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Lot Essay
The cresting of this cushion-frame mirror with its triple parquetry veneered roundels resembling 'orange slices' encased by foliate fretwork is closely related to a lacquered mirror at Lyme Park, Cheshire (H. Cescinsky, English Furniture from Gothic to Sheraton, 1937, p.225). Although the 'oranges' are not an explicit allusion to the House of Orange, they symbolise prosperity within the Royal family, and appear in contemporary paintings such as Vermeer's Flower Garland with Portrait of William of Orange (circa 1659-66), presently in the Fine Art Museum, Lyon.
The present lot is also similar to a walnut and marquetry mirror, formerly the property of the 10th Earl of Chesterfield at Holme Lacy (Knight, Frank & Rutley, 31 January-3 February 1910, lot 583). Another with pierced fretwork was formerly at Nantclwyd Hall, Ruthin (Architectural Digest, November 2005).
A closely related mirror with the same pattern of fret-carving is illustrated in Moss Harris' Catalogue of Old Furniture, part III, p.462.
The present lot is also similar to a walnut and marquetry mirror, formerly the property of the 10th Earl of Chesterfield at Holme Lacy (Knight, Frank & Rutley, 31 January-3 February 1910, lot 583). Another with pierced fretwork was formerly at Nantclwyd Hall, Ruthin (Architectural Digest, November 2005).
A closely related mirror with the same pattern of fret-carving is illustrated in Moss Harris' Catalogue of Old Furniture, part III, p.462.