POSSIBLY BY MAYHEW & INCE, CIRCA 1775

Details

A GEORGE III SATINWOOD, PADOUK AND TULIPWOOD BREAKFRONT BOOKCASE
POSSIBLY BY MAYHEW & INCE, CIRCA 1775
The molded cornice above an inlaid sycamore fluted frieze with roundels, above two pairs of astragal glazed doors enclosing watered silk lined shelves, flanked by a conforming single door, the strung base with three cupboard doors inlaid with oval panels enclosing an adjustable shelf, on a plinth base
95 in. (241.5 cm.) high, 71 ¼ in. (181 cm.) wide, 18 ½ in. (47 cm.) deep

Provenance

Acquired from Needham's Antiques, New York, August 1956.

Literature

D. Fennimore et al., The David and Peggy Rockefeller Collection: Decorative Arts, New York, 1992, vol. IV, p. 265-266, no. 267.

Special notice

This Lot is transferred to Christie’s Redstone Post-Sale Facility in Long Island City after 5.00 pm on the last day of the sale. They will be available at Redstone on the following Monday. Property may be transferred at Christie’s discretion following the sale and we advise that you contact Purchaser Payments on +1 212 636 2495 to confirm your property’s location at any given time. Lots made of or including (regardless of the percentage) endangered and other protected species of wildlife are marked with the symbol ~ in the catalogue. This material includes, among other things, ivory, tortoiseshell, crocodile skin, rhinoceros horn, whalebone certain species of coral, and Brazilian rosewood. You should check the relevant customs laws and regulations before bidding on any lot containing wildlife material if you plan to import the lot into another country. Several countries refuse to allow you to import property containing these materials, and some other countries require a licence from the relevant regulatory agencies in the countries of exportation as well as importation. In some cases, the lot can only be shipped with an independent scientific confirmation of species and/or age, and you will need to obtain these at your own cost. On occasion, Christie's has a direct financial interest in the outcome of the sale of certain lots consigned for sale. This will usually be where it has guaranteed to the Seller that whatever the outcome of the auction, the Seller will receive a minimum sale price for the work. This is known as a minimum price guarantee. This is a lot where Christie’s holds a direct financial guarantee interest.

Brought to you by

General Enquiries

rockefeller@christies.com +1 212 636 2000

Lot Essay

This bookcase is possibly by the Golden Square cabinet-making partnership of John Mayhew (d. 1811) and William Ince (d. 1804), one of the leading marquetry specialists of the period, based on stylistic affinities with furniture from their identified commissions. Related oval paterae are found on a pair of carved mahogany corner tables with ebonised borders, attributed to Mayhew & Ince, c. 1780, supplied to the 4th Duke of Marlborough, and comparable, simulated fluting in marquetry appears on a pair of rosewood and marquetry commodes, part of the same commission (H. Roberts, ‘Nicely Fitted Up’: Furniture for the 4th Duke of Marlborough, Furniture History, 1994, pp. 138-139, figs. 27 and 29). The Marlborough commodes also demonstrate the firm’s use of striking and contrasting veneers featured on this bookcase, exemplified in a pair of commodes of 1761, commissioned by the 6th Earl of Coventry, at Croome Court, Worcestershire (Earl of Coventry and Trustees of the Croome Estate).

More from The Collection of Peggy and David Rockefeller: English & European Furniture, Ceramics and Decorations, Part II

View All