.jpg?w=1)
Lot Essay
Powerscourt, one of Ireland's great historic homes, was granted to the Wingfield family by James I in 1609 and the house and formal gardens were largely redesigned by the architect Richard Castle in the 1730's and 1740's. The 7th Viscount (d.1904) who acquired this table for Powerscourt was an inveterate collector and well-known connoisseur who spent considerable sums ornamenting the house, its interiors and gardens. He was deeply involved in the National Gallery of Ireland, Chairman of the Art Union of Ireland, President of the Royal Dublin Society and an avid supporter of the Royal Hibernian Academy.
The 7th Viscount's memoir, Description and History of Powerscourt, published in 1903, is a particularly valuable resource that details the history of this magnificent house. Lord Powerscourt recounts his purchase of this table from Mrs. Brady in Liffey Street (p.34) - I was looking at it and admiring it, and I offered her less than the price she put upon it, and she said 'Oh! now you had better take it; you will never see another like it, and the General will be here directly and he will have it soon enough' - the General being the late Gereal Charles Crawford Frazer, V.C., at the time commanding the troops in Dublin.
A similar table is illustrated in D. Fitzgerald, Irish Furniture, The Irish Heritage Series, no. 16, 1978, fig. 11.
The 7th Viscount's memoir, Description and History of Powerscourt, published in 1903, is a particularly valuable resource that details the history of this magnificent house. Lord Powerscourt recounts his purchase of this table from Mrs. Brady in Liffey Street (p.34) - I was looking at it and admiring it, and I offered her less than the price she put upon it, and she said 'Oh! now you had better take it; you will never see another like it, and the General will be here directly and he will have it soon enough' - the General being the late Gereal Charles Crawford Frazer, V.C., at the time commanding the troops in Dublin.
A similar table is illustrated in D. Fitzgerald, Irish Furniture, The Irish Heritage Series, no. 16, 1978, fig. 11.