A PAIR OF GEORGE III GILTWOOD OPEN ARMCHAIRS
A PAIR OF GEORGE III GILTWOOD OPEN ARMCHAIRS

Details
A PAIR OF GEORGE III GILTWOOD OPEN ARMCHAIRS
Each with fluted frame, the oval padded back, seat and armrests covered in white calico, the arms with foliage terminals, the centre of the apron and top of the back with a patera, on tapering fluted legs, one chair inscribed '6 Gan' (2)
Provenance
By repute Powerscourt, Co. Wicklow, Ireland.

Lot Essay

The medallion-backed cabriolet chairs, with their pattera-enriched frames and palm-wrapped arms, relate to the antique fashion adopted in the 1780s by firms such as Gillows of London and Lancaster under guidance from architects such as James Wyatt (d. 1813), and later popularised by Messrs. A. Hepplewhite & Co.'s The Cabinet-Maker and Upholsterer's Guide, 1788.
A very similar suite of chairs and settees was sold anonymously, Sotheby's London, 16 July 1982, lot 117 and a further pair of chairs was sold by Mrs. Janet Holmes Court, Sotheby's London, 19 February 1993, lot 125.

Powerscourt, Co. Wicklow is one of the most famous of all Irish country houses, built between 1731 and 1740 to designs by Richard Castle for the 1st Viscount Powerscourt. Also renowned for its gardens and demesne, sadly much of the house was destroyed by a disastrous fire in 1974.

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