Mallett catalogue 2013_DEF_Q9_new Mallett catalogue design 19/04/13 10:08 Pagina 37
M A L L E T T LO N D O N
A PAIR OF 19TH CENTURY ELEPHANTS
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N E W YO R K
› A PAIR OF REGENCY LIBRARY
ARMCHAIRS A charming pair of mid 19th century carved ornamental elephants, their bodies painted with faux pearls, flowers and beads their heads with floral comparisons and their backs with stylised rugs adorned with bells, their feet and husks with gold bangles, each holding forest fruits in their trunks. Their Mahout’s equally dressed in enriched silk stylised gowns. Anglo-Indian, circa 1860 Height: 31½in/80cm Width: 14in/35cm Depth: 25½in/65cm O3C0313
Elephants in India are revered throughout the country. They have a strong spiritual attachment to many Indian faiths and are celebrated for their strength and honesty. In March is the festival of Holi Dahan, the festival of colour and joy when elephants are groomed, painted with exotic colours, and covered with bright textiles and gold bangles. These images can be seen in the literature and paintings deep within Indian history. The Mahouts or grooms would ride the elephants holding aloft flags displaying the villages and towns the elephants and their followers would have come from, not unlike a great sporting festival today.
A
A fine pair of large scale Regency armchairs of beechwood with painted decoration over the woodwork simulating rosewood; the backs with scroll-over top rails and scrolling uprights; the square seats caned and standing on turned front legs; the arms supported by turned uprights and all the woodwork enriched with gilt metal mounts, parts of it replaced, and the chairs standing on brass toes and castors; with upholstered backs, seat cushions and arm pads, covered with yellow-gold damask. England, circa 1820 Seat height: 14½in/37cm Back height: 37in/94cm Width: 23in/58cm Depth: 24½in/62cm F3C0228
When rosewood (Dalbergia) became a valued and fashionable wood for making furniture it was by no means always practical to use it in extensive quantities. There is a significant, and in itself interesting, body of furniture that was made to fit in with libraries, studies and boudoirs, made of other timbers painted to complement theatrically, rather than to deceive. Graining as a decorative form presents a splendid variation of ornamental conceits and can vary enormously from exact imitations to fanciful colours. In this case the paintwork is added relatively lightly over the surface rather than wholly covering the base wood.
B
A detail of a watercolour showing a royal procession at the Red Palace in Jaipur, with ceremonial elephants and their Mahouts dressed for the occasion
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