A Regency brass-mounted rosewood, ebonised and parcel-gilt writing table, circa 1810, attributed to Marsh and Tatham

the top with a leather-lined writing-surface above a pair of cedar and mahogany-lined frieze drawers, the reverse with two simulated drawers, with countersunk brass castors, re-decorated

Probably supplied to Cropley Ashley-Cooper, 6^th Earl of Shaftesbury (1768-1851) for St. Giles’s House, Dorset and thence by descent to Anthony Ashley-Cooper, 10^th Earl of Shaftesbury (1938-2005).
Sold, The Property of the Earl of Shaftesbury, Christie's London, 4th July 2002, lot 160 (£36,000)
Acquired from Partridge Fine Art, London.

Partridge Fine Arts, Furniture, Silver and Works of Art, 2004, no. 43, p. 100.

In excellent restored condition. With some minor chips and losses to the ebonised stretcher.
"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 form of this elegant table with entwined lion monopodia, may be compared to those of a writing-table that is likely to have been designed around 1808 for Southill, Bedfordshire. The latter is likely to have been executed under the direction of Charles Heathcote Tatham (d. 1842), architect and author of Etchings representing Fragments of Antique Grecian and Roman Architectural Ornament, 1806, and supplied by William Marsh and Thomas Tatham (F.J.B. Watson, Southill, A Regency House, London, 1951, fig. 22; P. Macquoid and R. Edwards, The Dictionary of English Furniture, rev. ed., 1954, vol. III, p. 262, fig. 54; and G. Jackson-Stops, 'Southill Park', Country Life, 28 April 1994, p. 66, fig. 10).

A related trestle pattern of 1804 featuring inturned monopodia featured in one of George Smith's seat patterns in A Collection of Designs for Household Furniture, 1808, pl. 51.