Butchoff Antiques 2014

2

This year is our 50th anniversary in business; looking back to 1964 opens the door to another, seemingly far off age; the appearance of the Beatles, Lyndon B.Johnson’s tenure as the President of the USA, and Nikita Krushchev was elected the General Secretary of the Communist party of the Soviet Union. No internet, no mobile phones and just three television channels in black & white.

My father, David, started the business as a silver dealer and as a schoolboy I remember well the excitement each evening as we unpacked that days purchases. I joined my father in 1969 and we began to expand into furniture and accessories as well as silver. Our business has since evolved through a number of locations in London to our now flagship showroom, the largest on Kensington Church Street, and I am proud of Butchoff having remained a strong family business – regular clients will know that I am joined by my nephews, and third generation, Adam and James.

We are delighted and excited to be currently working in tandem with The Wallace Collection by loaning them a truly magnificent secretaire by Maison Rogié to stand side by side with their 18th century original by Pierre Antoine Foullett in their exhibition “Reproducing the 18th Century”. It is a fascinating exhibition and open until the end of August. On our website you will find a short explanatory video by furniture historian and the BBC’s Antiques Roadshow expert, Christopher Payne.

Another first, we are also sponsoring the next generation of furniture designers through the Butchoff Design Award working with the two top furniture design colleges in the country. The winning design will be unveiled at the LAPADA Fair in Berkeley Square in September. A new Philippe Starck in the making?

Adam and James took our road show to America for the first time this Spring successfully exhibiting at Palm Beach and they will be flying back across the pond in September to exhibit at the Armoury, New York between the 17-21st of September. If you are there please come and say hello.

Importantly, this year we are already delighted to be able to report a strong upturn in business with many International sales. 50 years ago demand was so great that you could sell almost any antique as long as the price was right, today the Market is much more discerning and only the very best will do – a sentiment that has become our ethos.

As ever you will find treasures within - the very best Japanese lacquer fronted cabinet in the manner of Dasson; the most wonderful pair of Parcel Gilt Silver and Enamel wine coolers made by Elkington & Co and exhibited at the 1862 Great Exhibition which the Victoria and Albert Museum are keen to include in a forthcoming exhibition; and of course our magnificent secretaire by Rogié.

I hope you find items to catch your eye.

I can only guess at what the next 50 years may hold for the Antiques business but I am certain of one thing, that there will always be a demand for the very finest.

With best wishes

Ian Butchoff

Butchoff Antiques 154 Kensington Church Street, London W8 4BN Tel: +44 (0)20 7221 8174 Fax: +44 (0)20 7792 8923 Email: enquiries@butchoff.com Web: www.butchoff.com 3

A Highly Important & Rare Royal for the Windsor Castle Commission, Circa

Constructed in amboyna, with ormolu gilt bronze mounts, having highlights in parcel gilt; rising from ormolu scroll feet cast with lotus decoration, housing its original castors, the parcel gilt end supports carved with a stiff leaf adornments, with the block end platforms conjoined by an upholstered footrest of rectangular form which also serves as a stretcher; the rectangular top edged with a berried leaf ormolu band, and housing a drawer in the frieze: the interior back rail bearing paper inventory labels, ‘Windsor Castle Room 236, No.4 1866’ another ‘235’ and two other labels, ‘R235’ & ‘21’; branded with a marque de fer under the front rail ‘V.R. 1866, Windsor Castle, Room 235’, and having a pencil notation to the underside ‘Room 235, York ***’.

Provenance Windsor Castle, Berkshire, originally situated in Room 243, subsequently moved to Rooms 235 & then 236, as recorded in the Royal Inventory of 1866. Other pieces of furniture provenanced to Windsor Castle have passed through our hands over the years.

Literature The faithful and detailed recording of Morel & Seddon’s Accounts by Hugh Robert’s in his wonderful study, ‘For the King’s Pleasure’, published by Royal Collection Enterprises Ltd. 2001, pp 356 provides a maker’s report of our table.

Morel & Seddon of 13 Great Marlborough Street London The partnership of Nicholas Morel, who had formerly worked for the Prince of Wales, later George IV, on his residences at Carlton House and the Brighton Pavilion since the cusp of the 18th/19th Centuries, and George Seddon, of the large and established cabinet makers Seddon and Sons of Aldersgate Street came into being in 1827, when Morel, of French extraction, was awarded by George IV the monumental task of refurbishing the apartments at Windsor Castle; his partner of choice was Seddon, whose expertise was coupled with a large workforce, as they were noted as the largest cabinet makers in London in the 18th Century, thus having the capacity to process large orders. The Windsor Castle commission was worth almost £200,000 to the company. Hugh Roberts book, ‘For the King’s Pleasure’, published by Royal Collection Enterprises in 2001 illustrates many of the pieces made for the commission, and concordances may be noted between these, and our Library Table. The firm seemed to have had the Crown as their main clients, with further work being carried out for William IV, although a large commission was carried out for the Marquess of Stafford in 1830 worth £15,000. Morel’s name disappears from the records in 1831, and the company of G & T Seddon, although awarded the Royal Warrant in 1832, had great difficulty in extracting the £200,000 from the Crown for the Windsor commission, which led to a near bankruptcy in 1840. The firm eventually closed in 1868.

Windsor Castle DIMENSIONS:

4

REFERENCE:

H:

30.5 in

77 cm

W:

43 in

108 cm

D:

22.5 in

57 cm

8108

Table Made By Morel & Seddon Commanded By George IV July 1828

5

A Notable & Recorded Pair of ‘Cleopatra’ Candle Vases

By Matthew Boulton Circa 1770

Constructed from Derbyshire Blue-John fluospar and very fine cast and chased ormolu; the stepped square section bases supported on globular feet, pedestals ornamented with elliptical laurel wreath medallions framing profile busts of ‘Cleopatra’; Greek key decorated platforms; over, the urns of waisted form, the torsade bases issuing laurel sprays, having the inset Blue-John draped with swags, and atop, the candle holders.

Matthew Boulton FRS (1728 - 1809) Birmingham born, polymath businessman, man of science, designer and manufacturer whose many business interests included steam engines (in conjunction with James Watt); and the Royal Mint, and the decorative art fields of silver plate and ormolu, inter alia; a prominent member of The Lunar Society, which may be considered a presager of the ‘Industrial Revolution’.

Provenance and Literature Estate of the late Michael Winner, filmmaker, journalist and bon viveur. Recorded in Nicholas Goodison’s ‘Matthew Boulton, Ormolu’, revised and extended edition published by Christies in 2002, from the earlier work published 1974, pp 328 to 330, under the heading ‘Cleopatra Vase’, and extensively discussed by the author.

DIMENSIONS:

6

REFERENCE:

H:

9 in

23 cm

W:

4 in

10.5 cm

D:

4 in

10.5 cm

8091

Illustration taken from ‘Matthew Boulton, Ormolu’

7

A Remarkable Centre Table

By George J. Morant of New Bond Street Circa 1845

Constructed in satinwood with kingwood crossbanding, having decorative floral inlays executed in specimen woods, surmounted with a marble platform having one hundred and forty one pieces of specimen marble radially laid on a carrara marble ground, within a verte de mer marble guard band; extensively dressed with gilt bronze mounts.

SIGHT SIZE:

8

REFERENCE:

H:

30 in

76.5 cm

Dia:

40 in

101 cm

7629

Rising from a tripartite serpentine scrolled footed hexagonal vasiform columnar base, housing floral inlaid reserves, with stylised fleur-de-lys and interlaced ‘C’s, and having gadroon running gilt bronze mounts, which support a circular platform with a serpentine apron, with further floral inlays and gilt bronze mounts, housing the circular specimen marble top, itself enclosed within a bold gadroon gilt bronze guard band. Branded with the marque de fer of the maker ‘G. J. Morant 91 New Bond Street’. London.

‘The Dictionary of English Furniture Makers 1660-1840’, published by the Furniture History Society informs that Morant Snr. was a maker of carved and gilded frames from early in the reign of George IVth, and his trade card describes the company as ‘Ornamental Painter & Paper Hanging Manufacturer to their Royal Highnesses’. Work was executed for Sir Thomas Lawrence, Sir Robert Peel, the Dukes of Sussex, Cambridge and Sutherland, inter alia. The company exhibited in the Great Exhibition of 1851, the New York International Exhibition of 1853, and the London International Exhibition of 1862. ‘Masterpieces of Industrial Art & Sculpture, edited by J.B.Waring, published in 1862 illustrates a wonderful sideboard made for Lord Ellesmere, that was shown at this exhibition. A Royal Warrant was granted in 1840, by Queen Victoria. Throughout the Nineteenth Century, they were recognised as one of England’s most eminent cabinet makers.

9

An Exceptional Centre Table

By George J. Morant of New Bond Street Circa 1845

Constructed in an extensively inlaid satinwood possessing splendid markings and patination, counterpointed with kingwood and tulipwood cross bandings, and finely cast and chased ormolu accents; rising from a scroll footed marquetry inlaid, ormolu mounted and castor shod tripartite base, in the manner of Richard Bridgens’ design number 16, a ‘Marquetrie Table’ shown in his highly regarded opus ‘Furniture with Candelabra & Interior Decoration’, first published in 1833 and revised in 1838; the central column of bulbous form, supporting a circular tilting top, with a central shaped and gilt tooled Morocco leather, extensively and wonderfully inlaid, in stained and etched rare woods, depicting blooms, foliates, moths and butterflies, within the outer foliate cast ormolu guard band, and the apron edged with a sinuous ormolu running floral mount.

Stamped to the underside, ‘G. J. Morant, New Bond Street’. London.

DIMENSIONS: H: Dia:

10

REFERENCE:

30.5 in

77 cm

54 in

137 cm

8123

The Morant Dynasty Founded by George Morant (1770-1849) the company went through the following incarnations; Johnson, Morant & Tootle c.1793-1795, as ‘Paper Hangers & Glass Manufacturers’ Johnson & Morant 41 Ludgate Hill, partnership dissolved 1808 Bowen & Morant 81 New Bond Street between 1808-1812 George Morant, 81 New Bond Street 1812-1827 G. Morant & Son 1828-1841 George John Morant 1842-1851 Morant & Boyd 1851-1859 Morant Boyd & Morant 1859-1867 Morant, Boyd & Morant & Co. 1868-1869 Morant, Boyd & Blandford 1870-1884 Morant & Co 1885-1915, 7 Woodstock Street with Messrs Jeandon & Lengyon.

‘The Dictionary of English Furniture Makers 16601840’, published by the Furniture History Society informs that Morant Snr. was a maker of carved and gilded frames from early in the reign of George IV, and his trade card describes the company as ‘Ornamental Painter & Paper Hanging Manufacturer to their Royal Highnesses’. Work was executed for Sir Thomas Lawrence, Sir Robert Peel, the Dukes of Sussex, Cambridge and Sutherland, inter alia.

The company exhibited in the Great Exhibition of 1851, the New York International Exhibition of 1853, and the London International Exhibition of 1862.

‘Masterpieces of Industrial Art & Sculpture, edited by J.B.Waring, published in 1862 illustrates a wonderful sideboard made for Lord Ellesmere, that was shown at this exhibition. A Royal Warrant was granted in 1840, by Queen Victoria. Throughout the Nineteenth Century, they were recognised as one of England’s most eminent cabinet makers.

11

A Fine Open Bookcase In the Manner of Holland & Sons Circa 1880

Constructed in a finely marked and patinated satinwood, having amaranth cross bandings, and exotic wood marquetry inlay, dressed with high quality gilt bronze mounts; rising from a plinth base, of rectangular form with radiused angles, themselves having foliate bronze mounts to bases and capitols; the frieze having a central foliate bronze mount, with running stiff leaf bronze mounts above and below; the platform fitted with an arcaded gilt bronze gallery. The two mahogany shelves are adjustable, and dressed with leather tooled dust curtains.

Holland & Sons Originally founded in 1803 as Taprell, Stephen & Holland, becoming Taprell Holland & Son between 1835-1840, then Holland & Sons, who became one of the largest and most successful furniture making companies of the 19th Century. The firm worked extensively for the Royal Family, being granted the Royal Warrant early in the reign of Queen Victoria, hence taking a leading part in the decoration and furnishing of Osborne House, Sandringham, Balmoral, Windsor Castle and the apartments of the Prince and Princess of Wales at Marlborough House. Holland and Sons also worked extensively for the British Government, for whom they executed over three hundred separate commissions, including the Palace of Westminster, the Victoria and Albert Museum, and oversaw the State funeral of the Duke of Wellington. Among their private commissions the firm produced a celebrated suite of bedroom furniture for the late Sir Harold Wernher at Luton Hoo.

DIMENSIONS:

12

REFERENCE:

H:

43.5 in 110.5 cm

W:

44.5 in

112 cm

D:

13 in

32 cm

8206

13

A Side Cabinet in Firmly Attributed to Wright Circa

Constructed in a finely grained and patinated satinwood, cross banded with kingwood, the whole decorated with excellent marquetry work, and fine quality gilt metal highlights; of arc-en-arbalette form, rising from toupie feet; enclosed by reeded stiles capped with gilt metal bows and paterae over, the central door, encloses a shelved interior, having a central elliptical hand painted scene depicting lovers in a pastoral scene, housed within a gilt metal frame, surrounded with marquetry floral decoration, and suspended ‘bats wings’ cartouches; being flanked by two banks of five graduated and lockable drawers dressed with gilt metal loop handles within gilt metal frames; the platform inlaid with a central ‘bat’s wing’ cartouche, emanating inlaid floral tendrils.

Wright and Mansfield Alfred Thomas Wright first came to notice in 1856 as a junior partner in the firm of Samuel Hanson, a cabinetmaker and upholsterer trading from 16 John Street (later Great Portland Street), and 106 Oxford Street. The company was joined by George Needham Mansfield, son of the old established builders and decorators George Mansfield, of Grays Inn Lane and Wigmore Street, and the firm is recorded in Post Office journals as Hanson, Wright and Mansfield at the above addresses until 1861, when Hanson died. Thereafter the company traded as Wright and Mansfield, and swiftly rose to prominence after their exhibits at the 1862 International Exhibition held in London, on the site of what is now the Natural History Museum, South Kensington.

Attended by over six million visitors, despite the death in 1861 of Prince Albert, and the absence of Queen Victoria, who was still in mourning. The Art Journal Catalogue of the International Exhibition, and J.B. Waring’s ‘ Masterpieces of Industrial Art and Sculpture’ of 1862 record their work, and two bookcases, and a fireplace constructed of ‘Ginn’ or ‘Gean’ wood, with inset Wedgwood plaques were illustrated, along with a piano, painted in the manner of George Brookshaw, and commented upon and favourably compared to the Eighteenth Century work of ‘Adelphi’ Adams. The progress and incredible quality presented by the exhibitors occasioned Eugene Rouher, the prominent French statesman, after the exhibition to form a committee, taking as a premise ‘ the results of the Exposition prove, that if rapid progress is not made in France, we will quickly be outstripped by our rivals’. At the 1867 Paris Universelle Exposition, a remarkable satinwood, marquetry, bronze and Wedgwood mounted cabinet won a Gold medal, the only time such an honour was bestowed upon an English cabinet maker, by the judges, presided over by M. du Sommerard director of the Cluny Museum, and M Wilkinson, Administrator de Mobilier de la Courrone. The Gold Medal was presented personally to Wright & Mansfield by the Emperor Napoleon the 3rd. The cabinet was purchased by the South Kensington Museum (later the Victoria and Albert Museum) for the extraordinary sum, in those days, of £800. It remains in their possession today. Their showing at the 1876 Philadelphia Centennial Exhibition attracted wide admiration, and was most favourably commented upon in the journals of the day.

DIMENSIONS:

14

REFERENCE:

H:

43 in

109 cm

W:

59.5 in

151 cm

D:

19.5 in

49 cm

8000

the Adam Manner & Mansfield of London 1870

15

A Very Fine Centre Table in the Manner of Edward Holmes Baldock Circa 1840

The design drawn from Richard Bridgen’s ‘Furniture with Candelabra and Interior Decoration’ published in 1833, pp17; constructed in choice satinwood, the top showing cruciform laid veneers within an ebony border, adorned with marquetry work of the highest quality, incorporating butterflies and moths circling bouquets and foliates, with a pendant pierced skirt to the edge; the tapering supporting column and its tripartite base similarly inlaid.

DIMENSIONS:

16

REFERENCE:

H:

29 in

73 cm

Dia:

30 in

76 cm

8056

17

A Rare Regency Period Work Table Attributable to James Newton Circa 1815

Of free standing form, constructed from rosewood and ebony, in part ebonised and gilt, dressed with bronze mounts, and marble; rising from castor mounted claw footed scrolled legs in the Regency Neo-Grecian taste, having a conjoining platform, incorporating an upholstered footstool, and dressed with bronze anthemions at the angles; the octagonal Italian specimen marble top is inset within an ebony border decorated with a running band of brass palmettes; the frieze, incorporates a cedar lined lockable drawer dressed with bronze addorsed stylised anthemion mounts, and fitted with an easel slide, baize lined, with a smaller drawer housing an inkwell, sander and a quill tray; below, a fitted work slide. Formerly with a work basket below.

Marble Platform The Carrara white marble ground incorporates specimens of Lapis Lazuli, Antico Rosso, Giallo Sienna, Cipollino, MandolatoRosso, Brecciato, Bigo Antico, inter alia.

DIMENSIONS:

18

REFERENCE:

H:

29 in

74 cm

W:

33.5 in

84.5 cm

D:

25 in

64 cm

8210

Provenance; The estate of Lady Ann Babington, Kelso, Roxburghshire; sale held on 12&13 November 1946, sold to Shirley Neame; Exhibited; The Regency Festival Exhibition, Brighton Pavilion, 1948.

The Age of Regency

James Newton (1773-1821) Upholder and cabinet maker, trained in the celebrated workshops of Lawrence Fell & William Turton - business rivals of the great Thomas Chippendale - and, in the tradition of ambitious men, married the daughter of the latter, which in part accounts for his meteoric rise to prominence; executing commissions, inter alia, for Matthew Boulton at Soho House, the Earl of Jersey at Osterley, and Sir Gilbert Heathcote; familiar with the fashions of the Regency period, he is listed as a subscriber to Thomas Sheraton’s 1803 ‘Cabinet Dictionary’; a pair of chairs with close concordances to a design of Thomas Hope’s Household Furniture’ (plate 22), and bearing his label may be viewed at the Royal Pavilion Brighton.

19

A Fine Étagère of the Regency Period Circa 1815

Constructed in a well figured and patinated mahogany, with brass accents; rising from four ‘hairy paw’ feet, the three tiers having radiused corners, supported by spirally turned columns, dressed with three quarter arcaded pierced brass galleries, the uppermost tier being ebony inlaid with a design of a five pointed star within a flattened quadrilateral, issuing stylised anthemions: the conforming superstructure is raised on tapering, turned brass columns.

DIMENSIONS:

20

REFERENCE:

H:

45 in

114 cm

W:

38 in

96 cm

D:

12 in

31 cm

8074

The Age of Regency

21

A Sofa Table of the Regency Period Circa

Constructed in oak, and marquetry decorated, having ebonized accents; of freestanding rectangular drop leaf form, rising from line inlaid swept legs at each end, mounted with cast bronze lion’s paw toes, fitted with castors, and conjoined by a ring turned stretcher, terminating in oblate turned bosses; the end supports are twinned ring turned columns, with, over, the frieze, housing a pair of drawers, having opposing faux drawers, mounted with ebonized knobs; the drop leaf hinged platform with radiused corners, cross banded with Holly, and having an outer border of running berries, and the drop leaf with shaped support stiles.

George Bullock (c 1777-1818) George Bullock began his career as a sculptor and wax modeller, but by 1804 was running a successful furniture business in Liverpool. While resident in the North West, he purchased the Mona Marble quarry on the Welsh island of Anglesey, which occasioned Sir Walter Scott, a friend and client, to dub him “the prince of black marble island.”

After a brief but notable sojourn in Birmingham, he opened, in 1812, ‘The Grecian Gallery’ to his own design in The Egyptian Hall on Piccadilly, which quickly became a bon ton venue for art and entertainment, and was run by his brother, William.

During the Napoleonic wars - between 1803 and 1815 - wood and marble from mainland Europe was difficult to come by, but Bullock made a virtue of this shortage by using wood grown on British soil and marble hewn from British quarries. For example, a cabinet in the Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge, made for the Duke of Atholl, used larches from the ducal estate. Bullock was praised by a contemporary critic for his use of British flora in his decoration. “He [Bullock] has shewn,” wrote Richard Brown, in his 1819 book The Rudiments of Drawing Cabinet Furniture, “that we need not roam to foreign climes for beautiful ornaments, but that we have abundance of plants and flowers equal to the Grecian, which if adopted would be as pleasing as the antique.”

Some of his inspiration came from the neo classical design of Percier and Fontaine, and, ironically Bullock, a great proponent of British fabrics and patterns, supplied the furniture to Longwood House, home of the exiled Napoleon Bonaparte on the remote Atlantic island of St. Helena. His oeuvre included works for Tew Park, Cholmondley Castle, Bolton, Scone Palace, Blair Castle, Armdale Castle, Battle Abbey, Shrubland Park and Abbotsford, home of Sir Walter Scott.

22

DIMENSIONS Closed:

DIMENSIONS Open:

REFERENCE:

H:

28 in 71.5 cm

H:

28 in 71.5 cm

8080

W:

40 in 102 cm

W:

64.5 in 164 cm

D:

29 in

D:

74 cm

29 in

74 cm

The Age of Regency

In the Manner of George Bullock 1815

Provenance By direct family descent from the 7th Baron Londesborough Notes; ‘George Bullock Cabinet-Maker’ published Murray & Blairman London 1988, which shows on pp 67 an identical foliate decoration, with the source, pp 137 of the Wilkinson Tracings (Courtesy of Birmingham City Museum & Art Gallery), a record of Bullock’s designs.

23

A Pair of Regency Occasional Tables Circa

Constructed in a well patinated amboyna, adorned with holly wood, rosewood and brass line inlays; rising from castor shod swept quadripartite legs having brass lions paw feet supporting the incurved platforms, dressed with a beaded reel edge, issuing stepped truncated pyramidical columns, and over, foliate inlaid, rosewood cross banded rectangular platforms.

DIMENSIONS:

24

REFERENCE:

H:

29 in

74 cm

W:

18 in

46 cm

D:

13.5 in

35 cm

8228

1815

The Age of Regency

In the Manner of Trotter of Edinburgh

William Trotter (1772 - 1833) The most prominent and successful Cabinet Maker in Scotland, his extensive premises were described in Thomas Dibdin’s ‘Tour in the North Countries of England and Scotland’, quoting, in part ‘The locality of this great...warehouse is rather singular. It is on the ground floor, lighted by a skylight, of great length and vistas, filled with Mahogany and Rosewood objects of temptation of all styles, including the modern form’.

Literature; ‘A Dictionary of Edinburgh Furniture Makers’ by Francis Bamford, published by the Furniture History Society, 1983.

25

A Side Table of Circa

Of free-standing rectangular form, constructed in well patinated rosewood, and accented with brass inlay work: rising from swept splay feet, terminating in claw feet fitted with castors, shaped end supports, and having a conjoining ring turned and lobed stretcher; the apron housing a single cedar lined drawer, with faux drawer to the obverse, and fitted with ring turned handles, and the top surface with a running guard band of foliate pattern brass inlay.

DIMENSIONS:

26

REFERENCE:

H:

29 in

74 cm

W:

30 in

75 cm

D:

20 in

50 cm

8033

1815

The Age of Regency

the Regency Period

27

A Fine Pair of Salon Armchairs in the Circa

Constructed in gilt wood, rising from channelled cabriole front and rear legs, with scrolled toes; the seat front rails of serpentine form, centred about coquilles, with foliate carvings; the shepherd’s crook padded arms joining the seat uprights, leading to serpentine toprails adorned with further foliates; upholstered seats and backs, and stamped to the frames by the makers, Krieger of Paris. French.

DIMENSIONS:

28

REFERENCE:

H:

44.5 in

113 cm

W:

28 in

70 cm

D:

24 in

60 cm

7648

Régence Manner By Maison Krieger of Paris 1870

The Musée des Arts Décoratifs of Paris exhibits the original Régence model which Krieger used as the pattern for these armchairs, and may be seen in Pallot’s ‘Art of the Chair in Eighteenth Century France’, published by Gismondi in 1989.

Krieger Highly regarded, Maison Krieger of the Faubourg SainteAntoine, Paris were established in Paris in 1826, and prize winners at many exhibitions including the Crystal Palace 1851 Great Exhibition, being in business until 1955.

Material courtesy of Dedar Fabrics, Milan. www.dedar.com

29

A Very Fine Quality Bureau Plat Attributed to JosephCirca

Of freestanding form, constructed in kingwood, with extensive use of marquetry inlay, and very fine gilt bronze mounts, some signed ‘AB’ to the back: rising from cabriole legs, shod with sabots which are conjoined by gilt bronze interstices to most unusual spandrels, of dolphins emerging from bullrushes: the serpentine top having a bronze guard edge, with foliate design escutcheon plates at the angles: the shaped apron housing three drawers to one side, with false drawers to the obverse,all having quite remarkable handles, of intertwined bouquets; each panel decorated with floral marquetry within ornate gilt bronze reserves; the writing surface having an inset tooled leather surface. French.

A bureau plat of the Louis XV period, in the collection of the Duchess of Sutherland, and on loan to the Victoria & Albert Museum, London, had similar distinctive dolphin mounts, and the bouquet handles and angle escutcheon plates were on a similar bureau plat signed ‘Zwiener’ sold by Christies London on 29 November 1998.

Joseph-Emmanuel Zwiener (1849-1895) ranks among the best haut luxe Parisian cabinetmakers of the late 19th century. Born in Herdon, Germany in 1849, he arrived in Paris by 1880 and set up his workshop at 12 rue de la Roquette, where he remained until his death in 1895. Working in several styles fashionable in Paris at the time, he copied mainly Louis XV pieces from public collections, adapting them in his own exuberant interpretation of Rococo. At the Exposition Universelle in Paris in 1889, he received the gold medal and a note of high praise from the jurists: “dès ses débuts d’une Exposition universelle, il c’est mis au premier rang par la richesse, la hardiesse et le fini de ses meubles incrustés de bronzes et fort habilement marquetés.”

DIMENSIONS:

30

REFERENCE:

H:

30.5 in

78 cm

W:

67 in

171 cm

D:

37 in

94 cm

6731

Zwiener almost certainly employed François Linke, who was six years younger and a fellow German-speaker. The Pankraz Gedenkbuch mentions Linke as “working in Paris with a German master”.

in the Louis XV Manner Emannuel Zwiener 1870

31

A Fine Jardinière By Circa

Of elliptical form, rising from a square plinth with a moulded top edge, constructed in a finely veined Red Griotte marble, adorned with gilt bronze mounts, centred by scallop shells, issuing foliate arabesques, having loop handles, one of which is signed by the maker ‘F. Barbedienne’. French.

The Barbedienne Foundry commenced in 1838 under the leadership of Ferdinand Barbedienne and Achille Collas, casting high quality models for the leading sculptors of the age, including Barye, Fremiet and Clesinger, as well as ‘mechanical reductions’ of statuary from the Classical period, and individual commissions from clock & furniture makers.

The factory, situated in Rue de Lancry, Paris, employed over 300 craftsmen; in the Franco-Prussian war of 1870, the French government had the company cast cannons to serve in the defence of Paris. The company eventually closed in 1952.

DIMENSIONS:

32

REFERENCE:

H:

13 in

33 cm

W:

25 in

63 cm

D:

14 in

36 cm

8111

Ferdinand Barbedienne 1870

33

A Display Vitrine in the Louis XV Taste In the Manner of Joseph-Emannuel Zwiener of Paris Circa 1880

Constructed in a distinctively grained and well patinated kingwood, dressed with exuberant ormolu mounts of fine quality; of serpentine form, and rising from short cabriole legs, dressed with foliate sabots; the symmetrical double doors having ormolu trimmings with canellure decoration, the lower and closed sections veneered with cube parquetry work, draped with foliate ormolu swags; the upper parts glazed, revealing a shelved, silk lined interior; conforming glazing to each side, and the domed cornice having a central ormolu shell motif, issuing further foliates. French.

Joseph-Emmanuel Zwiener (1849-1895) ranks among the best haut-luxe Parisian cabinetmakers of the late 19th century. Born in Herdon, Germany in 1849, he arrived in Paris by 1880 and set up his workshop at 12 rue de la Roquette, where he remained until his death in 1895. Working in several styles fashionable in Paris at the time, he copied mainly Louis XV pieces from public collections, adapting them in his own exuberant interpretation of Rococo. At the Exposition Universelle in Paris in 1889, he received the gold medal and a note of high praise from the jurists: “dès ses débuts d’une Exposition Universelle, il c’est mis au premier rang par la richesse, la hardiesse et le fini de ses meubles incrustés de bronzes et fort habilement marquetés.”

Zwiener almost certainly employed François Linke, who was six years younger and a fellow German-speaker. The Pankraz Gedenkbuch mentions Linke as “working in Paris with a German master”.

Reference; Denise Ledoux-Lebard, ‘Le Mobilier Français du XIXe Siècle’. First published 1984, revised 2000.

DIMENSIONS:

34

REFERENCE:

H:

91 in

230 cm

W:

61 in

155 cm

D:

20 in

51 cm

8119

35

A Chinoiserie Commode In the Circa

Constructed in kingwood, with fine ormolu mounts; of serpentine form, rising from ormolu sabot shod swept bracket feet, the double doors housing Seventeenth century Chinese incised and polychromed lacquer panels depicting court scenes within a stiff leaf ormolu border, and enclosing a shelved interior; female ormolu espagnolettes to the stiles, with a Breche d’Alep thumbnail moulded platform; one mounted cast with the initials, ‘J.J.’, for Maison Jansen. French.

Maison Jansen, a Parisian firm that specialised in interior decoration, was founded by Jean-Henri Jansen in 1880.

By the early 1890s Maison Jansen had established its own manufacturing capacity producing furniture in the manner of the ancien régime, and later, followed the styles of the 20th Century.

DIMENSIONS:

36

REFERENCE:

H:

39 in

99 cm

W:

65.5 in

167 cm

D:

22.5 in

57 cm

3925

Louis XV Manner By Maison Jansen 1890

37

A Magnificent Meiji Period Model of a Shrine of Important Size Circa 1890

Constructed in three sections, using wood, lacquered in part, and decorated with ivory and Shibayama inlays; rising from a finely carved base in the form of a Yamabushi priest supporting the whole, flanked by a pair of frolicking Karashishi and writhing dragons, the central stairway leading to a galleried balcony area, enclosing a pair of hinged doors, opening to reveal a roiro-nuri interior decorated with gold hiramaike scattered with Tokugawa-mon, ho-o and floral sprays, the exterior ivory carved samurai meeting a sensei in a pine forest, beneath kinji lacquer panels inlaid in the Shibayama-manner with flying hoo, beneath a removable tiled roof with upturned eaves. Japanese.

DIMENSIONS:

38

REFERENCE:

H:

79 in

201 cm

W:

42 in

107 cm

D:

32 in

82 cm

8221

39

Emerging from the Edo Period, having been isolated from the west, the Meiji era opened Japan up to a great wealth of trade opportunities. The Emperor Meiji’s accession to the throne in 1868 coincided with the end of the Tokugawa Shogunate and the restoration to supreme executive authority in the country after centuries of control by regional “Daimyo” or feudal lords.

The Meiji period 1868 – 1912 saw many existing Japanese skills in the arts and crafts flourish, while techniques continued to develop, all promoted by the establishment of institutions such as The Tokyo School of Arts with many elite craftsmen being appointed to the Imperial household. Skilled carvers, lacquer work artists, enamellers, ceramicists and metalworkers all honed their skills and benefitted from the burgeoning new markets and contributed to both domestic and international exhibitions.

As early as the second international exhibition in London (1862) The British diplomat Sir Rutherford Alcock curated the Japanese exhibit, displaying domestic wares and simple pieces designed for export. As the Meiji Emperor came to power and took control, envoys from the provinces and their specialist elite craftsmen were encouraged to showcase the masterpieces of Japan.

Japan was represented in many of the great international exhibitions that followed: San Francisco 1871; Vienna 1873; Philadelphia 1876; Paris 1878 & 1900; Amsterdam 1883; New Orleans and Nuremberg in 1885; Barcelona 1887; Chicago 1893; Venice 1897 St Louis 1904 and London 1910, with five others taking place in Japan between 1877 and 1903.

40

41

A Lifesize and Naturalistic Almost Certainly By Circa

This anatomically accurate carving of a Retriever and a Goose is executed in Linden wood, and the Daniels & Arenski reference work ‘Swiss Carvings, the Art of the Black Forest’ published by The Antique Collectors Club in 2004 lists Walter and his son Heinrich as the foremost carvers of dogs.

Brienz, Bernese Oberland, Switzerland Brienz, in the Bernese Oberland, Switzerland was remarked upon in Baedeker’s Travel Guide, as having a population of 2400, of whom 600 persons were employed as woodcarvers, to supply the tourist trade to Switzerland with mementos of the tour. A museum devoted entirely to the art of wood carving may be visited today.

DIMENSIONS:

42

REFERENCE:

H:

39 in

99.5 cm

W:

44 in

112 cm

D:

20 in

51 cm

8220

‘Black Forest’ Carving Walter Mäder of Brienz 1880

43

A Finely Carved Black Forest Animalier Group Circa 1880

Carved in a well patinated walnut, mounted on an elliptical base, the naturalistic setting shows a slaughtered stag, surmounted by an eagle with spread wings. Probably Brienz.

Brienz, in the Bernese Oberland, Switzerland was remarked upon in Baedeker’s Travel Guide, as having a population of 2400, of whom 600 persons were employed as woodcarvers, to supply the tourist trade to Switzerland with mementos of the tour. A museum devoted entirely to the art of wood carving may be visited today.

Literature; ‘Swiss Carvings, The Art of the Black Forest’ by Arenski, Daniels and Daniels, published by The Antique Collectors Club 2004 for similar examples

DIMENSIONS:

44

REFERENCE:

H:

28 in

71.5 cm

W:

22 in

66 cm

D:

11 in

28 cm

8036

A Truly Remarkable Italian Carved Sideboard Dated 1878, Almost Certainly Made for The Paris Exposition of that year Dated 1878

Constructed from fruitwood, comprehensively carved with exquisite skill and artistry; supported on removable legs, for the ease and safety of transportation, which screw into the serpentine form engraved platform, having drawers in the frieze, itself carved to represent pleated and draped cloth; the mirrored back houses further drawers in the lower sweep, and the domed frame, flanked by carvings of quite extraordinary depth and detailing, terminate in a baroque and floridly carved arched pediment set with a fountain, - a putti issuing the water flow; a framed tablet in the lower section incorporates the date 1878, the year of the Paris Universelle Exposition at the Trocadero. Italian.

Our close scrutiny of the piece showed the glass, which is original, to bear an etched Italian glass maker’s trademark, and is dated 1877, which we will shortly expect to identify, and we continue our researches into the Italian carvers who exhibited at the Exposition, which included such august names as Giusti, Frullini, Barbetti and Morelli, inter alia.

DIMENSIONS:

REFERENCE:

H:

106.5 in

270 cm

W:

83 in

210 cm

D:

31.5 in

80 cm

8198

45

46

47

A Large Pair of Italian Mid Circa

Constructed in carved giltwood in the restrained baroque manner, and retaining the original Mercury plates; the swept frames, of symmetrical serpentine form have arched crestings, addorsed shaped feet below, and the divided shaped plates are dressed with ‘c’ scrolls, icilcles and rocaille decorations.

Piedmontese area.

Graham Child’s ‘World Mirrors’ published Sotheby’s 2004 shows a mirror of similar form

DIMENSIONS:

48

REFERENCE:

H:

94 in

239 cm

W:

49 in 124.5 cm

8227

18th Century Pier Mirrors 1750

49

A Fine White Carrara Marble Bust of an Italian Beauty Circa 1880

Set on a circular stepped socle, the ragazza is dressed in the regional costume of Foggia, with a mantua, laced blouse with a lace shift beneath, and striking earrings Italian.

DIMENSIONS:

50

REFERENCE:

H:

29 in

74 cm

W:

18 in

46 cm

D:

9 in

23 cm

8077

A Fine Sculpture

By Albert-Ernest Carrier-Belleuse Dated 1887

Carved from white Carrara marble, rising from a stepped circular socle, depicting a draped maiden holding a lovebird.

Signed to the reverse, Carrier-Belleuse 87. French.

Albert-Ernest Carrier-Belleuse (1824-1887) Instructed in his art by the celebrated David d’Angers at the Salon des Beaux Arts, he exhibited work at the Paris Salon from1851 until his death. Working in the mediums of marble and terracotta, he assisted in a directory capacity in the Sevres Porcelain Manufactory, and was associated with Mintons and Wedgwood of the UK. Auguste Rodin became his assistant for six years; a founding member of the Société Nationale des Beaux-Arts, he was made an Officer of the French Legion d’honneur. The torchéres he designed and created for the Paris Opera House are still in situ.

References; Benezit; Editions Gründ 1975 Volume 2.

DIMENSIONS:

REFERENCE:

H:

37 in

93 cm

W:

8 in

20 cm

D:

9 in

23cm

8088

51

A Splendid Milanese Cabinet on Stand Circa 1870

Constructed in ebony, dressed with extensive ivory inlays depicting designs in the Neo-Renaissance manner incorporating arabesques, etched roundels with scenes from the antique, chimeras and sphinxes; the stand having eight tapering and baluster turned legs mounted on rectangular plinths, conjoined with a complex pierced stretcher having onion form finials, with a shaped pendant apron fitted with three drawers; the cabinet surmounted by a broken arch pediment of architectural form enclosing a shaped cartouche; the central cupboard is inset with four ivory etched columns and has one drawer over, and one under, the wings with banks of cupboards and drawers.Italian.

DIMENSIONS:

52

REFERENCE:

H:

96.5 in

245 cm

W:

73 in

185 cm

D:

24.5 in

62 cm

7997

53

A Good Italian Centre Table of the Impero Period the Top Almost Certainly Pietro Della Valle Circa 1825

Of circular form, constructed in carved giltwood, with a scagliola top of excellent quality; supported by three oblate feet, the incurved tripartite vertically reeded base with a central naturalistically carved tree trunk, set about with three giltwood dolphins; the inset circular scagliola top depicting a polychrome decorated capriccio of peasants in a ruined Roman temple landscape, framed within a border of oak leaves. Italian.

Three directly comparable table tops by Pietro Della Valle are illustrated in ‘Italian Empire Furniture’ by Enrico Colle, the eminent Italian furniture historian, published in 1998 by Elemond Editori of Milan, on pages 220 & 221. The common usage of the oak and acorn leaf border and Roman capriccios are repeated leitmotifs in the oeuvre of Della Valle, a scagliola worker from Leghorn (Livorno), who worked in the Duchy of Lucca in the early 19th century. In 1846, a guide to Livorno and its environs mentioned his ‘painting and compositional skills’.

DIMENSIONS: H: Dia:

54

REFERENCE:

32.5 in

82 cm

36 in

91 cm

7500

A documented Della Valle Top Illustrated in ‘Italian Empire Furniture’

55

A Highly Important Landscape of Stratford-upon-Avon,

By Lucien Pissarro (1863-1944) Dated 1906

Oil on canvas, signed lower left with Pissarro’s monogram, and dated 1906.

Provenance John Bensusan-Butt (1911-1977), thence, family descent.

Exhibited under number 20, at the Arts Council of Great Britain, in the 1980 Camille Pissarro Exhibition (see label opposite).

Literature; ‘Recollections of Lucien Pissarro’, by John Bensusan-Butt, published London 1977 by the Compton Press (available).

SIGHT SIZE:

56

REFERENCE:

H:

22 in

55 cm

W:

25 in

64 cm

8106

Fine Art

Esther, the sister of John Bensusan-Butt, married Lucien, the son of Camille Pissarro, and settled in Chiswick, west London; their only child, Orovida, herself became a noted artist. John (now nephew to Lucien by marriage), curated many exhibitions of their works, eventually becoming Orovida’s executor on her death.

Lucien was born in Paris on 20th February 1863, son of the Impressionist painter, Camille Pissarro. He studied with his father, and had amongst his influences, Georges Seurat, Claude Monet, and Paul Cezanne, inter alia. He settled in Chiswick, west London in London in 1892, when he married Esther, with whom he founded the Eragny Press, publishing thirty two illustrated books of the highest quality (including Shakespeare’s ‘Hamlet’ & John Milton’s ‘Areopagitica’), after meeting a near neighbour, the founder of the Arts & Crafts Movement, William Morris, and seeing the works of his Kelmscott Press. Lucien, along with Walter Sickert, founder of the Camden Town Group of Artists, and prime movers in the New English Arts Club.

Benezit, (Editions Gründ, 1975) records Lucien as a painter, engraver and producing wood block lithographs. His works are exhibited in England at the Tate Gallery, the Manchester Fine Art Museum and the Birmingham Museum. He died in Somerset, Avon in 1944.

I cannot help feeling very much impressed by the number of people both in England and America who with such a splendid “esprit civic” spend their lives collecting art treasures and leave them to some institution for the joy of posterity. I am only too pleased to contribute my very small share in your generous undertaking ...

— Lucien Pissarro

57

‘The Old and The Young’

By Walter Dendy Sadler (1854-1923)

Gilt framed oil on canvas, signed lower left.

Walter Dendy Sadler (1854-1923) Dorking born, studying under Wilhelm Simmler in Dusseldorf, then at the Chelsea based Heatherley’s School of Art (established 1845, and extant today) whose pupils included Walter Sickert, Edward Burne Jones, D. G. Rossetti and Russell Flint; a youthful exhibitor at the Royal Academy aged 17, in 1891, until 1914. A member of the Society of British Artists and the Royal Institute of Painters, his works are exhibited at the Tate Gallery, and the Liverpool and Bradford museums. Many of his witty and anecdotal genre works are set in the early years of the 19th century.

SIGHT SIZE:

58

REFERENCE:

H:

38 in

97 cm

W:

50 in

127 cm

7988

Fine Art

59

‘The Visitors’

By Ignace Spiridon (active 1869-1900)

Oil on board, signed lower left.

SIGHT SIZE:

60

REFERENCE:

H:

15.5 in

39 cm

W:

12 in

31 cm

8102

Honourable mentions were accorded Spiridon in both the Paris Universelle Expositions of 1889 and 1900. His 1898 portrait of Samuel Longhorne Clemens (Mark Twain), later produced as a chromolithograph, is referred to in a letter to his publisher, Frank Bliss, as ‘much better than any photograph from life can be’.

Reference; Benezit, editions Gründ, 1976, Volume 9.

Fine Art

61

‘Feeding the Fish’

By William Stephen Coleman (1829-1904) Dated 1888

Oil on canvas, within a swept gilt frame, signed lower right, and dated 1888.

SIGHT SIZE:

62

REFERENCE:

H:

24.5 in

62 cm

W:

16 in

40 cm

8079

A noted book and magazine illustrator, providing the iconic 1893 image ‘Goldfish’ for Pears magazine; Royal Academician between 1865 and 1870; the Victoria & Albert Museum, and the Glasgow Museum possess examples of his works.

Reference; Benezit, Editions Gründ 1976 Volume 3.

Fine Art

63

‘Summer Reflections’

By William Stephen Coleman (1829-1904) Dated 1888

Oil on canvas, signed lower left, bearing a Frost and Reed label to the reverse for April 1939.

Book and magazine illustrator, providing the iconic 1893 image ‘Goldfish’ for Pears magazine; the Victoria & Albert Museum, and the Glasgow Museum possess his works.

SIGHT SIZE:

64

REFERENCE:

H:

16 in

40 cm

W:

25.5 in

65 cm

7673

Fine Art

65

‘The Sailing Boat’

By William Stephen Coleman (1829-1904) Dated 1901

Oil on canvas, within a gilt frame, signed and dated lower left, 1901.

A noted book and magazine illustrator, providing the iconic 1893 image ‘Goldfish’ for Pears magazine; Royal Academician between 1865 and 1870; artistic director of Minton’s Art Studio in Kensington; the Victoria & Albert Museum, and the Glasgow Museum possess examples of his works.

Reference; Benezit, Editions Gründ 1976 Volume 3.

SIGHT SIZE:

66

REFERENCE:

H:

23 in

59 cm

W:

35.5 in

90 cm

8216

Fine Art

67

A Magnificent Pair of Parcel Gilt From a Dessert Service Exhibited at Being Made By Circa

Designed in the ‘Graeco-Pompeian’ manner by A.A. Willms (see next page); four claws support the incurved plinths; four scrolled feet hold the circular trumpet form bodies, each of which has four domed panels, separated by foliate strapwork and enamelled panels decorated with anthemions and tendrils, depicting dancing and pipe-playing Satyrs, and Maenads holding tambourines or thyrsi; the lobed collars bearing a presentation dedication to Edmund Sykes Hett (c.f.): over, the necks, enamelled with anthemions, have everted tops, and house silver gilt liners, with Birmingham silver Assay Marks. The feet bear the Birmingham Assay Marks, and date letter for 1862. The undersides bearing the stamped Design Registration date for 1 November 1862.

Housed within an oak lidded lockable coffer bearing a plaque reading ‘E.S.Hett Esq.’ Weight, 7280gr. 234 ounces.

DIMENSIONS:

68

REFERENCE:

H:

12 in

31 cm

W:

11 in

28 cm

D:

9 in

22 cm

8107

Silver & Enamelled Wine Coolers the 1862 Great Exhibition, London Elkington & Co 1862

69

Auguste Adolphe Willms Auguste-Adolphe Willms (1827-99) was one of the many talented French designers who worked for Elkington & Co during the nineteenth century; previously having been employed in Paris by such makers as Jean-Valentin Morel, Christofle and Froment-Meurice. In 1855 he joined Elkington’s design team; four years later he was heading the studio and remained in that position until his death.

Elkington & Company Elkington and Company was founded by the brothers George and Henry in 1832, after perfecting their newly patented method of electro plating in gold and silver, for which their first patent was granted in 1840. They exhibited at the European and British nineteenth century Great Exhibitions, and were given permission

by Queen Victoria in 1868 to copy the collection of Royal Plate. Royal Warrants were granted to them by, inter alia, Queen Victoria, Edward VII, Queen Alexandra, and George V, and various European heads of states. Frederick Elkington was the eldest of George Elkington’s sons.

70

Provenance Almost certainly exhibited at the Great Exhibition of 1862.

The Illustrated Catalogue of the International Exhibtion of 1862

Illustrated in J.B. Waring’s ‘Masterpieces of Industrial Art’ volume 3, published by Day & Sons in 1863, at the command of Queen Victoria. It is to be noted that as Elkington & Co were on the judging committee, they were ineligible to receive prizes, but however, the Jury remarked on the service ‘The dessert service has great merit… in excellent taste, and the effect is very beautiful’.

‘Report by the Juries on the Thirty Six Classes into which the Exhibition was divided’ London 1863, Class XXXIII, p.4 Official records.

‘The Illustrated Catalogue of the International Exhibtion of 1862’ volume 2, pp7-8.

By family repute; Elkington & Co, sold to Wilson, Sons & Co. Ltd; presented to Edmund Sykes Hett Esq (1832-1901); thence by family descent.

Attached; Correspondence regarding the Wine Coolers from Elkington & Co to the family, dated 1898 and 1908.

The inscription on the rim reads ‘Presentation from the Shareholders of Wilson, Sons & Company Limited to Edmund Sykes Hett Esq. on his retirement from the Chairmanship of the Company, as a token of their great esteem and appreciation of his valuable services over a period of more than twenty years. 5 July 1898’.

Wilson, Sons & Company were a South American maritime group, founded in 1837 in Salvador, Bahia.

Alastair Grant, a researcher & historian at the Victoria & Albert Museum, on seeing the pair, described them as ‘Striking & Important’ and wishes to include them in an upcoming exhibition on the works of Elkington & Company.

71

A Truly Magnificent 19th Century Secrétaire à Abattant By Maison Rogié of Paris After the original in the Wallace Collection, Made in 1777 By Pierre-Antoine Foullet Circa 1880

Constructed in kingwood, cross banded in tulipwood and purpleheart, having contrasting specimen woods used in the marquetry inlay, extensively dressed with gilt bronze mounts of the highest quality; the bracket feet conjoined by a shaped apron, sporting a centrally sited ormolu winged male profile, and incurved sides; the canted front angles dressed with female caryatids; the upright concave sides having centrally sited elliptical floral marquetry panels enclosed within ormolu frames, with panels of marquetry inlay depicting architectural subjects within shaped serpentine frames; the lower compartment having two doors veneered with elliptical panels of marquetry within conforming gilt bronze frames, centred in a field of floral marquetry, arising from a bouquet, enclosing an interior fitted with four marquetry worked drawers and a pigeon hole; the upper compartment, a counterweighted and lockable drop-front is veneered with panels of pictorial marquetry depicting classical architecture framed within an ormolu leaf cast frame, incorporating a pendant trophy flanked with two helmeted cuirasses either side of a lion, whose head projects over a central bracket; within the fall front are shelves and two marquetry inlaid drawers, four secret drawers and a leather tooled writing surface; the upper apron is dressed with ormolu Vitruvian scrolls with square paterae at the angles, and over, a three quarter baluster gallery enclosing a Carrara marble top. One bronze mount stamped ‘Rogié’. French.

DIMENSIONS:

72

REFERENCE:

H:

60 in

152 cm

W:

43.5 in

110 cm

D:

18 in

45 cm

8114

73

Provenance A French Noble Family from the Loire Valley.

By oral family tradition and repute, our secretaire was purchased from the estate of the Parisian apartment of Sultan Abdulhamid the Second by the grandfather of the vendor, in approximately 1910, when the Young Turks usurped the last members of the dying Ottoman Empire, confiscating their possessions. Tradition further stated that it had been originally purchased from Maison Rogié, a name unfamiliar to us, and at one time, we were advised, the documentary evidence of the purchase invoice, including other objects, was extant, but although missing, might re-appear. During the conservation of the piece, an ormolu mount was noted to have the name ‘Rogié’ on the reverse, verifying a major part of the family tradition.

Pierre-Antoine Foullet received as Maître on 11th April 1765.

This celebrated secretaire by Pierre-Antoine Follet, dating to 1777, had at one time in the early 19th century been in the collection of the d’HaneSteenhuyse Family of Ghent, and was acquired by the 4th Marquess of Hertford before 1870, appearing in the Rue Lafitte inventory of 1871.

Exhibited at Bethnal Green from 1872-1875 (when, presumably, access was granted to prepare the ground work for the Maison Rogié piece). In 1898 it was recorded in the Hertford House inventory as being situated in the Canaletto Room. At present, it is on display in tandem with our piece, a wonderful and probably unique opportunity to see these pieces together.

References The Wallace Collection, collated in 3 Volumes by Peter Hughes, published

by Trustees of the Wallace Collection, Manchester Square 1996.

Pierre Kjellberg; Editions de l’Amateur, ‘Mobilier Français du 18th Siecle.

A comparison of 18th & 19th Century mounts

See the video by Christopher Payne www.butchoff.com

74

75

76

Butchoff Antiques at the Wallace Collection Our 50th Anniversary Collaboration with one of the Greatest Collections of Masterpieces in the World Our perennial searching for the finest antiques recently uncovered an astonishing, and probably unique 19th Century Secretaire, a close copy of the 1777 original piece made and signed in the marquetry by Pierre-Antoine Foullet, which was purchased by the 4th Marquess of Hertford for his magnificent collection.

The Wallace Collection & Butchoff Antiques wished to give all the rare, and perhaps, the very first opportunity to be able to compare and contrast the original 18th century article, with our 19th century piece, so, they are now happily juxtaposed in a specially designated conservation area of the Wallace Collection.

Visually, the impact is remarkable. The similarities and differences will be noticed; for example;- the similarities of the very fine quality of the mercury gilded bronze mounts, and the individually cast and screwed baluster mounts on the gallery, on both are almost indistinguishable – the slight but significant differences, in for example, the height, and marquetry work; ormolu mounts and cabinet doors have been removed from both pieces and laid together for very close inspection – and the proximity of the secretaires serves to illustrate a clearly recognisable pair of twins, one from the last quarter of the 18th century, and ours, made in the last quarter of the 19th century!

We promise that you will find this visit, on display now until the 29th of August 2014, an enriching experience, and admission is free.

Reproducing the 18th Century: Copying French Furniture Between 1850 and 1914 several pieces of 18th-century French furniture were copied by skilled cabinet-makers in Paris and London. Rather than being dismissed as mere ‘reproductions’, these copies were often of great quality and were highly-prized by their owners. The 4th Marquess of Hertford was one of the first patrons to commission exact reproductions and we have two in the Wallace Collection today: copies of desks made for Louis XV and the Elector of Bavaria which are on display upstairs in the Back State Room and the Nineteenth-century Gallery.

In this display case we are comparing an original 18th-century desk in the Wallace Collection with a copy made approximately 100 years later.

By doing this we hope to enable visitors to compare for themselves the construction techniques and methods employed in two different periods of cabinet making.

Left: Drop-front desk by Pierre-Antoine Foullet ( c. 1776)

Right: Copy of the Foullet desk,

by Maison Rogié of Paris (c. 1880–90) Kindly lent by Butchoff Antiques

77

An Imposing Cartonnier in After The Original Creation Circa

Constructed in kingwood and having extensive parquetry inlay, with well cast and extensive fire gilt bronze enhancements.

The writing section of oblong form with re-entrant corners, housing three frieze drawers and with a tooled leather top; the shouldered tapering legs dressed with imbricated bronze mounts: lions masks at the ends: the frame having a guard bronze rail: the cartonnier section housing five leather faced boxes, each side fitted with a small drawer, and a shelved cupoboard, the whole dressed with guilloche bronze mounts; the swept superstructure is surmounted by a gilt bronze clock case, flanked by spandrels, having two patinated bronze putti over, emblematic of the arts. The circular white enamel dial with the hours delineated in Roman numerals, the clock movement of eight day duration, and striking the hours on a bell. A frieze drawer having an engraved brass plaque, reading ‘Ameublements de Style / Meubles, Sieges, Tentures / Au Gros Chêne / 12 Rue Drouot, Paris. French.

This chef-d’ouevre of French cabinet making by Simon Oeben was originally made for the Duc du Choisel. A portrait of him seated at the desk was made by Van Blaerenberghe, and is in the V&A . The Desk itself may now be seen in the Chateau de Chantilly.

The well regarded furnishers ‘Au Gros Chêne’ were situated in 12 Rue Drouot, and today, the site is occupied by the Hôtel Drouot, the exhibition centre of the majority of French art auction houses.

Provenance We have in our possession documents, dated to 1997, which were found in the back of a drawer of the piece, addressed to the Chateau de Cieurac, recorded as a French Building of National Importance, and dating from the 13th Century, suggesting its possible origin.

Simon Oeben (1725-1786), along with his brother Jean-François were responsible for designing and making some of the great pieces of iconic furniture during the period of the ancien régime.

78

DIMENSIONS Carver:

REFERENCE:

H:

74 in

8104

W:

84 in 212.5 cm

D:

41 in

188 cm

104 cm

Illustration taken from Le Mobilier du Chateau de Chantilly

the Louis XVI Manner Made By Simon Oeben 1880

79

A Very Fine French Transitional Vitrine Cabinet In the Manner of François Linke Circa 1880

Constructed in a beautifully marked and patinated kingwood, and dressed with high quality ormolu mounts; rising from cabriole legs dressed with gilt bronze sabots and espagnolettes, having a central vitrine door, adorned with foliate swags tied with a lover’s bow, being flanked by two arcaded glazed panels, with incurved glazed panels to the sides, enclosing the mirror backed interior, plate glass display shelves, and a shaped Breche d’Alep thumbnail moulded marble platform over. French.

DIMENSIONS: H:

80

REFERENCE:

51.5 in 130.5 cm

W:

54 in

137 cm

D:

18 in

45 cm

8120

81

A Pair of French Commodes Circa

Constructed in mahogany, dressed with gilt bronze mounts, and having Languedoc Rouge marble platforms; rising from swept cabriole legs, mounted with scrolled gilt bronze toes, and foliate espagnolettes over, conjoined with shaped aprons; incorporating three shaped and lockable drawers, having panelled oak linings, set with foliate bronze handles and keyhole escutcheons; the sides are of shaped panelled form, and the marble platforms have thumbnail moulded edges. French.

DIMENSIONS:

82

REFERENCE:

H:

39 in

99 cm

W:

51 in

129 cm

D:

26 in

65 cm

8187

This very French design of commode was utilised, somewhat modified, by Thomas Chippendale, appearing in his ‘Gentleman and Cabinet maker’s Director’ as a ‘French Commode Table’, and that design was drawn on by leading luminaries of the 18th century, as, for example, Ince & Mayhew, and the émigré Frenchman, Pierre Langlois.

in the Louis XV Manner 1890

83

A Pair of Ormolu Wall Trophies in the Louis XVI Style Circa 1880

Constructed in crisply cast gilt bronze, having backgrounds of tasselled cords, tied in ‘Lover’s Bow’ ribbands atop, the central hatchment decorations include and eagle’s head to dexter, an axe, laurel branches and cascading oak leaves set about shields. French.

DIMENSIONS: H:

84

40.25 in

REFERENCE: 102 cm

8194

A Good Pier Mirror in the Louis XIV Manner Circa 1860

Constructed in exuberantly carved and gessoed giltwood, the lower rectangular foliate adorned frame housing a mirror plate, with an interior framework, and being capped with a bonnet of serpentine form, incorporating a further mirror plate, centrally surmounted with a triple feather device, flanked by addorsed lovebirds; the whole profusely decorated with interlacings, ‘C’ scrolls, and foliage. French.

DIMENSIONS:

REFERENCE:

H:

78.5 in

199 cm

W:

56 in

142 cm

7899

85

A Museum Quality Diorama Made By Walter Dated

Housed within a dustight bronze and mahogany display case, the diorama depicts in extraordinarily minute detail the three master ‘Oder’, with a female figurehead, complete with shrouds, halyards, rigging, lifeboats, Union Jack & Red Ensign and the owner’s flag, on a slipway in dry dock, undergoing refurbishment: a powerhouse, a smithy with its anvil and tools, and an operational sawpit are peopled with industrious workers, dressed in costume of the period, fetching, carrying and generally involved in the refitting operation; an interior label bears the legend ‘J. Creighton Shipbuilders 1868’.

Provenance: By direct family descent to John Wardell of Wombwell, Yorshire, from his uncle, Walter Creighton of Hull. The family history has the three Creighton Brothers working as carpenters and joiners in the dockyards of the thriving town of Kingston-on-Hull, (later Hull) a shipbuilding port since early in the 17th Century, and, with the subsequent coming of the industrial revolution, it served as the principal point of export for the products of the Yorkshire industries. The model survived the twelve Zeppelin bombing raids on Hull during the First World War. An early family photograph and an old newspaper article accompany the piece.

DIMENSIONS:

86

REFERENCE:

H:

31 in

79 cm

W:

24 in

61 cm

D:

15 in

38 cm

8068

of the Windjammer ‘Oder’ Creighton in 1868 1868

87

A Very Fine & Rare Viennese Bronze Musical Box Table Lamp of an Erotic Nature By Franz Bergman Circa 1900

The cold painted bronze depicting a closed tent, has button released double doors, one with a smirking cupid, opening to reveal a young blood ardently courting a not unwilling déshabillé female comfortably draped on a chaise longue, set in a room decorated in the Louis XVI manner; the music box is key operated. Signed to the reverse, ‘Namgreb’, the inversion of ‘Bergman’. Austrian.

Franz X. Bergman (1861-1936) Followed in the footsteps of his father, who ran a small bronze foundry, inheriting the family business in 1900, and adding many small figures, both in patinated and cold painted bronze.

DIMENSIONS:

88

REFERENCE:

H:

13.5 in

34 cm

W:

7 in

17 cm

D:

7 in

17 cm

8093

A Fine & Rare Erotic Viennese Bronze Table Lamp

By Franz Bergman Circa 1900

The cold painted bronze depicts two figures, slyly peeping into a tent-like structure erected on a circular base, the domed roof sporting a crescent moon, which, when the spring operated door is opened, reveals, under a light a nubile young female slave, the object of the men’s attention. Signed to the reverse, ‘Namgreb’, (the inversion of ‘Bergman’), and the letter ‘B’ within an urn cartouche. Austrian.

Franz X. Bergman (1861-1936) Followed in the footsteps of his father, who ran a small bronze foundry, inheriting the family business in 1900, and adding many small figures, both in patinated and cold painted bronze.

DIMENSIONS:

REFERENCE:

H:

14 in

35 cm

W:

10 in

26 cm

D:

7 in

17 cm

8094

89

A Fine Pair of Porphyry Urns of the Napoleon III Period Circa 1870

Mounted in finely cast and chased ormolu; the bracket footed square bases having incurved angles support waisted columns dressed with lobes, with stiff leaf castings holding the ovoid Porphry bodies; addorsed satyr mask handles adorn the sides, with domed lids atop, capped by circular ormolu foliates with berried finials. French.

DIMENSIONS:

90

REFERENCE:

H:

17 in

42 cm

W:

9 in

23 cm

D:

8 in

20 cm

8085

A Pair of Marble Busts of Putti Signed Bienainé Dated 1871

Carved in white Carrara marble, the busts, emblematic of Summer and Autumn, are supported on circular stepped & tapering Rouge Griotte pedestals; the male putti, representing Autumn, is draped with vines and ripened grapes, and the female child, Summer wears garlands of flowering roses in her hair; signed to the backs, Bienainé, Paris, 1871. French.

Benezit lists three Bienainé brothers, all sculptors, working in Paris in the 1870s.

DIMENSIONS:

REFERENCE:

H:

16 in

41 cm

W:

8.5 in

22 cm

D:

8 in

20 cm

8213

91

A Rare Early Tripod Table Clock of One Month Duration

By Thomas Cole Circa 1845

The circular stepped dark bronze base, resting on three screw-adjustable oblate feet, supports three equidistantly spaced brass circular pillars, from which the clock and its’ mechanism is suspended; the foliate engraved circular base has an elliptical cartouche inscribed ‘Thos Cole London’, and a glazed demi-lune silvered aneroid barometer, calibrated for barometric inches of pressure, also an etched brass framed thermometer, angle set, marked with the Fahrenheit scale and a pendulum beat scale rising to double up as a pendulum holdfast, within a recessed field, finely engraved with foliate scrollwork; housed within a brass bezel is the circular etched and engraved silvered steel dial, marked at 6 o’clock ‘Thos Cole London’, having the hours marked in Roman numerals, with a subsidiary dial showing the seconds, delineated in Arabic numerals; below, a pendant cartouche incorporating the winding square; the tapered two-tier movement has a six wheel train with five-spoke crossings between spotted plates, the upper section with four pillars fixed by blued steel screws to the backplate, enclosing a Vulliamy-type deadbeat escapement and train to the centre wheel, the lower section containing a spring barrel and a second wheel with a knurled hand setting screw to the backplate; the upper frame has a small plumbline bob at the apex, and a pendant wide bracket to suspend the steel alloy bob pendulum, with a screw adjustment to the spherical silvered brass bob. Complete with the original glass dome and original engraved ‘Fleur de Lys key. The original tripod clocks by Cole were unnumbered; post 1845 clocks were given consecutive serial numbers.

London.

Thomas Cole (1800-1864) Son of Thomas Cole Snr, a Somerset clockmaker, his history and works are fully recorded in ‘Thomas Cole & Victorian Clockmaking’ by John B. Hawkins, published 1975, in Sydney.

Known as a specialist in making decorative timepieces of the highest quality, he exhibited at the Great Exhibition at the Crystal Palace in 1851; he warranted an ‘honourable mention’ in the Paris Exhibition of 1855 and the London 1862 Exposition International, where he was awarded a medal for ‘excellence of taste and design’.

DIMENSIONS:

92

REFERENCE:

H:

20 in

50 cm

Dia:

9.5 in

24 cm

8050

It’s About Time

Illustration taken from “Thomas Cole” by JB Hawkins

93

A Mantle Clock in the Louis XVI Manner Circa 1880

DIMENSIONS:

94

REFERENCE:

H:

15 in

38 cm

W:

12 in

31 cm

D:

6 in

15 cm

8053

Constructed in ormolu and adorned with ‘jewelled’ Sevres style hand decorated porcelain with a rose ground; the eight day silk suspension movement, having the hours striking on a bell is housed with a shaped and floral spandrel braced case, supported on toupie feet, the circular face having Roman numerals, with a Roman style urn atop. French.

It’s About Time

A Mantle Clock in the Louis XVI Manner Retailed By E & S Watson of London Circa 1880

Constructed in a fine quality two tone ormolu case, and adorned with rose ground ‘Sèvres’ style panels to both front and sides; rising from oblate toupie feet, the domed case is of gentle breakfront form, with a flambeaux urn atop, having tea rose garlands conjoining the body; the clock face delineates the hours in Roman numerals in white cartouches, and is driven by an eight day movement, striking on a bell, with the backplate having the retailer’s stamp, ‘E & S Watson, London’, within an ellipse.

Reference; Brian Loomes ‘Watchmakers & Clockmakers of the World’ (Successor to the late G. H. Baillie’s book of the same title).

DIMENSIONS:

REFERENCE:

H:

21.5 in

55 cm

W:

14 in

36 cm

D:

7 in

18 cm

8115

95

A French Mantle Clock Garniture Circa

Constructed in gilt bronze, and decorated with champlevĂŠ enamel; the candelabras have toupie feet supporting the shaped circular bases, on which winged cherubs hold two armed candle arms aloft; the shaped elliptical form clock has conforming feet, with two cherubs supporting the circular case, capped with an acorn finial and a pair of flambeaux; the chapter ring in bronze, with the hours delineated in Roman numerals, the two train, 8 day movement striking the hours on a bell, and bearing the retailers Theodore B Starr of New York details. French.

Listed in the 1875 Brooklyn New York census as a jeweller, he worked from 1877 to 1900 in New York City NY as THEODORE B. STARR & Co, with a shop at 206 Fifth Avenue. The firm was the exclusive retail outlet for Gorham silver in New York until 1884.

96

DIMENSIONS Clock:

DIMENSIONS Candelabra:

REFERENCE:

H:

13 in

33 cm

H:

10 in

26 cm

8222

W:

7 in

17 cm

W:

5 in

13 cm

D:

4 in

10 cm

D:

3.5 in

9 cm

It’s About Time

in the Louis XVI Manner 1880

97

A French Lyre Mantle Clock in the Louis XVI Manner Circa 1890

Constructed in gilt bronze, with rosé Languedoc marble; the stepped elliptical base rising from toupie feet, dressed with running oak leaf garlands, swags and jewelled torsades; the lyre frame housing a barrel cased floral decorated enamel faced clock, the hours in Arabic numerals, indistinctly signed ‘Horologer du Roi’ and having an eight day movement, chiming on a bell; the lyre surmounted with a profile mask emanating sunburst rays, with a suspended exterior ‘bejewelled’ pendulum. French.

This design is taken from Dieudonné Kinable et Dubuisson, and the original Louis XVI model by Jean-Charles Ponchon is to be seen in the New York Frick Collection.

DIMENSIONS:

98

REFERENCE:

H:

16 in

40 cm

W:

6 in

15 cm

D:

4.5 in

12 cm

8212

It’s About Time

An Attractive Parisian Mantle Clock in the Louis XVI Manner, Retailed By the Goldsmiths & Silversmiths Company Circa 1880

Constructed in Carrara marble adorned with fine ormolu highlights; rising from gilt bronze toupie feet, the marble case having ‘D’ form ends, adorned with foliate entrelacs, with a central ormolu panel depicting disporting putti and over, the circular enamel dial hand painted in polychromes with garlands, and the hours painted in Arabic numerals, signed by the retailers, The Goldsmiths & Silversmiths Company of 112 Regent Street London W., with an eight day movement, the hours striking on a bell, stamped by Vincenti & Cie, and R&C, for Richard and Company, numbered 4369: the case is surmounted by Cupid, his bow and quiver at hand, holding a lighted torch, emblematic of passion, a theme echoed by a scantily clad young beauty in a provocative pose.

French.

The Goldsmiths & Silversmiths Company was opened at 122 Regent Street in 1880 by William Gibson, and continued trading until it was taken over in 1952 by Garrard & Company, the Queen’s Jewellers.

Vincenti et Cie, of Paris, established in the second quarter of the 19th century supplied clock movements to the case makers, winning an Award for Excellence at the Paris Exhibition of 1855.

DIMENSIONS:

REFERENCE:

H:

14 in 35.5 cm

W:

14 in

35.5 cm

D:

4 in

10 cm

8185

99

A Longcase Clock, with a Musical Movement

By John Ellicott, Clockmaker to King George the Third Circa 1750

Housed within a Chinoiserie lacquered case, having an inspection door, the domed top with brass flambeau finials, the hood housing the John Ellicott eight day movement striking the hours on a bell, with a brass faced, arched dial, with silvered hour chapter and second rings respectively engraved with Roman and Arabic numerals; below, an aperture showing the date, and over, the tunes played, ‘Charming Phillis’ (sic), and ‘29th May’, with pierced brass spandrels in the quadrants. Engraved, ‘John Ellicott, London’.

John Ellicott (1706-1772) was the son of a Cornish clockmaker from Bodmin, John Ellicott Senior (1696-1733), noted by the Royal Society as ‘ an ingenious watchmaker of great note’, and, ‘an eminent watchmaker’; established at St Swithun’s Alley, near the centre of the English clock trade, the Royal Exchange, Brian Loomes ‘Watchmakers & Clockmakers of the World’ NAG Press 2006, notes him as the inventor of compensation pendulum, and a developer of the cylinder escapement, and Royal Clockmaker to His Majesty. His son, John Ellicott Junior, joined the family business in 1760, the clocks, hithertofore signed ‘John Ellicott’, where thence signed with the patronymic, ‘Ellicott’.

DIMENSIONS:

100

REFERENCE:

H:

97 in

247 cm

W:

19 in

48 cm

D:

9 in

24 cm

7652

A Magnificent Louis XVI Style Commode Firmly Attributed to Henry Dasson of Paris Circa 1870

Of gentle break-front form having radiused corners, being constructed in ebony, inlaid with brass fillets, richly decorated Japanese panels decorated in black lacquer and gold hiramaki-e, and sumptuously dressed in fire-gilt ormolu mounts of the very highest quality: rising from circular tapering toupie feet conjoined by a shaped front apron, centrally mounted with an ormolu foliate spandrel; over, a lockable door, with the original key, housing a large Japanese plaque depicting cranes in a lake setting, is framed within an ormolu frame cast with a running stiff leaf design, and having flanking smaller conforming doors, enclosing a shelved interior; above, a large ormolu tablet in the Neo-Classical taste, with flanking arcades fronts a concealed drawer opened by an interior spring loaded button; conformingly decorated to the sides, and surmounted with a shaped Carrara marble platform with a thumbnail moulding. French.

This extraordinary piece of the cabinet makers’ art draws inspiration from the French Royal cabinet makers of the ancien rÊgime, Jean-Henri Riesener, Martin Carlin and Adam Weisweiler, all of whom supplied furniture for the Tuileries, Louvre and Versailles incorporating Japanese hiramaki-e work, a technique in use since the twelfth century that required an extraordinary accuracy, combined with speed of execution to attain a perfect result; even so, failures were frequent, with the resultant loss of the gold dust.

DIMENSIONS:

REFERENCE:

H:

40 in

102 cm

W:

54 in

136 cm

D:

20 in

50 cm

8121

101

102

Henry Dasson Henry Dasson (1825-1896) established at 106 Rue Vielle du-Temple, was one of the most highly celebrated Parisien bronzier ébénistes. His work is renowned for the fine quality of the metalwork, utilising the designs of the ancien régime, and adapting them to conform to the needs of the times. He participated at the Expositions Universelle in 1878, receiving the laudatory critique of Louis Gonse, the Parisian arbiter of bon ton and quality, ‘nouveau venu dans le carrière industrielle HENRY DASSON, s’est rapidement créé par la perfection de ces oeuvres une très haute situation a laquelle nous applaudisons chaleureusement’, at which he exhibited a bureau in the Louis XVI manner decorated with Japanese panels; and in the Exposition of 1889, he was awarded the ‘Grand Prix Artistique’, and examples of his work were purchased by the English Royal Family. Made a chevalier of the Légion d’honneur in 1883, he was elevated to an officier in 1889, following his success at the Paris Exposition of the same year.

Reference; Le Mobilier Français du XIXe Siècle by Denise Ledoux-Lebard, published by Les Éditions de l’Amateur, expanded version 2000.

103

A Fine Side Table in the Louis XVI Manner

By Henry Dasson of Paris Circa 1870

Of rectangular form, constructed in amboyna and mahogany dressed with chinoiserie panels, and fine ormolu mounts; rising from ormolu mounted toupie feet, supporting the lower platform, itself adorned with running swags; the fluted tapering legs having square form ormolu bases, with octagonal ormolu capitols; the spring activated button operated breakfront form drawer and the sides mounted with chinoiserie panels within stiff leaf cast surrounds, with the rose brocatelle d’Espagne platform enclosed by an ormolu guard band. Stamped to the underside twice by the maker, ‘Henry Dasson’. French.

DIMENSIONS:

104

REFERENCE:

H:

29 in

73 cm

W:

19.5 in

49.5 cm

D:

14.5 in

36.5 cm

8058

Henry Dasson (1825-1896) established at 106 Rue Vielle du-Temple, was one of the most celebrated Parisien bronzier-ébénistes. His work is renowned for the fine quality of the metalwork, utilising the designs of the ancien régime, and adapting the scale to conform to the needs of the times. He participated at the Expositions Universelles in 1878 and 1889 and examples of his work were purchased by the English Royal Family.

Literature; ‘Le Mobilier Français du XIXe Siecle’ by Denise Ledoux-Lebard, Editions de l’Amateur published 1989.

105

A Pair of Pier Mirrors in the Circa

Constructed in carved gilt wood, the portrait form frames of rectangular shape, having everted angles, dressed with fruiting foliates to the sides, clasp work foliates to the bases, with addorsed swan neck pediment surmounts, issuing carved crests; the mirror plates housed within gadrooned reserves, having rosaces to the inner angles.

DIMENSIONS:

106

REFERENCE:

H:

69 in 175.5 cm

W:

50 in

127 cm

8179

Georgian Palladian Manner 1900

107

A Fine Pair of Consoles Circa

DIMENSIONS:

108

REFERENCE:

H:

36.5 in

92 cm

W:

40 in

102 cm

D:

21 in

54 cm

7159

Constructed in rosewood and giltwood, the radiused angled plinth base having front tapering reeded and carved giltwood columns, with a mirror back panel, supporting an apron with a conformingly shaped carrara marble top.

of the George IV Period 1825

These pieces have marked affinities with the work of Morel & Hughes, and elements of the design may be noted in Thomas King’s ‘The Modern Style of Cabinet Work Exemplified’ of `1829, and Rudolph Ackermann’s ‘Repository of the Arts’ published monthly between 1808 until 1829.

109

A Centre Table of the Circa

Constructed in Cuban mahogany, with holly and bois clair inlays; the circular tilt top having radially laid flame mahogany veneers of magnificent figuring and colour, with a ‘starburst’ inlay to the centre; supported by a turned and tapering column, carved with lotus leaves and lobing, set on a tripartite inlaid platform base with ‘lion’s paw’ gilt bronze mounts.

DIMENSIONS: H: Dia:

110

REFERENCE:

28 in

71.5 cm

53.5 in

136 cm

7907

late Georgian Period 1830

111

A Set of Twelve Dining Chairs Taken Circa

Constructed in mahogany, and comprising ten side chairs and two carver armchairs; rising from turned and tapering front legs, having sabre form legs to the rear; the overstuffed seats with serpentine fronts, and upholstered in a damask of fitting period design; the backs of shield form, the channelled frames housing carved vasiform splats, dressed with wheat ear stalks over, and pendant swags.

George Hepplewhite, one of the triumvirate of great English Cabinet Makers of the Eighteenth Century was established at St Giles Cripplegate London, his designs being posthumously published by his widow, Alice, in 1788, under the title ‘A Cabinet-Maker and Upholsterers Guide’. Her preface to the third edition, published in 1794 observes the aim ‘to unite elegance and utility, to blend the useful with the agreeable’.

Time has judged these sentiments, and incorporated his name in the small list of great designers and makers of the period.

Our chair backs are to be found on plates X & XI.

Plate X from “A Cabinet-Maker and Upholsterers Guide” by George Hepplewhite

112

DIMENSIONS Carver:

DIMENSIONS Single:

REFERENCE:

H:

27 in

94 cm

H:

37 in

94 cm

7791

W:

21 in

53.5 cm

W:

20 in

51 cm

D:

18 in

46 cm

D:

18 in

46 cm

From a George Hepplewhite Design 1790

113

A Regency Period ‘Patent Sympathetic Self-Acting Circa

William Pocock of Covent Garden

Seating twelve diners when fully opened, and constructed in a wonderfully patinated San Domingo mahogany, rising from a quadrapartite swept foot base, having square form brass toes and castors; the top having radiused corners, and a reeded edge: one end having a fitted pull, by which the ‘rising leaf’ action is effectuated. Fitted with the maker’s engraved brass plaque marked ‘Pocock Sympathetic Dining Table’ Southampton Street Covent garden, Number 45’ London.

DIMENSIONS (fully extended):

114

REFERENCE:

H:

28 in

71 cm

W:

52 in

132 cm

L:

109 in

277 cm

7223

Born 1750, and initially a carpenter by trade, he moved from Essex to London and in 1801 had showrooms at 26 Southampton Street, Covent Garden. Evidently a man of a creative nature, he noted the public’s interest in mechanical furniture, a fashion espoused and promulgated by Rudolph Ackermann in his monthly magazine ‘The Repository of Arts’, and in 1805, took out a Patent for the ‘Patent Sympathetic Self-Acting Dining table’. It was remarked that only one person was needed to increase or decrease the length.

Other patents were applied for, and granted, including the extraordinary ‘Pocock’s Reclining Patent Chair’, illustrated in Ackermann’s magazine, and a broadsheet advertisement of 1814 notes a patented sideboard, easy chair, invalid chair and sofa. Joined in the business by his John in 1809, the business eventually closed in 1825.

Dining Table’ By William Pocock of Covent Garden 1810

Literature; Ackermann’s Repository of the Arts’ published between 1809 until 1828.

Christopher Gilbert’s ‘Pictorial Dictionary of Marked London Furniture’ published by the Furniture History Society shows an identical table.

The history of Pocock is discussed at some length in ‘ The Dictionary of English Furniture Makers’, published by the ‘Furniture History Society’ pp 703 & 704.

Illustration taken from Christopher Gilbert’s ‘Pictorial Dictionary of Marked London Furniture’

115

A Late Georgian Occasional Table Attributed to Gillows Circa 1830

Constructed in a finely patinated figured rosewood, having a Florentine specimen marble top; supported on oblate bun feet, the tripartite and incurved platform base dressed with scrolled toes, and having a central circular tapering column, turned and carved with stylised lotus leaves; the circular gadrooned edge top housing a specimen marble top, with ‘starburst’ petals of imbricated form issuing from a central roundel; specimens used include Malachite, Sienna Rosso and Gallo, Porphyry, Granite and Grand Dieul, inter alia.

Gillows of London & Lancaster The founder of the Gillows dynasty, Robert (1704-1772) rose from humble beginnings as a provincial joiner, and evolved into a consummate businessman following a pursuit of excellence throughout his life.

Founding his business in 1730 he expanded his furniture making activities to include the direct import of quality West Indian timbers especially the finest mahogany. His talents as both a cabinetmaker as well as innovative designer brought him early success, and, bringing his two sons, Richard & Robert, into the business, he expanded his Lancaster showroom, to include another in London’s Oxford Street. The clientele now included the Government, the aristocracy and the burgeoning middle classes.

His furniture had gained its’ reputation for excellence of workmanship, and materials employed, and coupled with

DIMENSIONS:

116

his insistence on being at the cutting edge of design kept the company to the fore throughout its’ one hundred and seventy year history from 1730 until its’ amalgamation with Messrs S.J. Waring in 1900. Throughout this period it was the largest manufactory of furniture in England. The fortuitous survival of the Gillows records in their Estimate Sketch Books show over 20,000 designs and are preserved in the City of Westminster Library. Furniture made by Gillows is to be found in Royal collections and museums throughout the world. The recent publication of Susan E. Stuart’s scholarly and invaluable study on the company, published by the Antique Collectors Club is a masterpiece of its’ type, and a wonderful exegesis of the company.

REFERENCE:

H:

27 in

69 cm

Dia:

25 in

63.5 cm

8167

Published by permission of Westminster Archive Centre

Gillows of London & Lancaster

117

A Georgian Writing Table Circa

Constructed in gonçalo alves, the tapered and fluted baluster ends supported by a block form base with a lobed platform and a running pearl edging, above scrolled feet of foliate design, with sunken brass castors; the top having radiused corners, with a lobed edge, and in the frieze, two mahogany lined drawers with quadrant mouldings, between a bead and reel moulding. Stamped to the top of one drawer, ‘Gillows Lancaster’.

This design for a table appears on many occasions between 1822 and 1830 in the Gillows Sketchbooks, held in the City of Westminster archives.

Published by permission of Westminster Archive Centre DIMENSIONS:

118

REFERENCE:

H:

29 in

74 cm

W:

55 in

141 cm

D:

32 in

81 cm

6901

1825

Gillows of London & Lancaster

By Gillows of Lancaster

119

A Pair of Late Georgian Card Circa

Constructed in a well figured and patinated rosewood; the incurved quadripartite platform base supported by boldly carved ‘lion’s paw’ feet, dressed with castors, and having a ‘running pearl’ upper edge; the central columns, tapering, turned and carved with lobes and foliates issue from a circular gadrooned base; the swivelling hinged tops housing baize lined interiors are of rectangular form with radiused front corners.

DIMENSIONS:

120

REFERENCE:

H:

30 in

75 cm

W:

35.5 in

90 cm

D:

18 in

45 cm

8215

1830

Gillows of London & Lancaster

Tables Attributed to Gillows

Published by permission of Westminster Archive Centre

121

A Fine Bookcase Cabinet Circa

Constructed of finely figured rosewood, of four door breakfront form, exuberantly carved in the GraecoRoman taste, rising from acanthus carved splay feet: the lockable glazed doors, each fitted with bronze trellis grilles having foliate studs at the interstices, housing adjustable shelves, and framed within tapering, lobed and ring turned columns, capped by rectangular paterae; the top with a bold & confidently carved gadroon edging. The platform having a three quarter arcaded gallery in pierced bronze.

A ‘dwarf bookcase’ of markedly similar form is shown in Volume 1 of Susan E. Stuarts book, pp 384.

Published by permission of Westminster Archive Centre

DIMENSIONS:

122

REFERENCE:

H:

36 in

92 cm

W:

84.5 in

214 cm

D:

17.5 in

45 cm

7628

1830

Gillows of London & Lancaster

Attributed to Gillows of Lancaster

123

A Breakfront Bookcase in the Chippendale Manner Circa 1880

Constructed in a fine quality San Domingo mahogany, with a deep patination, and masterfully carved; rising from scrolled bracket feet, the lower section having four fielded panelled lockable doors, with interlaced ‘chain mail’ carved frames, enclosing shelved interiors; the apron having blind fret gothic arcaded carving, the upper section glazed, with cross form glazing bars, having rosette bosses, with adjustable shelves to the interior; the swept cornice finely carved with addorsed Ho-Ho birds and foliate scrolls.

DIMENSIONS:

124

REFERENCE:

H:

106 in

269 cm

W:

105 in

267 cm

D:

24 in

61 cm

7649

125

A Very Rare Mechanical Kneehole Desk of the Georgian Period By George Seddon Circa 1800

Constructed in mahogany, of kneehole design, and mounted with substantial bronze carrying handles to the recessed panelled sides; closed, a tooled leather inset writing surface is seen, with two banks of three lockable drawers set about the kneehole, and a faux centre drawer; the ingenious metamorphic arrangement is activated by touching the catches, set in the kneehole interior, which release counterweights driving the rising compartment, with its central cupboard, flanking drawers and pigeon holes; the writing surface also rises, fitted with a ratchet operated easel, with concealed side drawers; the well has a brass roundel marked ‘Seddon Patent Number 40’, and an old Land Surveyors table pinned therein.

This piece is illustrated in Christopher Gilbert’s ‘Pictorial Dictionary of Marked London Furniture 1700- 1840’, Published Leeds 1996.

George Seddon (c1727-1801) The largest furniture manufactory in London, founded in 1753, by the end of the 18th century it employed more people, held larger stocks and produced a wider range of pieces than any other furniture making business, occupying a two acre site in Aldersgate until 1826. A visit to the factory is discussed in her book ‘Travels in England’ by Sophie Von La Roche, published in 1786; she mentions he was a ‘foster-father’ to 400 apprentices, and speaks at length of the carvers, gilders, locksmiths, bronze casters & etc as well as wood, materials, curtains & etc. He took his sons into the partnership, in turn taking in their sons and grandsons, undertaking many Royal Commissions including Windsor Castle. The company ceased to trade in 1868.

The following is extracted from Clive Edwards ‘The Context and Conservation of Patent Mechanical Furniture’ published 2006 by The International Institute for Conservation of Historic and Artistic Works, Birdcage walk Westminster, London; ‘A most intriguing metamorphic furniture solution was devised by a London carpenter, Day Gunby in 1798. The patent was for “Weights Bolts and Springs for Desks, Tables etc.,’’ intended to improve all kinds of writing and reading desks, tables, chairs, stools, tambour frames, library steps, bedsteads and various other articles”. This complex mechanism was explained in three pages of text and images to demonstrate the principles. For example, the writing desk was designed to include a rise and fall writing slope section and a similar rise and fall pigeonhole box that could be let down to be level with the table surface, all of which were operated by an arrangement of levers, springs, weights, pullies and wires. Gunby specified that the operating cords could be of catgut (his preference), metallic chain or cord of hemp or hair, while the weights may be of iron, steel, brass, copper, or lead. Gunby also shows drawings of the principle applied to tables and less likely, to armchairs. In both cases, the principle of rise and fall was applied using triggers to release ratchets that allowed the rise and fall with or without weights. It is important to note that the London manufacturers, Seddon and Co., exploited Gunby’s invention and some of these tables exist with a Seddon roundel’.

DIMENSIONS:

126

REFERENCE:

H:

44 in

112 cm

W:

55 in

140 cm

D:

31.5 in

80.5 cm

7686

127

A Pair of Library Armchairs Circa

Constructed in mahogany, enhanced with crisp and detailed foliate carving; rising from square section tapering and collared front legs terminating in block feet, having swept legs to the rear; the seat fronts of serpentine form, the backs of a gentle waisted design with swept arms, dressed with conforming foliate carving.

DIMENSIONS:

128

REFERENCE:

H:

39 in

98 cm

W:

27 in

68 cm

D:

29 in

74 cm

7920

of the George III Period 1780

129

An Exhibition Quality Centre Circa

Constructed in thuyawood, with satinwood and tulipwood used in the cross banding and inlays, and having finely cast ormolu mounts used in counterpoint; the tripartite downswept legs terminating in recessed castors, with shells and draped leaves to the top surfaces, the toes dressed with acorn finials, and tasselled swags issuing from foliate bosses; the circular base supporting three ormolu mounted fluted columns, and rams head masks within draped garlands, surmounted by a substantial central ormolu dressed turned wood ‘goblet’ with an acorn atop; the platform circular, with segmentally laid veneers, and a border of berried laurel leaves, above a cross banded frieze with masks of Mercury set within paterae. Each of the bolts stamped ‘H & C’.

‘Victorian Furniture’, authored & compiled by Symonds & Whineray, published in 1962 by Studio Editions, shows on page 136, a virtually identical table supplied by Holland & Sons to a Mr. R.N. Thornton.

DIMENSIONS:

130

REFERENCE:

H:

30 in

76 cm

Dia:

52 in

132 cm

8017

Illustration taken from Jonathan Meyer’s ‘Great Exhibitions’

Table By Holland & Sons 1860

131

A Rare Library Table in the Circa

Of free standing form, constructed using a field of finely grained sycamore, with precise use of its close relative, harewood in counterpoint, as well as purpleheart in the cross bandings and, inter alia, boxwood, thuya and circassian walnut in the comprehensive and complex marquetry and parquetry work, which is of the very finest craftsmanship, incorporating designs from the oeuvre of Robert Adam, the whole being dressed with fire-gilt ormolu mounts which are crisply cast, chased and gilded: rising from square section collared tapering legs, the ormolu toes incorporating castors; the apron inlaid with a running band comprising vertical fillets of harewood, housing two drawers dressed with pairs of ormolu knobs, which flank a swag adorned central square tablet: the extraordinary platform is framed within a running stiff leaf ormolu framework, an outer geometrical cross banding in purpleheart enclosing a large, and two flanking smaller circles, and at the angles, symmetrically shaped spandrels, all delineated in precise and artistically executed marquetry work, which includes the attributes of music, parquetry, Bellflowers and foliates, bearing the makers’ label to the underside.

Howard & Sons Howard and Sons were established in 1820 by John Howard, at 24 Orange Street, London. In 1854 the firm had expanded considerably and was established in the heart of the furniture district of London at 22-36 Berners Street. They employed their eclectic range of styles working for many important clients at important houses such as Sudbury Hall in Derbyshire and Elton Hall, Huntingdonshire. Still fashionable at the end of the 19th Century they provided the fittings for Mr Vanderbilt’s Yacht. Their work is in the Royal Collection, and the Queen’s private collections at Sandringham and Balmoral, and a cabinet made in 1862 is in the collection of the Victoria and Albert Museum. The company ceased to trade in 1947.

DIMENSIONS:

132

REFERENCE:

H:

29 in

73 cm

W:

43 in

109 cm

D:

25 in

63 cm

8189

Adam Manner By Howard & Sons 1870

133

A Magnificent Centre Table Signed By the Makers Taprell, Holland & Son of London Circa 1840

Constructed in amboyna and parcel gilt, with a specimen marble and micromosaic platform, probably by Alfonso Cavamelli of Rome: rising from a tripartite base, the legs of scrolled and hipped form, boldly carved with ‘C’ scrolls, scallop shells and foliates, resting on oblate bun feet, conjoined by carved and parcel gilt scallop shells; the central column of truncated pyramidical form, having recessed sides inset with intertwined stiff leaf carving; the circular frame having further scallop shell decoration to the apron, the edge with a running ovolo pattern, housing the remarkable specimen marble top, with its ‘Doves of Pliny’ central roundel issuing a complex imbricated starburst of specimen marbles, having an outer reserve of a running Doric key, housing further specimen marbles. The frame bearing the stamp ‘Taprell, Holland & Son, 19 Marylebone Street, St. James’s London’.

SIGHT SIZE: H: Dia:

134

REFERENCE:

28.5 in

72 cm

56 in

141 cm

8117

Holland & Sons Originally founded in 1803 as Taprell, Stephen & Holland, becoming Taprell Holland & Son between 1835-1840, then Holland & Sons, who became one of the largest and most successful furniture making companies of the 19th Century.

The firm worked extensively for the Royal Family, being granted the Royal Warrant early in the reign of Queen Victoria, hence taking a leading part in the decoration and furnishing of Osborne House, Sandringham, Balmoral, Windsor Castle and the apartments of the Prince and Princess of Wales at Marlborough House. Holland and Sons also worked extensively for the British Government, for whom they executed over three hundred separate commissions, including the Palace of Westminster, the Victoria and Albert Museum, and oversaw the State funeral of the Duke of Wellington. Among their private commissions the firm produced a celebrated suite of bedroom furniture for the late Sir Harold Wernher at Luton Hoo.

Alfonso Cavamelli (working c 1823- 1840 Rome) The central micromosaic roundel is a design amalgam of the antique pietra dura ‘Doves of Pliny’ in Rome’s Capitoline Museum, and the bouquet from a Roman floor micromosaic, now in the Pio Clementine Museum in the Vatican. The Vatican Micromosaic Workshop, established in the 16th Century is extant today. Various specimen marble tops by Cavamelli have appeared on the art market, the designs having close affinities to ours.

135

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