A set of ten Regency mahogany and inlaid dining chairs circa 1810

including a pair of armchairs, inlaid throughout with ebonised borders including star motifs to the toprails

Good overall condition. Characteristic old marks bruises and scratches. Lovely timber which has retained a good consistent colour and patina. Seat rails beneath underseat covers not inspected.
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

The combination of star-inlaid motifs and `ebony' stringing featured on the present set of chairs is associated with furniture produced by the leading Regency cabinet-maker George Oakley. A set of quartetto tables similarly inlaid with star motifs and supplied by George Oakley for Charles Madryll Cheere of Papworth Hall, Cambridgeshire in 1810, formed part of one of his most celebrated commissions (see Ralph Edwards & Percy Macquoid, The Dictionary of English Furniture, 1954 rev. ed.,  3 Vols., vol III, p. 272, fig. 1). A mahogany wardrobe, also forming part of the same  commission, which is decorated with similar ebony inlaid scroll motifs, sold Christie's London, Simon Sainsbury, The Creation of an English Arcadia, 18 June 2008, lot 273.

George Oakley (d.1840) worked in partnership with various cabinet-makers, including Henry Kettle, George Shackleton and John Evans, producing furniture in the fashionable Grecian taste and specialising in `buhl' inlay (C. Gilbert and G. Beard, eds., Dictionary of English Furniture Makers 1660-1840, 1986, pp. 658-660). His extensive enterprise earned the accolades of the Royal Family: 'the Prince and Princess of Orange did Mr. Oakley the honour of viewing his Printed Furniture Warehouse in New Bond Street; when his Majesty, the Duke and Duchess of York, and the Princesses, & C., highly approved of the splendid variety which has justly attracted the notice of the fashionable world' (Morning Chronicle). This reputation spread abroad where an 1804 newspaper article published in Weimar, Germany stated: `all people with taste buy their furniture at Oakley's'.

A possible source of inspiration for the design of the top rails is a pattern for sabre leg chair published by Thomas Hope in Household Furniture and Interior Decoration, 1807, pl. 24, fig. 3 (see illustration).