Guinness heirlooms come for sale at Elveden Hall
24 August 2023 On-premises auctions in grand English country houses, once relatively common events, are now a rare occurrence. They cost a lot to stage and the ‘golden’ era of ancestral homes with groaning attics and stores is over. However, there are exceptions to the rule.
The Right Honourable Earl of Iveagh's mahogany boardroom armchair c.1890, estimated at £1000-1500 at Sworders’ auction at Elveden Hall.
Art and antiques from Edward Guinness, the 4th Earl of Iveagh will be offered by Sworders at the family’s stately home Elveden Hall in the country of Suffolk on September 14.
The sale of 440 lots will include inherited furnishings with Guinness family connections from several properties including Elveden and Farmleigh in Dublin (sold in 1999 to the Irish state).
Lord Iveagh is selling the collection to raise funds for house repairs.
Elveden has not been a family home for nearly 100 years (the family live in a smaller property on the estate) and today is mainly used as a filming location for TV shows and movies including The Crown and Stanley Kubrick's Eyes Wide Shut.
Rarely open to the public, the India-styled interiors are spectacular – created for former resident Duleep Singh (1838-93), the last Maharajah of the Sikh Empire. Living in England in ‘gilded cage’ exile, purchased the house and its 16,000 acres in 1863.
Sworders’ auction will be held in the oak-paneled dining room with a pre-auction reception staged in the Mughal-inspired main hall.
Many of the items for sale were bought by Edward Cecil Guinness (1847–1927), the 1st Earl of Iveagh and Viscount Elveden. The great-grandson of Arthur Guinness (the creator of the famous brew), he was managing director of the Guinness partnership from 1868. When in October 1886, Guinness became a public company, he became the richest man in Ireland,
A noted collector, his London home at Hyde Park Corner, Farmleigh in Dublin’s Phoenix Park (bought in 1873) and later Elveden Hall (bought in 1893) all became vehicles for his taste.
The current Lord Iveagh comments: “My family has either specially commissioned or bought items to live at our various households in England and Ireland. In particular, Edward Cecil and Adelaide Guinness, my great-great grandparents, amassed items to furnish their homes… with the quality and materials that just can’t be matched today. Supply is now dwindling, and, in the era of fast, cheap and throwaway furniture, they may never be available again…”
The sale is the second held on the premises at Elveden Hall: Christie’s staged a £6m four-day auction here in 1984.
A Louis XV floral marquetry bombe commode with Breccia marble top with an estimate of £8000-£12,000 at Sworders’ auction at Elveden Hall.
A bust of Sir Arthur Edward Guinness (1840-1915) by Sir Thomas Farrell (1827-1900), estimated at £5000-£8000 at Sworders’ auction at Elveden Hall.
A set of six late 19th century giltwood open armchairs of Chippendale design and a matching sofa, estimated at £3000-5000 at Sworders’ auction at Elveden Hall.
Elements of a late 19th century Minton toilet set decorated with floral bouquets, estimated at £300-300 at Sworders’ auction at Elveden Hall.
An original drawing for a Guinness advertisement by John Thomas Young Gilroy (1898-1985), estimated at £400-600 at Sworders’ auction at Elveden Hall.