L12307

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Lot 16
  • 16

A suite comprising eight Italian carved giltwood armchairs and two settees en suite, Roman mid 18th century

Estimate
200,000 - 300,000 GBP
bidding is closed

Description

  • gilding, walnut , pine
  • each armchair 119cm. high, 70cm. wide, 56cm. deep; 3ft. 10¾in., 2ft. 3½in., 1ft. 10in; Settee 116cm. high, 201cm. wide, 54cm. deep; 3ft. 9¾in., 6ft. 7¼in., 1ft. 9¼in.
each armchair with a cartouche shaped drop-in padded back above downscrolled arms and serpentine drop-in seat above a pierced seat-rail on cabriole legs terminating in scrolled feet, the whole carved with rocaille, flowers, leaves, scrolls and acanthus; the backs undecorated, each settee with a sepentine padded drop-in back above serpentine padded drop-in seat on eight cabriole legs the frame similarly carved to the armchairs; some armchairs numbered in black ink: 2, 4?, 5, 6, 7,9, 10, 11; some armchairs with their original webbing

Provenance

An aristocratic Private Collection, seen in situ in a photograph, circa 1900, reproduced in fig.1

Literature

Enrico Colle, Il Mobile rococo in Italia, Milan, 2003, p.158, illustrated.

Condition

In overall very good original condition. Rare large number of armchairs beautiful with carving and design. Hairline construction cracks commensurate with age and normal useage. Evidence of old minor worm which appears to be no longer active. The support to one armchair has been restored but this is well executed and hardly noticable. On another chair there has been an old minor restoration to the front right knee which has been touched up with gilt paint which is darker than the rest and would benefit from some regilding. All the chairs have been reblocked. There are some very minor loses to the bottom of some of the feet due to insect damage. There are also some very minor restorations to some of the carved sections which have been touched up. One of the armchairs is a different gilding to the rest and the rear left leg has been broken in the past and would benefit from some attention and on the same armchair there are cracks down the side-rail where there has been a break where it joins the arm which would benefit from some attention. Construction cracks to the joints of the settees which are hardly noticeable and commensurate with age. Five chairs have their original webbing. The back-rail and the rear supports of one settee is later. On one of the settees the top rail has been strengthened with iron brackets.
"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."

Catalogue Note

Comparative Literature:
G. Lizzani, Il Mobile Romano, Milan, 1974, p. 105, figs.180 and 182.
Enrico Colle, Il Mobile rococo in Italia, Milan, 2003, p.157.

It is rare to find such a large and exhuberantly carved set with its original gilding such as the offered suite. The virtuosity of the carving and elegant proportions and comprehensive number of pieces of this suite make it one of the largest and finest examples of Roman rococo seat furniture to appear in recent years.

The armchairs have their original inventory numbers which would seem to indicate that the set originally comprised twelve armchairs and two settees. Armchairs on such a grand scale were usually displayed along the walls of large salons in Roman palaces.They were usually upholstered in red silk velvet with gold or silver threads. Since they were placed against a wall, the back were often painted in ochre and uncarved.

Armchairs of similar design still today adorn resplendent Roman palaces, for example, Palazzo Ruspoli (see Carlo Pietrangeli, Palazzo Ruspoli, Rome, 1992, pp. 13, 133-134 and 287), for related Roman giltwood rococo seat furniture, which show similarly carved rocaille motifs and flower sprays on the seat-backs and a pierced seat-rail. Lizzani, op. cit., p. 105, figs.180, illustrates a related armchair with similar shaped back and carving in the Raccolta Instituto Romano di San Michele. Other examples are to be found in Palazzo Doria Pamphilj (Galleria degli Specchi), Palazzo Corsini, Palazzo Odescalchi and Palazzo Massimo. A further example was in the collection of the Earl of Rosebery, Mentmore Towers, sold in these Rooms, 15th December 1999, lot 91. 

Furthermore, Colle op. cit., p. 157, illustrates a similar armchair with unusually shaped backs and delicate carving, sold in these Rooms, lot 230,13th December 2000, reproduced here in fig. 2. Colle states op. cit., that this armchair  perhaps was part of the series provided in 1770 by Pietro Antonio Sagripante for the Throne Room, then called "the tapestry room" at the Pinacoteca  Capitolina in Rome.