George IV Period Gillows Simulated Rosewood & Brass Inlaid Leather Library Bergere Armchair

Fine quality early 19th Century (c.1825) English George IV period simulated faux rosewood and brass inlaid library bergère armchair attributed to Gillows of Lancaster, which has all the signs of the famous cabinet making firm Gillows of Lancaster and London. Upholstered in a hand dyed tan leather and of imposing scale, its sophisticated lines suggest that it was part of an important commission. The chair has a spoon shaped back and a cushion seat but the most eye-catching elements of the piece are the simulated rosewood ground and the wonderful brass inlay. The front rail has a panel of extremely fine scrollwork of large scale inlaid upon it but even more unusual is the use of inlaid wheel or roundel designs in the arm supports. These symbols are not part of the usual run of regency design tropes that makers might choose to adapt for a variety of projects and so it is likely that they were of some sort of significance to whoever ordered this chair, perhaps in a heraldic context or as the symbol of a club or society. The chair has a number of features which are associated with the work of the firm of Gillows of Lancaster and London. The reeded front legs are something of a Gillows staple and though other firms also made use of this design, the particularly fine execution of the examples on the present piece certainly supports an attribution. In addition, the overall shape of the chair is familiar from other documented Gillows examples. See for example a pair of chairs believed to have been made by the London branch of the firm for the Marquess of Londonderry and sold at Christie's on the 20th of November 2008, lot 155, for £30,000 in the Dealing in Excellence sale-a celebration of the stock of the great dealers Hotspur and Jeremy. These chairs are of the same wonderful sculptural form as the present example but the decoration is carved rather than inlaid. Due to the workman's stamp Hh on those examples it has been suggested that they were made by the London branch of the firm and it may well be the case that our piece also comes from that workshop. Other closely related bergeres were supplied to the Viscounts Camrose for Hackwood Park (sold at Christie's 20th-22nd of April 1998, lot 55, for £84,000) and another pair supplied to the Davison family for Beamish Park in County Durham were sold by order of Mrs Shafto at Christie's in 1995. This fine bergere leathered armchair is a variation on these grand and important documented Gillows commissions and is a highly effective and desirable piece of furniture that will enhance any collection.