Lot Essay
These torcheres are two of the four supplied for the Prince of Wales' apartment at the Queen's House (now Buckingham Palace) by William Gates (d. circa 1800) cabinet-maker of St Martin's Lane, who held the Royal Warrant as Tradesman to the Great Wardrobe in the quarter ending 5 January 1782 and are described thus:
for 4 exceeding superb Tripods or Therms, each in a triangle form carved with women's heads at each corner supporting a large vase to receive a glass lustre for candles, a satyr's foot as bottom with rich swags in groups of flowers dropping from the women's breasts. a sim (sic) on each side in the middle with feathers and various ornaments made to a drawing chose by the prince, with strong iron plates made to the shape of the legs screwed, and straps screwed up to the under part of the top and a screw tap'ed at the bottom to go thro' the foot and screwed on the underside with a nut, to keep the whole from trembling & all richly gilt in burnished gold #243 0. 0.
for 4 printed leather covers to Do lined with green flannell and bound with gilt leather and tye on with green silk ferretts
#5 12. 0.
for 2 pair of very superb Girandoles richly cut, ornamented and mounted in gilt....
#96 0. 0.
for 4 Green baize covers to do
#2 12.0. (P.R.O. LC9/329).
Conceived as antique tripods, these gueridon-stands for either candelabra or flower-vases, were designed in 1781 and intended to furnish the corners of a room. Their serpentined herm monopodiae shafts are formed as festive garland-wreathed satyresses or bacchic nymphs, whose goat-hooves emerge from acanthus foliage in the arabesque manner. Feathered plumes, the badge of George, Prince of Wales, later George IV, are bound by a jewelled ribbon-guilloche band to poetic laurel-enriched medallion-escutcheons, that bear the enrayed head of the Sun-god Apollo, leader of the Muses of artistic inspiration, while the central pine-cone finial, is the Thyrsus badge of Bacchus, god of festivities. Their triumphal-arched and altar-tripod plinths, with husk-festooned domes banded by flowered guilloche, are surmounted by cone-tipped sacred-urns with palm-enriched pedestals. The plinths, have fluted guilloche-edges, derived from that of the Grecian temple of Incantada, engraved in James Stuart's, Antiquities of Athens, 1762; and are supported on reeded and banded feet. The nymphs wear shoulder-drapery pinned by rosettes, from which suspend festoons of husks and palmettes, and they support a flower-festooned and laurel-wreathed tazza or vase, whose gadrooned bowl terminates in a strigil-fluted boss. The evolution of their design can be traced to vase-candelabra with monopodiae-supports, published in R. and J. Adam's, Works in Architecture 1773; and they also relate to the contemporary Louis XVI multi-purpose atheniènne stands with bacchic-ram monopodiae.
Gates noted that they were executed to a drawing chose by the Prince, and they are likely to have been designed by the architect John Yenn (d. 1821) under the supervision of the architect Sir William Chambers (d. 1796), Surveyor General of George III's Royal Works. Yenn had served for many years as draughtsman to Chambers, before obtaining the post of Clerk of Works at Buckingham House at about this period. The furnishings of the Prince's apartments were later to provide the inspiration for designs illustrated by A. Hepplewhite & Co, in their, Cabinet-Maker and Upholsterer's Guide, 1788. It would seem that their triangular entablatures supported on fluted leaf-cups provided a few years later to increase the height of the stands. Their were richly carved tablets of laurel-bearing youths emerging from husk-and-flower festooned acanthus-scrolls, related to that of tripod pedestals illustrated in R. and J. Adam's Works in Architecture, 1773, plate VIII. It is probable that at the same time that these additions were made, pairs of similar stands, incorporating jardiniere containers were provided en suite. These were sold by Lt. Col. James Bowes-Lyon, M.C. in these Rooms 23 March 1961, lot 19 (680gns).
The candelabra supplied were no doubt similar to those supported on related tripod stands illustrated in the view of Queen Charlotte's Saloon (see: D. Watkin The Royal Interiors of Regency England, London 1984, p.82 illustration)
for 4 exceeding superb Tripods or Therms, each in a triangle form carved with women's heads at each corner supporting a large vase to receive a glass lustre for candles, a satyr's foot as bottom with rich swags in groups of flowers dropping from the women's breasts. a sim (sic) on each side in the middle with feathers and various ornaments made to a drawing chose by the prince, with strong iron plates made to the shape of the legs screwed, and straps screwed up to the under part of the top and a screw tap'ed at the bottom to go thro' the foot and screwed on the underside with a nut, to keep the whole from trembling & all richly gilt in burnished gold #243 0. 0.
for 4 printed leather covers to Do lined with green flannell and bound with gilt leather and tye on with green silk ferretts
#5 12. 0.
for 2 pair of very superb Girandoles richly cut, ornamented and mounted in gilt....
#96 0. 0.
for 4 Green baize covers to do
#2 12.0. (P.R.O. LC9/329).
Conceived as antique tripods, these gueridon-stands for either candelabra or flower-vases, were designed in 1781 and intended to furnish the corners of a room. Their serpentined herm monopodiae shafts are formed as festive garland-wreathed satyresses or bacchic nymphs, whose goat-hooves emerge from acanthus foliage in the arabesque manner. Feathered plumes, the badge of George, Prince of Wales, later George IV, are bound by a jewelled ribbon-guilloche band to poetic laurel-enriched medallion-escutcheons, that bear the enrayed head of the Sun-god Apollo, leader of the Muses of artistic inspiration, while the central pine-cone finial, is the Thyrsus badge of Bacchus, god of festivities. Their triumphal-arched and altar-tripod plinths, with husk-festooned domes banded by flowered guilloche, are surmounted by cone-tipped sacred-urns with palm-enriched pedestals. The plinths, have fluted guilloche-edges, derived from that of the Grecian temple of Incantada, engraved in James Stuart's, Antiquities of Athens, 1762; and are supported on reeded and banded feet. The nymphs wear shoulder-drapery pinned by rosettes, from which suspend festoons of husks and palmettes, and they support a flower-festooned and laurel-wreathed tazza or vase, whose gadrooned bowl terminates in a strigil-fluted boss. The evolution of their design can be traced to vase-candelabra with monopodiae-supports, published in R. and J. Adam's, Works in Architecture 1773; and they also relate to the contemporary Louis XVI multi-purpose atheniènne stands with bacchic-ram monopodiae.
Gates noted that they were executed to a drawing chose by the Prince, and they are likely to have been designed by the architect John Yenn (d. 1821) under the supervision of the architect Sir William Chambers (d. 1796), Surveyor General of George III's Royal Works. Yenn had served for many years as draughtsman to Chambers, before obtaining the post of Clerk of Works at Buckingham House at about this period. The furnishings of the Prince's apartments were later to provide the inspiration for designs illustrated by A. Hepplewhite & Co, in their, Cabinet-Maker and Upholsterer's Guide, 1788. It would seem that their triangular entablatures supported on fluted leaf-cups provided a few years later to increase the height of the stands. Their were richly carved tablets of laurel-bearing youths emerging from husk-and-flower festooned acanthus-scrolls, related to that of tripod pedestals illustrated in R. and J. Adam's Works in Architecture, 1773, plate VIII. It is probable that at the same time that these additions were made, pairs of similar stands, incorporating jardiniere containers were provided en suite. These were sold by Lt. Col. James Bowes-Lyon, M.C. in these Rooms 23 March 1961, lot 19 (680gns).
The candelabra supplied were no doubt similar to those supported on related tripod stands illustrated in the view of Queen Charlotte's Saloon (see: D. Watkin The Royal Interiors of Regency England, London 1984, p.82 illustration)