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Lot Essay
The present table shares many similarities with a table in the Sir W. Thornley Stoker collection, Ely Place, Dublin and may be the same table that was included in his sale, Bennett & Sons Auctioneers, 8-10 November 1910.
Furthermore, the Bacchic lion mask between oak foliage and acorn swags and veil-draped scallop shells on the ends, belongs to a group of tables sharing similar characteristics, including one at the City Art Museum of St. Louis, Missouri, USA (The Knight of Glin and J. Peill, Irish Furniture, London and New Haven, 2007, cat. 75, p. 224), one sold 'The Legend of Dick Turpin', Part I, Christie's London, 9 March 2006, lot 50 (£120,000 including premium), and one formerly in the Collection of Dr. Cremin, 120 St. Stephen's Green, Dublin, sold by his daughter, Hamilton Osborne King, Blackrock, Co. Dublin, 6 June 2000, lot 783 (IR£287,500 including premium), and recently offered 'Tom Devenish: The Collection', Sotheby's, New York, 24 April 2008, lot 33. The Bacchic lion is one of the most recognisable features of mid-18th century Irish carving, and its roots in the architecture and designs of William Kent, were thought to have been introduced to Ireland through the architect Edward Lovett Pearce (c. 1699-1733) (Glin and Peill, op. cit., pp. 63-64).
The beautifully carved birds seen on this table are also a common feature on Irish tables of this period, and similar examples can be found on a side table in a private collection, Co. Meath, and a side table sold by The Earl of Iveagh, Elveden Hall, Christie's house sale, 21-24 May, 1984, lot 431.
Furthermore, the Bacchic lion mask between oak foliage and acorn swags and veil-draped scallop shells on the ends, belongs to a group of tables sharing similar characteristics, including one at the City Art Museum of St. Louis, Missouri, USA (The Knight of Glin and J. Peill, Irish Furniture, London and New Haven, 2007, cat. 75, p. 224), one sold 'The Legend of Dick Turpin', Part I, Christie's London, 9 March 2006, lot 50 (£120,000 including premium), and one formerly in the Collection of Dr. Cremin, 120 St. Stephen's Green, Dublin, sold by his daughter, Hamilton Osborne King, Blackrock, Co. Dublin, 6 June 2000, lot 783 (IR£287,500 including premium), and recently offered 'Tom Devenish: The Collection', Sotheby's, New York, 24 April 2008, lot 33. The Bacchic lion is one of the most recognisable features of mid-18th century Irish carving, and its roots in the architecture and designs of William Kent, were thought to have been introduced to Ireland through the architect Edward Lovett Pearce (c. 1699-1733) (Glin and Peill, op. cit., pp. 63-64).
The beautifully carved birds seen on this table are also a common feature on Irish tables of this period, and similar examples can be found on a side table in a private collection, Co. Meath, and a side table sold by The Earl of Iveagh, Elveden Hall, Christie's house sale, 21-24 May, 1984, lot 431.