A George III mahogany hall bench late 18th/early 19th century

in the manner of Marsh and Tatham, the frieze with a contemporary painted crest possibly for William Beckford

Overall good condition. Some losses to the roundels which will need to be restored but which will not be difficult to do. Old marks and scratches consistent with use. Crest possibly later painted.
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The design of the present bench derives from an ancient Roman marble seat illustrated by Charles Heathcote Tatham, Etchings of Ornamental Architecture drawn from the Originals in Rome and other parts of Italy during the years 1794, 1795 and 1796, 1799,pl. 46.

The crest is that of the celebrated collector and art connoisseur, William Beckford ( 1759-1844) suggesting that the bench formed part of his collection. Beckford built Fonthill Abbey in Wiltshire which was a vast Gothic revival mansion with a splendid central tower in which he housed his great art collection. He used as his architect the equally celebrated architect James Wyatt. Beckford had inherited the Fonthill estate from his father Alderman William Beckford which included a Palladian mansion called Fonthill Splendens. Mahogany benches deriving in style from Roman antiquity were known to have been supplied for this house ornamented with the Beckford crest around 1775-1780, illustrated Derek Ostergard, William Beckford 1760-1844; An Eye for the Magnificent, 2002, p.318, pl.29. The present lot clearly derives from this style but is later in date suggesting that, if it was indeed made for William Beckford, it was most likely to have been made either for the final stage of alterations to Fonthill House carried out by Beckford in 1790s using James Wyatt as his architect or for Fonthill Abbey itself which was begun around 1799.

The contents of Fonthill Abbey were dispersed in a succession of sales which began in 1823, when some 2000 lots of furniture, pictures and objects were auctioned off, together with some 20,000 books ( cf. The Unique and Splendid Effects of Fonthill Abbey... which will be Sold by Auction by Mr Phillips at the Abbey on Tuesday 23rd of September 1823 and Seven following Days and on Thursday 11th October and Four following days; Catalogue of Valuable Paintings, Magnificent Cabinets & Splendid Furniture from Lansdown Tower... by Messrs English... Milson Street.. Jan 4 1841 & Following Days; Catalogue of the Pictures, Works of Art and Decorative Objects, The Property of His Grace the Duke of Hamilton... Christie, June 17.. 1882).The descriptions in these catalogues make it sadly difficult to identify even the most distinctive pieces and the present lot cannot be identified with certainly in any of these sales.