MARK OF JOHN SCOFIELD, LONDON, 1796, THE BRANCHES ROBERT SHARP, LONDON, 1791, 1792

Details

A FINE PAIR OF GEORGE III SILVER THREE-LIGHT CANDELABRA
MARK OF JOHN SCOFIELD, LONDON, 1796, THE BRANCHES ROBERT SHARP, LONDON, 1791, 1792
Each on circular pedestal foot with gadrooned rim, the tapering fluted stem with fluted urn-form socket, with detachable wax pan, supporting two entwined reeded and leaf-clad branches, the three urn-form sockets with circular wax pans and detachable nozzles, the central socket with detachable ball finial, each stem, wax pan and finial engraved with a crest beneath a Viscount's coronet, marked on each stem and socket, the branches marked on bezel, waxpans, sockets and nozzles, one 1791 one 1792
20½ in. (52.1 cm.) high; 168 oz. (5237 gr.) (2)

Provenance

William, 2nd Viscount Lowther, later Earl of Lonsdale The Rt. Hon. The Earl of Lonsdale, O.B.E., sold Christie's, 20 February 1947, lot 264

Lot Essay

William, Earl of Lonsdale (1757-1844) was a great patron of the arts. He married Augusta (d.1838), daughter of 9th Earl of Westmorland, in 1781. Having inherited Lowther Castle in 1802, he employed Robert Smirke (1781-1867) to rebuild the castle in a Perpendicular Revival style, from 1806 to 1811. The massive building was a true demonstration of the grandest Regency style, with vast rooms. He was known to be a profligate spender. Smirke wrote of him in the Farington Diary: "His income is supposed to be from £80 to 100,000 a year, but He has vast expences [sic]. He has 4 establishments, one at Lowther, also at Whitehaven, Cottesmere in Rutlandshire, and in London" (as quoted in The Complete Peerage).

Also in this sale is a pair of Regency meat dishes marked by Paul Storr with the arms of William, 2nd Viscount Lowther, later Earl of Lonsdale, lot 378.

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