N Z E VASES

A pair o f early 19th century Italian gilt bronze

campagna form vases decorated in the round

with Bacchic scenes depicting putti cavorting

amongst themselves and with a goat, the vases

having finely wrought lotus petal handles and

bronze paterae at the capitals. They are

supported on a baluster stem and circular foot

cast with acanthus leaf and a guilloche pattern,

on a grey marble block pl inth.

Italian, circa 1810

Height: 10 in / 25.5 cm

X

V

A PAIR O F SILK EMBROIDERY PANELS

A very rare pair of Greek island silk embroidery panels, each depicting a densely ornamented series of birds and vases above a scrolling border, the foliate elements enriched with rare pearl work stitching in relief The panels retain their original colouring and are in fine condition.

Cretan, circa 1760 Framed: 21 x 33 in / 53 x 84 cm

A LOUIS PHILIPPE P A I N T E D GLASS P E N D A N T L I G H T

An unusual Louis Philippe pendant frosted glass light decorated in white and gilt and with three grisaille vignettes, each depicting idealised village scenes, retaining its original smoke cowl and unusual star chain.

French, circa 1850 Height: 37 in / 94 cm Diameter of bowl: 13 in / 33 cm

A LOUIS XV G I L T W O O D SIDE TABLE

A fine quality Louis XV giltwood serpentine side

table in the rococo manner, incorporating early

neo-classical elements, the frieze carved at the

centre with a bouquet of flowers tied with a

ribbon and Hanked by foliate ' C scrolls. This

pierced central panel is supported by 'S' scrolls

carved with leaves and rocaille ornament and

scroll down to the cabriole legs that terminate in

scroll feet. I'his same scrolling frieze is carved

with a bound reed motif throughout. T h e table

retains its original Breccia marble top.

4 , 1 1 * * = .

French, circa 1760

Height: .34 in / 86 cm

Width: 66 in / 168 cm

Depth: 30 in / 76 cm

A PAIR OF BISCUIT VASES A PAIR OF RED GLASS OVERMANTEL MIRRORS

A pair of Louis XV period, early neo-classical biscuit porcelain vases of unusual ovoid form with pierced lids and collars each bearing a fleur de lys, the main body of the vase decorated with a band of alternating paterae and stylised Roman heads with acanthus leaves and a band of laurel below. The vases stand on a waisted stem with ' further foliate moulding towards the base.

French, circa 1765 One lid a later replacement Height: T h in / 19 cm

A very unusual pair of early 19th century Viennese mahogany and red glass overmantel mirrors, the sides bordered with gilt metal mounts of neo-classical design flanking slips of red glass. The corners are mounted with foliate paterae and at the centre there is a cresting, which is inset with a demi-lune panel of glass.

Austrian, circa 1820 Height: 407: in / 103 cm Width: 45'/; in / 116 cm

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133

A VIEW OF ROME

A fine quality 19th century watercolour perspective view of Rome showing, in the foreground, locals picnicking in the Borghese gardens. A musician plays the lute whilst dogs gambol and a mother sits with her children, all in the shade of large, ivy clad trees. In the distance can be seen St Peter's, the Castel Sant Angelo and the Piazza del Popolo. The highlights are varnished for luminosity. Signed lower right F Horner.

Italian, circa 1840 Framed: 35 x ATh in / 89 x 120.5 cm

Friedrich Horner (1800-1864) of Basel was Swiss born but spent long periods in Italy where he painted prolific landscapes and views of ruins that satisfied the strong market for Grand Tour 'souvenirs'.

134

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A MARQUETRY SIDE TABLE A PAIR OF BEDSIDE COMMODES

A north Italian parquetry serpentine side table,

the sides and front frieze elegantly inlaid with

geometric patterns creating multiple bands of

ornament, standing on square, tapering legs

surmounted by elaborately fashioned tiered

capitals, all inlaid with a band of geometric

marquetry. The same technique of inlay is

employed on the facing ' C scroll stretcher which

has at its centre an inlaid parquetry vase finial.

Italian, probably Milan, circa 1790

Height: 3 3 7 . in / 85 cm

Width: 39 74 in / 101 cm

Depth: 2172 in / 54.5 cm

O n the table is a very grand gilt and silvered

metal Renaissance revival magnifying glass of

large scale, the handle mounted with bands of

malachite, lapis lazuli and agate and with an

ivory finial, and also a pair of Regency painted

tole chinoiserie face screens.

A pair of North Italian serpentine bedside

commodes with two drawers, veneered in walnut

with purpleheart stringing, each commode

having two drawers with a central escutcheon

flanked by panels of quartered veneers, the sides

each having quartered panels in the same

manner as the drawer fronts. The commodes

have an elaborate scalloped bottom rail and

stand on cabriole legs with pad feet. They retain

their original marble tops.

Italian, circa 1770 Height: 30 in / 76 cm

Width: 31 in / 79 cm

Depth: 14 in / 35.5 cm

137

A PAIR OF SPHINX CHENETS A PAIR OF GILTWOOD CANDELABRA

A pair of Empire bronze and gilt sphinx chenets, having gilt headdresses, both matted and high burnished, and resting upon block plinths with a bronze roundel at the centre flanked by gilt anthemia.

French, circa 1810 Height: 13 in / 33 cm Width: 15 ' /2 in/39 cm Depth: 6 in / 15 cm

A pair of early 19th century North German giltwood six branch candelabra, the central stem carved to simulate a stylised fountain spout and supporting three tiers of candle arms, each arm enriched with subsidiary scrolls and foliate ornament and terminating in trumpet socles, standing on a turned circular plinth carved with an elongated bead motif Attributed to K F Schinkel (1781-1841)

Berlin, circa 1820 Height: 31'A in / 80.5 cm Width: 21 in / 53.5 cm Diameter of base: l^U in / 18.5 cm

LITERATURE: cf Lichter Leuchten Im Abendland by Kurt Jarmuth, pi 387 for a floor standing candelabrum which is en suite with the above, in the Behnhaus Museum in Lubeck.

138

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A late l,oiiis XVI mahogany console desscrte

together with a matching one of later date, each

having a single drawer in the frieze which is

enriched with a finely chased gilt bronze foliate

giiilloche pattern, framed by a neo-classical border,

the sides similarly decorated, the lower tier mounted

with a pierced, lacquered brass gallery. They stand

on turned tapering brass Huted legs with subsidiary

collars, terminating in machined ball sabots. The

dessertes are designed to be dismantled.

One French, circa 1790, the other circa 1860

Height: 36 in / 91.5 cm

Width: 52 in / 132 cm

Depth: 167: in / 42 cm

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AN EARLY 18TH CENTURY G E R M A N JAPANNED CABINET

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An exceptional early 18th century German

japanned cabinet, the exterior decorated in gold

on a black ground depicting, on the front, an

oriental lakeside landscape with high relief rocks

and a group o f figures in the foreground, the

sides depicting exotic cockerels fighting a

serpent. The interior is decorated in shades o f

gold on a deep red ground, depicting trees, birds

and flowers, and is fitted with an arrangement

o f ten drawers surroiniding a central cupboard.

The cupboard opens to reveal four further small

drawers and this inner compartment is japanned

in gold on a rare cream ground. The cabinet

retains its original, elaborately engraved brass

mounts. Attributed to Mart in Schnell of

Dresden.

Cierman, circa 1720

Now on a modern giltwood stand

Height o f cabinet: 25Vi in / 65.5 cm

Height with stand: 5774 in / 147 cm

W id th : 31V. in / 80.5 cm

Depth: 1 5 in / 38 cm

Mart in Schnell was a German furniture and

porcelain painter. Born in Dresden, he worked

under Gerard Dagly in Berlin between 1703 and

1709, after which he returned to Dresden.

There, in 1710, he was appointed lacquer-maker

to Augustus the Strong and remained in Dresden

for the rest o f his life. He specialised in japanned

trays - the best o f their period - decorated with

charmingly whimsical chinoiserie scenes.

However, he also made large pieces such as

bureaux and cabinets with elaborate japanned

decorations. The attribution to Schnell in this

instance stems particularly from the use o f

different coloured grounds for the japanning -

in this example three - which was not c ommon

at the time but was favoured by Schnell, and

also by the design o f the mounts which relate tt

other known Schnell pieces. Above all, the shee

accomplishment o f the technique and the

artistry o f the designs point to one o f the great

German lacquer masters o f the early 18th

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T W O G I L T W O O D WALL BRACKETJ

One bracket, French, circa 1730,

the matching bracket circa 1820

Height: 10 in / 25 cm

Width : 17 in / 43 cm

Depth: 7 in / 18 cm

© Mal le t t 2 0 0 4

Designed by I heo Hodges Design Consu l t an t s

Printed by Butler & Tanner, England.

144

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