An early George III statuary marble and Sicilian Jasper chimneypiece, circa 1760, attributed to Sir Henry Cheere

Auction Closed

December 7, 11:28 AM GMT

Estimate

120,000 - 180,000 GBP

Lot Details

Description

The Property of a Nobleman

An early George III statuary marble and Sicilian Jasper chimneypiece

circa 1760, attributed to Sir Henry Cheere

the inverted breakfront shelf with foliate and egg-and-dart mouldings, the jambs with festoons of fruit and flowers issuing from boldly scrolled volutes, the entablature carved with Bacchic children and goats within a Sicilian Jasper border and flanked by two relief panels depicting a bear and a beaver, the aperture within an egg-and-dart border

overall: 159.5cm. high, 221cm. wide, 25cm. deep (shelf); 5ft. 2¾in., 7ft. 3in., 9¾in.; the aperture: 103cm. high, 132cm. wide; 3ft. 4 1/2in., 4ft. 4in.

Commissioned by Robert Henley, 1st Earl of Northington (c.1708 - 1772) for the Library at The Grange, Northington, Hampshire;
The chimneypiece remained in the Library at the Grange, through the various periods of ownership, until 1975 when the interior of the house was dismantled and the building was entrusted to the Department of the Environment (now English Heritage), the chimneypiece remaining in the ownership of the family;
Thence by descent.