A fine pair of George IV gilt-brass five-light chandeliers circa 1830

of Louis XIV revival style, the baluster and vasiform stem with tiers of foliate and shells above five foliate-S-scrolled candle arms above a foliate cast knop.  Pierced and fitted for electricity.

Colefax and Fowler, London

Overall good condition; some minor areas of rubbing and tarnishing to the gilding and with some areas of dust; pierced and fitted for electricity.
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.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

The present chandeliers were conceived in the 'Louis Quatorze' style which, following the defeat of Napoleon and the subsequent re-acquaintance with France, became the fashionable style in England in the late 1820s.  One of its most enthusiastic devotees, indeed the person often credited with its acceptance, was Elizabeth Howard, Duchess of Rutland.  The Duchess undertook the rebuilding of Belvoir Castle during the mid 1820s creating the 'Elizabeth Saloon' in 1824 and combining French furniture and works of art with French broisseries, which had come from the apartment of Madame de Maintenon.  The following year the style was adopted in London when the Duchess of Rutland's most fervent admirer, The Duke of York, brother of George IV, began the transformation of York House, St. James.'  Here his architect Benjamin Dean Wyatt designed a grand sequence of rooms in the 'Louis Quatorze' style.  However, the death of the Duke in 1827 meant the cessation of this work.  The incomplete house was sold to George Granville Leveson-Gower, 2^nd Marquis of Stafford (1758-1833) created 1^st Duke of Sutherland in 1833.  The Duke re-employed Wyatt but following his death his heir George, 2^nd Duke of Sutherland engaged first Sir Robert Smirke and finally in 1838 Charles Barry to complete the work.  The house was re-named Stafford House and became the London residence of the Dukes of Sutherland throughout the remainder of the century.

The present pair of chandeliers relates to two chandeliers which were commissioned by either the 1^st or 2^nd Duke of Sutherland for Stafford House, London, and were bought by William Lever, 2^nd Viscount Leverhulme for Thornton Manor and sold at Sotheby's London, The Leverhulme Collection, June 26-28, 2001, lots 169-170.  These chandeliers were made by the firm of Hancock and Rixon.  The firm was known to have traded under this name in 1832, becoming Hancock, Rixon and Dant by 31 March, 1838.  However, it appears that the firm originated in the 18^th century, Colebron Hancock being apprenticed to Thomas Betts in 1752 and setting up his own firm some ten years later.  In 1791, Hancock & Co. estimated for chandeliers for the Hall of the Society of Merchant Venturers of Bristol and as Hancock, Shepherd and Rixon at 1 Cockspur Street, Charing Cross, London, the firm supplied chandeliers for Stoneleigh Abbey.  This firm as well as the firm of W. and G. Perry supplied George IV with chandeliers for Windsor Castle including one in the White Drawing Room and one in the Green Drawing Room, respectively (see Hugh Roberts, For the King's Pleasure, London, 2001, p.129, fig. 142 and p. 109, fig, 104).  The designs of the present chandeliers are similar to designs which Sir Jeffrey Wyattville provided for George IV for the Crimson Drawing Room and the White Drawing Room at Windsor Castle circa 1827-29 (Roberts, op. cit., p. 87, fig. 68 and p. 129, fig. 140).  A similar chandelier sold at Christie's New York, October 19, 2007, lot 111; another sold at Christie's London, June 9, 2005, lot 212; and another sold at Sotheby's London, March 22, 2002, lot 240.