each with serpentine toprails centred by acanthus cabochon above pierced and ogee-gothic baluster splat, on square legs joined by H-shaped stretchers
Strassburger Collection sold Mes Audap-Godeau-Solanet, Paris, 13th March 1987 lot 159 where bought by the present owner.
Overall this set of chairs is in extremely good condition and is ready to place. The colour and patina on these chairs is good and they have been tastefully upholstered which works well with the design. Whilst some chairs have the original rails the majority of the set has been substantially re-railed. All have old marks and some age cracks to the shoe at the base of the splat. All stretchers are rather scuffed and worn consistent with age and use. There are some repairs and restoration to the visible parts of but these have all beeen executed to a very high standard and are not immediately apparent. Chair 1. Small repair top right hand side upright. Chair 2. Tip of back lefty hand leg spliced. Top right hand upright repaired. Chair 3 Right hand back leg chipped. Chair 4 No obvious repairs. Chair 5. Back legs scuffed and chipped. Chair 6. Back right hand leg spliced just below seat-rail. Repairs to stretcher with some obvious filling. Chair 7. Minor staining and filling to right hand rear leg. Chair 8. Repairs to shoe. Chair 9. Repairs to rear left hand legs. Chair 10. Top right hand corner repaired. Chair 11. Top right hand corner repaired. Chair 12 Repairs top left hand side. Chair 13. Repairs to top-rail and replaced front legs, Chair 14 No obvious repairs.
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."
The present chairs are conceived in the Gothic manner, a style which became popular in the middle of 18
thcentury both in terms of furniture design and architecture. Notable examples of the architectural style can be seen at Arbury, Warwickshire, where an Elizabethan house was transformed by the architect Henry Keene for Sir Roger Newdigate. Another house which was conceived in this manner and which was to be a great influence on taste of that era, was that of Horace Walpole at Strawberry Hill, Middlesex where the exotic interiors were decorated with suitable antiquarian works of art and furniture conceived in this manner, such as the set of tall japanned beechwood chairs with traceried backs and rush seats supplied by William Hallett in the early 1750s, an example of which is recorded in the collection of the Victoria and Albert Museum. Reflecting this taste for Gothic is a closely related set of chairs to the present lot in the collection of Myddelton family in Chirk Castle, Denbighshire, Wales which are shown illustrated in the State Dining Room in the castle guide, circa 1970.
A number of leading cabinet-makers produced designs of a similar from to the present set of chairs, which were referred to as `parlour chairs’, their use being not only as chairs in small eating rooms, but also in other informal settings. Related designs for `parlour’ chairs were published in Thomas Chippendale`s `The Gentleman and Cabinet Maker`s Director’ 3rd Edition., 1763, pl. XVI , again in Robert Manwaring `The Cabinet and Chair-Maker`s Real Friend and Companion, 1765, pl.33-38 as well as his contribution to A Society of Upholsterers, `Genteel Household Furniture in the Present Taste’, circa 1765, ( shown illustrated in Elizabeth White, Pictorial Dictionary of British 18th Century Furniture Design, The Printed Sources, 1990, pp.66, 74-77, and p.69-71.).
For further comparison see The Messer Chairs, a set of ten mahogany chairs of related design sold Christie`s London, Important English Furniture 8th July 1999, lot 20, sold £235,000.
