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Lot Essay
This bookcase with its unusual rusticated façade is derived from the stately architectural prototypes of the so-called ‘Palladian’ era in Britain. Geometry, proportion and a strict classicism defined this ‘national style’ of Britain which reigned from the 1720s-1740s. Fitted with unusual double-hinged doors to the upper and lower sections, the bookcase likely corresponded with the interior architecture of the room for which it was intended.
The bookcase is reputed to have come from the collection of James Lees-Milne (d. 1997), the prolific diarist, author and invaluable supporter of the National Trust from the late 1930s, first as secretary of the Country Houses Committee, and later as architectural consultant and advisor. Lees-Milne last resided at Essex House at Badminton, Gloucestershire, the estate of the Dukes of Beaufort. He was friends with many prominent social and intellectual figures in Britain including the Mitford Sisters and Harold Nicolson.
The bookcase is reputed to have come from the collection of James Lees-Milne (d. 1997), the prolific diarist, author and invaluable supporter of the National Trust from the late 1930s, first as secretary of the Country Houses Committee, and later as architectural consultant and advisor. Lees-Milne last resided at Essex House at Badminton, Gloucestershire, the estate of the Dukes of Beaufort. He was friends with many prominent social and intellectual figures in Britain including the Mitford Sisters and Harold Nicolson.