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拍品专文
These marquetry commodes epitomise the elegant French style executed in the late 1760s by John Linnell (d. 1796), cabinet-maker and upholsterer of Berkeley Square. They evolved from the Louis XV 'picturesque' style introduced during the 1750s by emigré craftsmen such as Pierre Langlois (d. 1765). However, it was Christopher Fuhrlohg (d. circa 1787) and George Haupt (d. 1784) who, having trained in the Paris workshops of Simon Oeben, are thought to have introduced this particular style to the Linnell workshops in the 1760s. They form part of a distinctive group of marquetry commodes attributed to Linnell and are discussed in depth by Lucy Wood in The Lady Lever Art Gallery, Catalogue of Commodes, 1994, pp. 98-105.
This group includes:
-A pair, accompanied by foliage-framed pier-glasses, almost certainly supplied by Linnell to his principal patron, the banker Robert Child for Osterley Park, Middlesex and was listed in the 1782 inventory of Mrs. Child's Dressing-Room (H. Hayward and P. Kirkham, William and John Linnell, London, 1978, vol. I, fig. 104).
-Two further commodes, almost certainly acquired by Catherine the Great, are recorded in the correspondence of Pierre Falconet, son of the celebrated sculptor, while acting as an agent for John Linnell at the Imperial Court in St. Petersburg. In September 1774 he wrote to James Triquet enquiring about the price of Linnell's marquetry corner-cupboards, and again on the 30 December, when he noted that although the Russian court considered two pieces of Linnell's furniture that he had taken for sale to be 'very beautiful', they remained unsold so he was contemplating their return to London. It seems more than likely, however, that these items remained in Russia, as they can be identified with the two commodes, displaying identical beaded borders to the tops, that are now at Tsarskoe Selo and Peterhof, St. Petersburg (Hayward, op. cit., pl. 9).
-A pair from the collection of E.M. Denny, Esq., probably commissioned for Traloe Castle (Castle Moyle), Co. Kerry by Sir Barry Denny, 1st Bt. around the time of his marriage in 1767 to his cousin Jane, heiress of Traloe Castle, was sold in these Rooms on 17 March 1921, lot 116 and again on the 15 April 1982, lot 84 from the collection of Michael Knapp. They appeared on the market again offered from the estate of Wendell Cherry at Sotheby's, New York 11 October 1996, lot 443 (sold for $442,500 inc. premium) where they were acquired by Partridge Fine Arts Ltd.
-A further pair, albeit of a slightly larger scale to the present commodes, but arguably closest in style, was formerly in the collection of Arnold Wills Esq., at Thornby Hall, sold in these rooms 'The Contents of Thornby Hall, Northamptonshire'; Christie's. London, 22-23 October 1984, lot 97. They appeared on the market again at Christie’s from the collection of Edward Sarofim on 16 November 1995, lot 150 and were sold for a third time at Sotheby’s on 8 December 2004, lot 25.
-Lastly, a single commode purchased by Lord Leverhulme from the renowned London firm of Moss Harris on 25 March 1919 for £1,000, now in The Lady Lever Art Gallery (Wood, op. cit., p. 98, no. 8).
Amongst Linnell's surviving workshop-drawings are two related commode-patterns, supplied en suite with pier-glasses which relate to the present commodes which further support an attribution to Linnell (Victoria & Albert Museum, no. E.256 and E.253-1929, illustrated in L. Wood, op. cit., p. 103, fig. 96). The commodes also include a number of motifs which are idiosyncratic of Linnell’s production such as the crossed palms executed in marquetry to the centre of the frieze drawer. In terms of construction, they also adhere to Linnell’s commitment to symmetry and harmony as the doors to each commode have hinges to the right-hand side allowing them to open identically. This design choice not only reflects aesthetic considerations but also possibly the practical functionality of the room arrangement in which these commodes were likely to be placed.
CHARLES T. JACOBY, 80 KNIGHTSBRIDGE, LONDON
The present pair of commodes was first recorded in the collection of Charles T. Jacoby (1853-1910) a successful lace manufacturer from Nottingham. Together with his two brothers, Charles was a director of the family business M. Jacoby & Co. The brothers were collectors of art and antiques and donated works to the Nottingham Castle Museum. Following his death the pair of commodes was offered for sale at Christie's London, 23 June 1910, lot 134 (Wood, op. cit., figs. 100-101).
SIR JOHN H. WARD, K.C.V.O., DUDLEY HOUSE, LONDON
The commodes subsequently passed into the collection of Sir John Ward K.C.V.O., at Dudley House, Park Lane, London. Dudley House was built in an area of Mayfair known as Upperfielde, part of the Grosvenor Estate that formed the dowry of Mary Davies. Designed by William Atkinson, construction of the house began in 1824 for Viscount Dudley. After his death in 1833 without issue, the house passed through various hands for the next sixty years; one of the most notable being Ismail Pasha ‘The Magnificent’, Khedive of Egypt, who used Dudley House as his residence on a State Visit to England in 1867. Between 1895 and 1912 the house was owned by Sir Joseph Robinson, a South African mining magnate and Randlord (known as ‘the Buccaneer’) after which it was acquired by The Hon. Sir John and Mrs. Ward.
John Ward was one of a select group who formed remarkable collections of mid-Georgian furniture in the early part of the twentieth century. His magnificent collection is discussed in a four-part article by Herbert Cescinsky published in The Connoisseur in January-August 1921. One of the present pair of commodes is illustrated in the fourth instalment of the article p. 196 (No. IV).
This group includes:
-A pair, accompanied by foliage-framed pier-glasses, almost certainly supplied by Linnell to his principal patron, the banker Robert Child for Osterley Park, Middlesex and was listed in the 1782 inventory of Mrs. Child's Dressing-Room (H. Hayward and P. Kirkham, William and John Linnell, London, 1978, vol. I, fig. 104).
-Two further commodes, almost certainly acquired by Catherine the Great, are recorded in the correspondence of Pierre Falconet, son of the celebrated sculptor, while acting as an agent for John Linnell at the Imperial Court in St. Petersburg. In September 1774 he wrote to James Triquet enquiring about the price of Linnell's marquetry corner-cupboards, and again on the 30 December, when he noted that although the Russian court considered two pieces of Linnell's furniture that he had taken for sale to be 'very beautiful', they remained unsold so he was contemplating their return to London. It seems more than likely, however, that these items remained in Russia, as they can be identified with the two commodes, displaying identical beaded borders to the tops, that are now at Tsarskoe Selo and Peterhof, St. Petersburg (Hayward, op. cit., pl. 9).
-A pair from the collection of E.M. Denny, Esq., probably commissioned for Traloe Castle (Castle Moyle), Co. Kerry by Sir Barry Denny, 1st Bt. around the time of his marriage in 1767 to his cousin Jane, heiress of Traloe Castle, was sold in these Rooms on 17 March 1921, lot 116 and again on the 15 April 1982, lot 84 from the collection of Michael Knapp. They appeared on the market again offered from the estate of Wendell Cherry at Sotheby's, New York 11 October 1996, lot 443 (sold for $442,500 inc. premium) where they were acquired by Partridge Fine Arts Ltd.
-A further pair, albeit of a slightly larger scale to the present commodes, but arguably closest in style, was formerly in the collection of Arnold Wills Esq., at Thornby Hall, sold in these rooms 'The Contents of Thornby Hall, Northamptonshire'; Christie's. London, 22-23 October 1984, lot 97. They appeared on the market again at Christie’s from the collection of Edward Sarofim on 16 November 1995, lot 150 and were sold for a third time at Sotheby’s on 8 December 2004, lot 25.
-Lastly, a single commode purchased by Lord Leverhulme from the renowned London firm of Moss Harris on 25 March 1919 for £1,000, now in The Lady Lever Art Gallery (Wood, op. cit., p. 98, no. 8).
Amongst Linnell's surviving workshop-drawings are two related commode-patterns, supplied en suite with pier-glasses which relate to the present commodes which further support an attribution to Linnell (Victoria & Albert Museum, no. E.256 and E.253-1929, illustrated in L. Wood, op. cit., p. 103, fig. 96). The commodes also include a number of motifs which are idiosyncratic of Linnell’s production such as the crossed palms executed in marquetry to the centre of the frieze drawer. In terms of construction, they also adhere to Linnell’s commitment to symmetry and harmony as the doors to each commode have hinges to the right-hand side allowing them to open identically. This design choice not only reflects aesthetic considerations but also possibly the practical functionality of the room arrangement in which these commodes were likely to be placed.
CHARLES T. JACOBY, 80 KNIGHTSBRIDGE, LONDON
The present pair of commodes was first recorded in the collection of Charles T. Jacoby (1853-1910) a successful lace manufacturer from Nottingham. Together with his two brothers, Charles was a director of the family business M. Jacoby & Co. The brothers were collectors of art and antiques and donated works to the Nottingham Castle Museum. Following his death the pair of commodes was offered for sale at Christie's London, 23 June 1910, lot 134 (Wood, op. cit., figs. 100-101).
SIR JOHN H. WARD, K.C.V.O., DUDLEY HOUSE, LONDON
The commodes subsequently passed into the collection of Sir John Ward K.C.V.O., at Dudley House, Park Lane, London. Dudley House was built in an area of Mayfair known as Upperfielde, part of the Grosvenor Estate that formed the dowry of Mary Davies. Designed by William Atkinson, construction of the house began in 1824 for Viscount Dudley. After his death in 1833 without issue, the house passed through various hands for the next sixty years; one of the most notable being Ismail Pasha ‘The Magnificent’, Khedive of Egypt, who used Dudley House as his residence on a State Visit to England in 1867. Between 1895 and 1912 the house was owned by Sir Joseph Robinson, a South African mining magnate and Randlord (known as ‘the Buccaneer’) after which it was acquired by The Hon. Sir John and Mrs. Ward.
John Ward was one of a select group who formed remarkable collections of mid-Georgian furniture in the early part of the twentieth century. His magnificent collection is discussed in a four-part article by Herbert Cescinsky published in The Connoisseur in January-August 1921. One of the present pair of commodes is illustrated in the fourth instalment of the article p. 196 (No. IV).