A SET OF FOUR GEORGE III GILTWOOD OPEN ARMCHAIRS, ATTRIBUTED TO JOHN

A SET OF FOUR GEORGE III GILTWOOD OPEN ARMCHAIRS ATTRIBUTED TO JOHN LINNELL, CIRCA 1775 Upholstered in embroidered yellow silk 101cm high, 67cm wide, 72cm deep Provenance: Possibly Sotheby's, London, 6 July 1962, lot 128 A distinguished private collection, acquired from Partridge, London, 1999 Anonymous sale, Christie's, New York, 24 October 2017, lot 58 Sold in these rooms, A View from Across the Atlantic: The Pamela Ford Collection, 18th November 2025, Lot 52 (£70,000 excl. BP) These armchairs, of impressive scale, relate loosely to a suite of seat furniture traditionally attributed to the father and son partnership of William and John Linnell of Berkeley Square, London. The extensive suite of at least seventeen armchairs, two settees and a smaller settee was almost certainly supplied to the 2nd Earl of Halifax (d. 1771) for Stansted Park, Sussex, and relates to a design by John Linnell (d. 1796) now in the collection of the Victoria and Albert Museum (acc. no. E78-1929). Other features reinforce the attribution to Linnell, in particular the tied-ribbon cresting and the drapery swags to the legs are motifs borrowed directly from fashionable Louis XVI furniture and correspond to a design by the French architecte-decorateur J. B. Delafosse (d. 1889) for whom Linnell seems to have had a particular affinity. Here the swags are carved and integral with the turned legs, but Linnell also rendered similar swags in ormolu. In addition, the straight back leg and squared arm terminal feature in other seat furniture and designs that are associated with Linnell. A chair sharing many features with the present lot but with a shaped rather than square back was sold at Christie's, New York, 8 October 2015, lot 153 ($6,250 incl. BP). The chairs offered here were sold from a distinguished private collection, Christie's, New York, 24 October 2017, lot 58 ($162,500 incl. BP). Another pair of the same pattern and formerly in the collection of Sir William Miles Aykroyd, 3rd Bt (d.2007) at Buckland Newton Place, Dorset, was sold from the collection of the eminent furniture historian Philip Hewatt-Jaboor (d.2022) at Christie's, London, 8 February 2024, lot 70 (£23,940 incl. BP). Condition Report: Good, structurally secure with dents marks and scratches and shrinkage cracks due to age and use. Re-gilt, with minor wear, flaking and very small chips to corners and edges. The upholstery is clean and the webbing tight. The corner struts probably replaced, previously with screwed corner blocks to the front joints. Chair B with small loss to moulding on back right leg. Chair D with small cut in repairs to bottom edge of back seat rail. Overall a good and scarce set of four generous armchairs in ready-to-use condition. Condition Report Disclaimer, A SET OF FOUR GEORGE III GILTWOOD OPEN ARMCHAIRS, A SET OF FOUR GEORGE III GILTWOOD OPEN ARMCHAIRS ATTRIBUTED TO JOHN LINNELL, CIRCA 1775 Upholstered in embroidered yellow silk 101cm high, 67cm wide, 72cm deep Provenance: Possibly Sotheby's, London, 6 July 1962, lot 128 A distinguished private collection, acquired from Partridge, London, 1999 Anonymous sale, Christie's, New York, 24 October 2017, lot 58 Sold in these rooms, A View from Across the Atlantic: The Pamela Ford Collection, 18th November 2025, Lot 52 (£70,000 excl. BP) These armchairs, of impressive scale, relate loosely to a suite of seat furniture traditionally attributed to the father and son partnership of William and John Linnell of Berkeley Square, London. The extensive suite of at least seventeen armchairs, two settees and a smaller settee was almost certainly supplied to the 2nd Earl of Halifax (d. 1771) for Stansted Park, Sussex, and relates to a design by John Linnell (d. 1796) now in the collection of the Victoria and Albert Museum (acc. no. E78-1929). Other features reinforce the attribution to Linnell, in particular the tied-ribbon cresting and the drapery swags to the legs are motifs borrowed directly from fashionable Louis XVI furniture and correspond to a design by the French architecte-decorateur J. B. Delafosse (d. 1889) for whom Linnell seems to have had a particular affinity. Here the swags are carved and integral with the turned legs, but Linnell also rendered similar swags in ormolu. In addition, the straight back leg and squared arm terminal feature in other seat furniture and designs that are associated with Linnell. A chair sharing many features with the present lot but with a shaped rather than square back was sold at Christie's, New York, 8 October 2015, lot 153 ($6,250 incl. BP). The chairs offered here were sold from a distinguished private collection, Christie's, New York, 24 October 2017, lot 58 ($162,500 incl. BP). Another pair of the same pattern and formerly in the collection of Sir William Miles Aykroyd, 3rd Bt (d.2007) at Buckland Newton Place, Dorset, was sold from the collection of the eminent furniture historian Philip Hewatt-Jaboor (d.2022) at Christie's, London, 8 February 2024, lot 70 (£23,940 incl. BP). Provenance:, A View from Across the Atlantic: The Pamela Ford Collection, Condition Report:, Good, structurally secure with dents marks and scratches and shrinkage cracks due to age and use. Re-gilt, with minor wear, flaking and very small chips to corners and edges. The upholstery is clean and the webbing tight. The corner struts probably replaced, previously with screwed corner blocks to the front joints. Chair B with small loss to moulding on back right leg. Chair D with small cut in repairs to bottom edge of back seat rail. Overall a good and scarce set of four generous armchairs in ready-to-use condition. Condition Report Disclaimer

Estimate:£40,000

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