Lot 151
A pair of George III satinwood, tulipwood banded and painted demi-lune pier tables in the manner of Seddon, Son & Shackleton
20 November 2013, 14:00 GMT
London, New Bond StreetSold for £18,750 inc. premium
Looking for a similar item?
Our specialists can help you find a similar item at an auction or via a private sale.
Find your local specialistAsk about this lot
Client Services (UK)
Shipping (UK)
A pair of George III satinwood, tulipwood banded and painted demi-lune pier tables
in the manner of Seddon, Son & Shackleton
Inlaid with boxwood and ebonised lines, the rounded rectangular tops each painted with a basket of fruit flanked by cornucopiae filled with flowers within floral and leaf decorated borders, above plain friezes on square tapering legs headed by paterae with trailing flowers on spade feet, each 112cm wide, 50cm deep, 83cm high, (44" wide, 19.5" deep, 32.5" high). (2)
Inlaid with boxwood and ebonised lines, the rounded rectangular tops each painted with a basket of fruit flanked by cornucopiae filled with flowers within floral and leaf decorated borders, above plain friezes on square tapering legs headed by paterae with trailing flowers on spade feet, each 112cm wide, 50cm deep, 83cm high, (44" wide, 19.5" deep, 32.5" high). (2)
Footnotes
The above lot utilizes sophisticated painted decoration associated with the firm of Seddon, Son & Shackleton. In around 1790 George Seddon took his son-in-law Thomas Shackleton into the business and they traded as Seddon Son and Shackleton from 150 Aldersgate Street where at times the firm employed over four hundred men. The firm adopted different names, depending on which family members were working for the business; they were styled Seddon, Son and Shackleton for only eight years, from 1790 until Thomas Shackleton (George Seddon's son-in-law) left to go into partnership with George Oakley in 1798. Painted furniture from the Seddon, Son and Shackleton period is known to have been a feature of the firm's output thanks to two surviving documented commissions, Hauteville House, St Peter Port, Guernsey in the 1790s and Bridwell House, Dorset (1792-3). The Hauteville commission included a set of eighteen painted satinwood elbow chairs with three matching window seats (see 'A Catalogue and Index of old Furniture and Works of Decorative Art, Pt III', M. Harris and Sons, p.386-9, and the Bridwell commission, a satinwood card table and pair of Pembroke tables, see C.Gilbert and G.Beard The Dictionary of English Furniture Makers 1660-1840, 1986, pp.796-7. A satinwood marquetry and polychrome decorated secretaire cabinet re-constructed from an important cabinet by Seddon, Son & Shackleton reputedly for Charles IV of Spain with panels attributed to William Hamilton R.A sold Bonhams, London 7 March 2012, lot 133. It is difficult to piece together a picture of the Seddon house style in the 18th century as few labelled or documented pieces are known. It was remarked by Sophie von La Roche during her visit to Seddon's showroom in 1786, that Seddon was, 'constantly devising new forms'. Christopher Gilbert discusses the firms output in the manifestation of Seddon, Sons & Shackleton in his article for Furniture History, London, 1997, pp.1-29.