A PAIR OF GEORGE IV WROUGHT-IRON AND BRASS FIREIRON RESTS

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JAMES WATT James Watt Junior was the eldest son of the famous inventor, scientist and engineer James Watt, who made his fortune from the development of the steam engine. James Watt junior was not only a successful businessman who produced a portable version of his father's copying machine and took a leading role in introducing steam engines into ships, but he was also an antiquarian, connoisseur and patron to some of the leading designers of the early nineteenth century. After inheriting his father's fortune in 1819, he possessed the means to explor his exceptional interest and taste in architecture, design and furniture. From 1809, he employed George Bullock to supply furniture for Thornhill. In 1818 James Watt Junior leased the great Jacobean House, Aston Hall and commissioned Richard Bridgens to design furniture appropriate to the "Elizabethan" manner of the house, purchasing antique furniture and creating an impressive library. On James Watt Junior's death in 1848 the archives indicate how selected objects were moved from Aston Hall to Doldowlod by his executors, while other pieces were sold at auction. Many pieces from Watt's collection are now preserved at Aston Hall in the care of Birmingham City Art Museums and Galleries.

A PAIR OF GEORGE IV WROUGHT-IRON AND BRASS FIREIRON RESTS

CIRCA 1825, ATTRIBUTED TO RICHARD BRIDGENS

Details

A PAIR OF GEORGE IV WROUGHT-IRON AND BRASS FIREIRON RESTS
CIRCA 1825, ATTRIBUTED TO RICHARD BRIDGENS
Each side identical, with reeded circular finials on a hipped strapwork base
8¼ in. (21 cm.) high; 8¼ in. (21 cm.) wide (2)

Provenance

Almost certainly acquired by James Watt Junior (d.1848) for Aston Hall, Birmingham; thence by descent to the Gibson-Watt family at Doldowlod, Radnorshire, where they are recorded by 1861, and thence by descent; until sold
The Late Lord Gibson-Watt, The Watt sale, Sotheby's, London, 20 March 2003, lot 336.

Special notice

This lot is offered without reserve. No VAT will be charged on the hammer price, but VAT at 15% will be added to the buyer's premium which is invoiced on a VAT inclusive basis.

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