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Lot Essay
The fashion for 'French' upholstered back chairs of this 19th century form is seen as early as 1815, on a set of twenty-four chairs likely to have been commissioned by the 5th Earl Cowper (d. 1836) for Panshanger, Hertfordshire, following his marriage to the Hon. Emily Lamb in 1815. The latter set was sold anonymously, in these Rooms, 7 July 1994, lot 64 (£20,700).
Holland and Sons were among the most distinguished furniture-producers of the Victorian period, starting as Taprell and Holland at the beginning of the 19th Century, and becoming Holland and Sons in 1843. They supplied the furniture for many of the London clubs including the Athenaeum, the Reform Club and the Oxford and Cambridge Club. They took over premises in Mount Street in 1851 and their archives dating to 1942, when the firm ceased trading, are preserved in the Victoria and Albert Museum.
Holland and Sons were among the most distinguished furniture-producers of the Victorian period, starting as Taprell and Holland at the beginning of the 19th Century, and becoming Holland and Sons in 1843. They supplied the furniture for many of the London clubs including the Athenaeum, the Reform Club and the Oxford and Cambridge Club. They took over premises in Mount Street in 1851 and their archives dating to 1942, when the firm ceased trading, are preserved in the Victoria and Albert Museum.