.jpg?w=1)
Lot Essay
These chairs bear various Royal inventory marks from Kensington Palace in London and Holyroodhouse in Edinburgh. They were certainly at Kensington by 1911 at which time they were apparently sent to the Palace of Holyroodhouse for the first visit of King George V and Queen Mary. A photograph of circa 1912 of the Throne Room at Holyrood shows three chairs of this model, together with a group of six related stools. The chairs in the photograph retain a gilt surface at the time; it appears that the back frame may have a border of decorative gadroon-carving (in which case it might be a virtually identical model) or this may actually be an upholstery ribbon. It is unclear when the chairs might have left the Royal Collection, but a 1927 inventory of Holyroodhouse does not include them in the Throne Room, which at the time was undergoing alterations. However, the brands on the chairs confirm a date at Holyroodhouse between 1912 and 1927.
The maker's inscription 'W. King Uph' which appears on two of the chairs is intriguing. While there were many makers of this name, the most likely candidate is William King (d. 1774), who apprenticed under Philip Bell, thereafter establishing his own workshop in St. Paul's Churchyard in 1766.
The maker's inscription 'W. King Uph' which appears on two of the chairs is intriguing. While there were many makers of this name, the most likely candidate is William King (d. 1774), who apprenticed under Philip Bell, thereafter establishing his own workshop in St. Paul's Churchyard in 1766.