A MATCHED PAIR OF REGENCY MAHOGANY AND CANED 'KLISMOS' LIBRARY ARMCHAIRS, CIRCA 1820

A MATCHED PAIR OF REGENCY MAHOGANY AND CANED 'KLISMOS' LIBRARY ARMCHAIRSCIRCA 1820, POSSIBLY BY THOMAS CHIPPENDALE THE YOUNGEREach with a curved back terminating in lotus scrolls and with lotus-carved brackets, wih a caned back and seat with buttoned green/gold striped silk squab cushion, on tapering turned and reeded legs with brass caps and castors, differences in dimension and detail including to the carving of the front legs, one chair with restorations82cm high, 68cm wide, 60cm deepProvenance:Sir Timothy & Lady Clifford, Tyninghame House, Scotland.Jean-Claude Ciancimino (1931-2014)from whom acquired by the present owner These sophisticated andfluently carved library armchairsfollowthe ancient Greek klismos, doubtless inspired by similar neoclassical modelsillustrated in Thomas Hope’s Household Furniture and Interior Decoration (1807).The radically curved back and profile also relates to a ‘Library Reading Chair’by the Strand cabinet-makers Morgan and Sanders (fl. 1801-20) published inRudolph Ackermann’s Repository of the Arts, 1810 (fig. 1). The model alsobears comparison with several of the idiosyncratic designs of ThomasChippendale the Younger (d.1823), notably to a group of chairs produced in hislater years which share the same muscular character of the present examples, aswell as the tightly scrolled lappets on the arm terminals, tapering flutedlegs, and fine timber (see Judith Goodison, Thomas Chippendale the Younger,2017, in particular fig. 131, p. 329). While the provenance for each chair is different and thereare variations in the turning of the front legs, other features are identicalindicating that these distinctive chairs were made by the same cabinetmaker,perhaps to furnish a substantial library, as seen in the design variantsundertaken by Chippendale the Younger at Stourhead. Several examples are known, including one at 10 DowningStreet, the British Prime Minister’s residence. A single chair of this patternwas sold by Hutchinson Scott, Skipton, 19-20 June 2020, lot 664.

Condition
Good, structurally secure with wear and tear consistent with age and use. There are dents marks and scratches and shrinkage cracks throughout but overall the chairs are well presented and ready for use. Cushions and caning in good order. Note the small differences in detail, eg the carving of arm terminals, chamfer on seat rails, castors etc. One chair with old repairs and it seems likely one chair was quite extensively restored in the distant past though it's very possible that they were supplied as a long set with differences at the outset, or alternatively an existing set was enlarged with the addition of further chairs of slightly different deail.

Buyer's Premium
33.6% up to
£25,000.00
32.4% up to
£500,000.00
31.2% above
£500,000.00