Reference 1012

English, ca. 1730

The vase-shaped splats with scrolled top rails, veneered in densely figured burr walnut over bowed drop in seats, now upholstered in antique blue silk velvet. 

The frames veneered in walnut, centred by winged satyr masks, on shell-headed cabriole legs with carved foliage, terminating in claw-and-ball feet.

PROVENANCE

These satyr-mask chairs can confidently be attributed to the Clerkenwell  cabinet-maker Giles Grendey.

DESCRIPTION
An identical chair to this and undoubtedly from the same set, had the rare distinction of having been owned by two of the greatest collectors of English furniture – Percival D. Griffiths and Frederick Poke. Indeed, Griffiths seems to have particularly sought out this rare satyr-mask model – owning this side chair, an armchair and a sofa at Sandridgebury, Hertfordshire; these are all illustrated in R.W. Symonds English Furniture from Charles II to George II, London, 1929, pp.31-3, figs. 11-13. A similar related parlour chair from the collection of the Duke of Leeds at Hornby Castle is illustrated in R.Edwards and P. Macquoid, The Dictionary of English Furniture, London, rev.ed., 1954, vol.I, p.254, f.8.85.

LITERATURE

R.W. Symonds, English Furniture from Charles II to George II, London, 1929, p. 33, fig. 13
R.W. Symonds, ‘Walnut and Mahogany Chairs of the 18th Century’, Apollo, August 1939, p. 49, fig. V
R.W. Symonds, ‘English Chair Making’, The Connoisseur, p. 249, fig. 6
Christian Jussel, English Furniture 1680 – 1760: The Percival Griffiths Collection, vol. I, p. 132, f.116

Dimensions

Width 55 cm (22″)
Height 98 cm (38 1/2″)
Depth 58.5 cm (23″