Bonhams 1793 : A George V Ceylon satinwood enclosed dressing tablethe silver fittings by Mappin & Webb, London 1921-22the cabinet by George Betjeman & Sonssecond quarter 20th century

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24 Jan 2013 10:00 EST New York
English Furniture, Paintings & Decorative Arts
Back to auction 20532

Property from a Private Mid-Atlantic Collection

A George V Ceylon satinwood enclosed dressing table
the silver fittings by Mappin & Webb, London 1921-22
the cabinet by George Betjeman & Sons
second quarter 20th century

The rectangular hinged top enclosing an interior fitted with three mirrored plates, above two hinged compartments and two glass slides, a fitted drawer and two short drawers, the underside with monogrammed plaque G B & S, the interior containing various silver-covered bottles, silver clothes and hair brushes, etc.
height closed 38in (96.5cm); height open 57 1/2in (146cm); width 35in (89cm); depth 22 1/2in (57cm)

Estimate:

US$ 8,000 - 12,000
£5,300 - 7,900
€6,200 - 9,300

Footnotes

George Betjeman & Sons were perhaps the largest fancy goods manufacturers in the world at the end of the 19th and start of the 20th centuries. Supplying luxury goods traders such as Asprey, it is stated (The Stationery Trades Journal, 31st January 1894) "that Betjeman's is one of the few firms possessing the necessary machinery for putting a log of wood in at one end of the factory and turning it out as a highly-finished dressing case at the other, every portion of it being manufactured by them."

Their large works in Pentonville Road is listed as making a bewildering array of objects, often desk and dressing table accessories. The founder of the company, George Betjeman, invented the tantalus spirit stand, as well as many other patented devices. (source: John Culme, The Directory of Gold and Silversmiths, Woodbridge, 1987, Vol.1, pp. 43-44)

Category: Furniture / English Furniture and Works of Art

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