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WILLIAM DE MORGAN (BRITISH, 1839-1917)'Fan and Thistle - Persian-style' pattern tile panel, 1882-1888Four 8-inch tiles, the pattern covering two tiles, decorated and glazed in vibrant colours with stylised fan shaped flowers and thistle flowers with long serrated leaves. Framed.Tile panel: 81 cm x 20.2 cm (four 8 x 8 in tiles)With frame: 98 cm x 37 cmEach tile impressed on reverse with oval mark De Morgan Merton Abbey.Footnotes:LiteratureJon Catleugh, William De Morgan Tiles, Trefoil Books, London, 1983, p. 102, fig. 140 (design drawing illustrated) and p. 79 ('Fan'...is the richest of all the flower-and-leaf designs which have an Islamic origin.')Martin Greenwood, The Designs of William De Morgan, Richard Dennis/William E. Wiltshire III, 1989, p. 144, nos. 643 & 644 (designs illustrated)Margaret S. Frederick, ed., Evelyn & William De Morgan: A Marriage of Arts & Crafts, Yale University Press, 2023, p. 125, fig. 10.8 (black and white contemporary photograph of the master bedroom fireplace, showing William De Morgan's 'Fan and thistle' tiles, at Glessner House, Prairie Avenue, Chicago. Apparently, the tiles were selected for the house in around 1887)This lot is subject to the following lot symbols: ** VAT on imported items at a preferential rate of 5% on Hammer Price and the prevailing rate on Buyer's Premium.For further information on this lot please visit Bonhams.com

UNITED KINGDOM. Elizabeth II, 1952-2022. Gold 5 pounds, 2017. Royal Mint. Proof. Celebrating the Centenary of the House of Windsor. Originally named the House of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha it was changed to House of Windsor (from Windsor Castle) in 1917 because of anti-German sentiment in the United Kingdom following World War I.Fifth crowned head of Elizabeth II facing right; JC below; ELIZABETH II · D · G · REG · FID · DEF · 5 POUNDS ·. Design by Jody Clark. / The Round Tower of Windsor Castle within oak wreaths, crown above, date below; 'CENTENARY OF THE HOUSE OF WINDSOR' around. Design by Timothy Noad. Edge milled.Reference: S-L49Mintage: 434.Diameter: 38.61 mm.Thickness: 2.89 mm.Weight: 39.9403 g. (AGW=1.1777 oz.)Composition: 917.0/1000 Gold.PLEASE NOTE: 6% Buyer Premium + VAT on this lot. Additional 6% fee charged on the Saleroom. Delivery cost will be added to your order.This lot is exempt from VAT. Payment can be made in EUR, CHF, or USD for an exchange fee. Please contact us to find out more.

Circa 6th century A.D. Corner piece with polished face; an old handwritten label to the side reading 'Stone from Ananiani's house Damascus May 1861'. See S., Ko?cielniak, K., ‘The Churches of Damascus according to Ibn ‘As?kir (d. 1176), The Destruction of the Church of St. John the Baptist by Caliph Wal?d I’, in Rocznik Orientalistyczny, Vol. LXIV, Z.1, 2011, pp.133-139, p.135. 182 grams, 82 mm (3 1/4 in.).Found Damascus, Syria, in May 1861. UK private collection. Property of a Nottinghamshire gentleman. With a late 19th century handwritten identification label attached.The Chapel of San Anania is a religious building located in a two-room crypt in Damascus, approximately four meters below the current street level, reachable by descending a staircase of twenty-three steps from the courtyard of a house that traditionally is attributed to Ananias, the Christian martyr who helped Saul (who became Paul the Apostle), baptised him and helped him hide and leave Damascus, after he had attracted the hatred of the Jews who had organised his killing. It is an apse of an Eastern Roman basilica from the 5th-6th century, cited several times by Arab historical sources such as al-Mussalabeh (of the Holy Cross), brought to light by the excavations carried out by the count Eustache de Lorey. [No Reserve]

Ray Majors - heavily modified 1977 Guild S-300 electric guitar, made in USA; Body: natural mahogany, various blemishes, scratches and scuffs throughout, various extra routs to house extra pickups and stud bushings including underneath the pickguard; Neck: light wear throughout including dings etc; Fretboard: ebony; Frets: good; Electrics: working, modifications including standard electronics with original neck and bridge pickup, later fitted Precision bass pickup to the middle position with extra jack fitted to top, also a Fernandez single pickup positioned between the bridge and stop bar and wired through to a third jack on the treble side of the body; Weight: 3.56kg; Overall condition: fair * This guitar showcases Rays experimental side and his love of modifications  

Six vintage gentleman's wrist and bracelet watches. Comprising; Sekonda, a 1970's stainless steel television-shaped watch on a later bracelet; Sekonda gold-plated and stainless steel round bracelet watch; Nelson Super Deluxe 21 Jewels round date wrist watch; another by Leeson with a blue dial; a Timex date, the black dial with a red stripe; and a 'House of Jobin' gold-plated round watch

Olive B Stephens - An original miniature etching designed for her Majesty The Queen's doll house. Accompanied by a letter from the Prime Minister 1925.Of local interest inspected at Frost & Reed Ltd, fine art publishers 10 Clare Street, Bristol. Limited edition of 120. With paper work and original envelopes. Art measures 3.1cm x 3.8cm. 

A COLLECTION OF 1920's ZINC AND CERAMIC COUNTRY HOUSE HORTICULTURAL FLOWER BED PLANT LABELS (13) All with sticks, one missing ceramic label. To include 'Lithospermum Heavenly Blue', and one green 'Campanula Carpatiea'.

A COLLECTION OF 1920's ZINC AND CERAMIC COUNTRY HOUSE HORTICULTURAL FLOWER BED PLANT LABELS (18) To include 'Stachyurus Praecox, China and Japan' dated 1923, 'Pyracantha Crenulata var. Rogersiana, W. China' 1923

A COLLECTION OF 1920's ZINC AND CERAMIC COUNTRY HOUSE HORTICULURAL FLOWER BED PLANT LABELS (16) To include 'Acer Saccharum, Sugar Maple' from Eastern North America and another 'Cypressus Lawsoniana, Triomphe de Boskoop', more labels from China, one as dated early as 1919, another from Armenia.

A COLLECTION OF 1920's ZINC AND CERAMIC COUNTRY HOUSE HORTICULURAL FLOWER BED PLANT LABELS (23) To include 'Populus Szechuanica' from Western China, 1923, another 'Ceanothus Veitchianus' from California, 1922.

A COLLECTION OF 1920's ZINC AND CERAMIC COUNTRY HOUSE HORTICULTURAL FLOWER BED PLANT LABELS (17) To include 'Virbunum Alnifolium, Hobble-bush' from North America. Another 'Berberis Verruculosa from 1922'

A COLLECTION OF 1920's ZINC AND CERAMIC COUNTRY HOUSE HORTICULTURAL FLOWER BED PLANT LABELS (17) All with sticks.

A COLLECTION OF 1920's ZINC AND CERAMIC COUNTRY HOUSE HORTICULTURAL FLOWER BED PLANT LABELS (18) To include 'Ceanothus Veitchianus, California' dated 1923, and another 'Clematis, Nelly Moser' dated 1923.

A COLLECTION OF 1920's ZINC AND CERAMIC COUNTRY HOUSE HORTICULURAL FLOWER BED PLANT LABELS (16) To include 'Camellia Japonica' from Japan. Another 'Ceanothus Gloire de Versailles' dated 1922. Many from North America. Another from China, 1922.

A COLLECTION OF 1920's ZINC AND CERAMIC COUNTRY HOUSE HORTICULTURAL FLOWER BED PLANT LABELS (18), To include some green examples, 'Betula Nigra, Red Birch, North America, 1929' another 'Tacoma Grandiflora, China & Japan 1923' and 'R. Ascot Brilliant X R. Arboretum Blood Red'.

A COLLECTION OF 1920's ZINC AND CERAMIC COUNTRY HOUSE HORTICULTURAL FLOWER BED PLANT LABELS (24)Including 'Decorum x Auckland', another 'Rhododendron Jacksonii'

The Leonardo Collection, Knightsbridge Collection, House of Valentina - 3 x boxed porcelain dolls - Lot includes a Leonardo Collection 'Baby Doll'. A House of Valentina 'On Our Travels' doll. A Knightsbridge Collection 'Adam' doll with certificate of authenticity. Largest doll is 50 cm in height. Dolls come with maker swing tags. Dolls appear in excellent condition. Boxes appear in very good condition. (This does not constitute a guarantee) (M)

Denys Fisher 1970's Haunted House game and Ravensburger Labyrinth board game, both in good condition.

Six doll's house dolls, two c.1860 and a male figure with moustache, two other bisque later figures and one small doll, damaged

Large selection of vintage and later teddy bears and dolls to include Harrods 2002, Princess House Doll Collection, The Disney Store Winnie the Pooh etc

A 1960's Danish style teak coffee table, of tapered rectangular shape, on turned legs, stamped Lane182w x 41d x 34h cmOverall condition is solid and usable. There are some marks to the top and it looks to have had a polish, but could be re-polished to look clean again. Under the top there looks to have been a square plaque removed, leaving a lighter square and there is various writing and a manufacturer's stamp in black. Joints are solid. Collected from a local house move.

An early 20th century chinoiserie decorated gramophone cabinet72w x 52d x 114h cmOverall the case is complete, but dirty with signs of use. The back has been drilled from insode to allow for a cable. The arm holding the lid up has been unscrewed at one end. Some of the decoration is raised plasterwork, which has chipped showing the plaster below. Designed to house a vintage gramophone from circa 1930's.

H.M Queen Elizabeth II; A handwritten Letter with envelope dated March 31st 1952, on Clarence House headed note paper to Kate Day, Her Majesty's Milliner; 'Dear Miss Day, I feel I must send my belated but sincere thanks for your kind letter of sympathy on the death of my father, from your staff and yourself, which i much appreciated. Owing to the (?) numbers of letters I have received, it has taken me a very long time to answer them all! It has been greatly strengthening to us to know that so many people have been thinking of us and sharing our sorrow. Yours sincerely Elizabeth R' The notepaper and envelope front with mourning black border, the envelope reverse with black cross and sealed with a green wax seal, the envelope addressed in ink with George VI stamp lower left, and inked 'ER' beside.  Provenance; Sent to Kate Day, Milliner to Queen Elizabeth in the 1950's and thence by family descent.

H.M Queen Elizabeth II; A handwritten Letter dated 2nd May 1958, on Windsor Castle headed note paper to Kate Day, Her Majesty's Milliner; 'Dear Miss Day, It was a most kind thought to send me flowers and I send you my grateful thanks. I am so very sorry to hear about the great difficulties for your business, and I do feel for you so much. In these days, it must be a continual struggle all the time, and anything extra may be too much to withstand. If it is any consolation, I do want you to know how very satisfied I have been with my hats and I have always enjoyed wearing them, even the funny ones! It does make all the difference if one can feel confident about one's hats, and that I can truthfully say, has always been the case with yours. You have always been so helpful and kind too, and so has Miss Sexton. Bobo, in confidence, also told me about Mr. Hartnell's sister - how very sad for him. I knew that he had heard bad news of someone, for he was very upset one day at Clarence House, when talking to Bobo's sister Ruby. Thanking you again so much for thinking of me with my cold - particularly sitting at home with Pall Mall winning The 2,000 Guineas! Yours Sincerely Elizabeth R' Norman Hartnell was a leading British fashion designer, who supplied many outfits for Her Majesty and Her lady's, including being commissioned to design the Coronation Gown. 'Bobo' refers to Margaret Macdonald, former Nanny, close friend and confidante to Her late Majesty.  Pall Mall was owned and bred by Her Majesty who won the 2000 Guineas at Newmarket on 30th April 1958 as a 20/1 outsider. The Queen unfortunately did not attend due to illness. Provenance; Sent to Kate Day, Milliner to Queen Elizabeth in the 1950's and thence by family descent.

Bedeutender Spätempire-Halbschrank, entworfen von Georg Ludwig Friedrich Laves für das königlich-hannoversche Schloss HerrenhausenMahagoni, furniert. Stuckierte, schwarz-grau gefasste und teilw. vergoldete Dekorationen sowie Applikationen aus dunkel patiniertem Zink. Gerader, querrechteckig angelegter Korpus auf flachem, gekanteten Zargensockel. In der gegliederten Front breiter Rolloverschluss sowie unterhalb zwei optisch entsprechende Türen, flankiert von eingestellten, mehrfach gegliederten Balusterhälften mit reliefierten Basen und Kapitellen sowie Blattmanschetten Akanthus und Lotus. Innen teilw. originale Auskleidung aus genagelten Zinktafeln. Leicht vorkragender oberer Stirnbereich mit applizierten von Weinreben umkränzten Vasenmotiven bzw. zentrale Rosette mit Palmetten. Gering überstehende Deckplatte mit umlaufendem Fries aus Eierstab. Rückseitig Inv.-Brandstempel HH mit Krone. Beiliegend Kunsthistorische Stellungnahme von Dr. Thomas Dann, Oktober 2013. H. 92 cm. 147 cm x 58,5 cm.Das Möbel war Bestandteil des Speisesaals, der anlässlich des dreiwöchigen Besuchs Georg IV., König des Vereinigten Königreichs Großbritannien und Irland und König von Hannover 1821 in Schloss Herrenhausen von dem Hofbaumeister Georg Ludwig Friedrich Laves umgestaltet wurde. Die Auskleidung mit Zinkblech lässt hierbei auf eine ursprüngliche Verwendung als Verwahrmöbel für Speisen oder Spirituosen schließen. Laves (1788-1864) zählt neben Karl Friedrich Schinkel und Leo von Klenze zu den bedeutendsten deutschen Architekten des Klassizismus. Das höfische Spätempiremöbel mit seinem hohen, repräsentativen Anspruch, zählt nach Aussagen des Laves-Spezialisten Dr. Thomas Dann "zu dem feinsten, was hannoversche Möbelkunst unter Laves hervorgebracht hat".Vgl. Abb. eines korrespondierenden Weinkühlers aus derselben Speisesaalausstattung in: Dann 2022, S. 156.Provenienz: Königliches Haus Hannover, ehemals Inventar Schloss Herrenhausen; Auktion "The Royal House of Hanover/Das Königshaus von Hannover", Sotheby's, Schloss Marienburg, 5.-15.10.2005, Unter zusätzliche Lose: Lot 5653.A significant mahogany veneered late Empire sideboard designed by Georg Ludwig Friedrich Laves for the Royal House of Hanover.Hannover. Um 1820.

Mussard, Robert -- Miniatur Portrait des Stadhouder Willem IV. von Oranien (1711, Leeuwarden - 1751, Den Haag) mit gepuderter Perücke, in rosa-geränderter Rüstung mit weißer Halsbinde und Spitzenjabot, dekoriert mit der blauer Schärpe des Hosenbandordens; vor Himmelhintergrund.Unten links signiert und datiert "R Mussard / 1753". Aquarell und Gummiarabikum auf Pergament. D. 4,9 cm. In vergoldetem Messingrahmen, rückseitig altes Etikett handbeschriftet "Guillaume V. Prince / d'Orange, Stadhouder / de Hollande". Karen E. Schaffers-Bodenhausen und Marieke E. Tiethoff-Spliethoff (The Portrait Miniatures in the Collections of the House of Orange-Nassau, Zwolle 1993, S. 98 Nr. 19) bilden eine hochovale Miniatur des Stadhouders von Mussard, unsigniert und auf Elfenbein gemalt, ab. Eine mit Initialen RM signierte Miniatur, queroval und auf Pergament gemalt, ist dort auf Seiten 25 und 26 besprochen und abgebildet. Jene befand sich damals in der Kunsthandlung Kugel, Paris. Eine weitere, querrechteckige und auf Elfenbein gemalte Version ohne Signatur wurde 1999 im Münchner Kunsthandel angeboten (abgebildet in Weltkunst, Nr. 11 vom 1. April 1999, S. 1806). Die kompositorisch ähnlichste Version (Position des rechten Arms) war eine querrechteckige Miniatur auf Elfenbein, unsigniert, versteigert bei Christie's in London am 22. November 1999, Los 42. - Wir bitten darum, Zustandsberichte zu den Losen zu erfragen, da der Erhaltungszustand nur in Ausnahmefällen im Katalog angegeben ist. - Please ask for condition reports for individual lots, as the condition is usually not mentioned in the catalogue.

Italienisch -- um 1810/1815. Miniatur Portrait des Bildhauers Antonio Canova (1756 - 1822) mit dunklem Lockenhaar, in nachdenklicher Pose, in brauner Jacke und weißer Weste mit schwarz gefüttertem, blauem Umhang, auf einem Holzstuhl sitzend. Aquarell und Gummiarabikum auf Elfenbein. 9,5 x 7,8 cm. In vergoldetem Metallrahmen.Antonio Canova gilt als bedeutendster Bildhauer des Klassizismus. Zu seinen bekanntesten Werken zählt sein Nacktbildnis Kaiser Napoleons als Friedensbringer Mars (von 1806), heute in Apsley House, London, und das Grabdenkmal der Erzherzogin Marie-Christine von Österreich, Herzogin von Sachsen-Teschen (von 1801/1805), in der Augustinerkirche, Wien.Provenienz: London, Kunsthandel D. S. Lavender (Antiques) Ltd. - Wir bitten darum, Zustandsberichte zu den Losen zu erfragen, da der Erhaltungszustand nur in Ausnahmefällen im Katalog angegeben ist. - Please ask for condition reports for individual lots, as the condition is usually not mentioned in the catalogue.

Sir Charles Bennet Lawes-Wittewronge, 2nd Bart., (British, 1843-1911): A carved white marble figural group of Venus and Cupid (Opus 2)The semi-clad goddess looking down on the standing winged putto, his face upheld and clutching his bow, her folded robe and jewelled belt draped across her raised left knee, her hair dressed in an elaborate curling chignon, her foot resting on a rustic outcrop, on square integral plinth base, signed to the front left corner LAWES and inscribed and dated to the right rear corner OP 2 1873, 157cm high, 72cm wide, 56cm deep overall approximatelyFootnotes:ExhibitedThe Royal Academy, Annual Exhibition, 1873, cat.1507.The entry for no. 1507 from the original 1873 Annual (now called Summer) Exhibition catalogue reads as follows:'1507 Female figure and Cupid...C.B Lawes'Sir Charles Bennet Lawes-Wittewronge, 2nd Baronet (1843–1911) was an English rower, athlete and sculptor. Educated at Eton and Trinity College, Cambridge, Charles married his first cousin Marie Amelie Rose Fountaine. After initial successes in the fields of rowing and running whilst at University, he changed direction in the later 1860's, training as a sculptor under the renowned British sculptor John Henry Foley RA (1818-1874) who was a favourite of Queen Victoria's and who made the model for the statue of Albert for the Albert Memorial. Later he trained under the German sculptor Hugo Hagen (1818-1871) before returning to London where he rented a studio in Chelsea. In 1872, he exhibited his work 'Girl at the Stream', the first of twelve exhibited works, at the Royal Academy with later works including 'Daphne' in 1880 and 'The Panther' in 1880. During this period he also won an honourable mention at the Paris Universal Exhibition in 1878. In 1882 he was involved in an infamous libel case with the magazine Vanity Fair concerning the authorship of another sculptor's work and in 1889 he took up competitive cycling. Later in 1901 along side Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, he judged the world's first major bodybuilding competition organised by Eugene Sandow at London's Royal Albert Hall in 1901. In 1906, five years before his death, Laws returned to the field of sculpture, when he executed a bronze group entitled 'The Death of Dirce' based on the Farnese Bull. This work was subsequently realised in more monumental form in marble where it was exhibited at the Franco-British Exhibition in 1908, the same year that as the bronze group was being exhibited at the Royal Academy. The marble is now in the grounds at Rothamsted. After the Law's death, his widow offered the bronze version to the National Gallery of British Art (later the Tate Gallery) where it was installed on an outside entrance where it still stands today.This lot is subject to the following lot symbols: TPTP For auctions held in Scotland: Lots will be moved to an offsite storage location (Constantine, Constantine House, North Caldeen Road, Coatbridge ML5 4EF, Scotland, UK) and will only be available for collection from this location at the date stated in the catalogue. Please refer to the catalogue for further information.For all other auctions: Lots will be moved to an offsite storage location (Cadogan Tate, Auction House Services, 241 Acton Lane, London NW10 7NP, UK) and will only be available for collection from this location at the date stated in the catalogue. Please note transfer and storage charges will apply to any lots not collected after 14 calendar days from the auction date.For further information on this lot please visit Bonhams.com

A fine George III satinwood, yew wood, palmwood crossbanded, sycamore and marquetry commode attributed to Ince and Mayhew (active 1758/9-1804)Circa 1780The moulded rectangular top centred by a yew wood oval medallion bordered by paterae-filled lappets and an outer band of stylised laurel leaves on a calamander ground within a broad satinwood crossbanding, the frieze drawer above a pair of cupboard doors with circular vase-filled medallions and flanked by leaf carved and fluted engaged columns, the sides with further vacant circular medallions, the slightly outset base-moulding on leaf carved and baluster turned feet, with palmwood crossbanding, pearl motif bandings and stringing throughout, traces of the original ebonised finish to the mouldings, 128.5cm wide x 63cm deep x 89cm high, (50 1/2in wide x 24 1/2in deep x 35in high)Footnotes:ProvenanceReputably previously from the collection of The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York.Acquired by Hotspur Ltd., London until sold at The Grosvenor House Antiques Fair, 10th June 1988, £70,000. A copy of this Hotspur invoice is available to view.The present lot relates to certain documented English Neoclassical commodes in the Louis XVI taste associated with the Soho, London cabinet making partnership Messrs. Ince & Mayhew. Their unifying characteristics are engaged fluted columns of a distinctive design to the front corners and ebonised mouldings to the tops and aprons. Arguably pre-eminent among these is an example almost certainly supplied by the firm to George Finch, 9th Earl of Winchilsea and 4th Earl of Nottingham for Burley-on-the-Hill, Rutland circa 1773-1775, sold Christie's, London, Simon Sainsbury: The Creation of an English Arcadia, 18 June 2008, lot 250. Aspects of the offered lot are paralleled on the Rutland commode comprising the almost identical engaged columns to the front corners, the profiling of the mouldings to the top and base and the use of an ebonised finish to the latter. Furthermore, the subtly concave front to the frieze drawer and doors is also featured on the Rutland commode. The Swallowfield Park commodes, sold Christie's London, Important English Furniture, 9 June 2005, lot 250, also represent an important pair of cabinets belonging to the aforementioned group which are of a serpentine configuration with marquetry including similar (possibly yew wood) laurel bound top medallions. These were possibly supplied to Charles, 1st and last Earl Whitworth (1752-1825) and by descent to his sister and thence by descent to Swallowfield Park (see also Lucy Wood op. cit., P. 213, fig. 201). Other related cabinets include a chest of drawers sold Sotheby's, Arts of Europe, 12 May 2015, lot 186 and a serpentine chest, sold Christie's London, The Collector: English Furniture, 22 May, 2019, lot 59. The oval medallion to the top of the offered commode features the use of yew wood, a timber identified as 'possibly unique to Mayhew and Ince among London cabinet makers of this date' (C. Gilbert, The Dictionary of English Furniture Makers, 1660-1840, Leeds, 1986, pp.'s 589-593). The firm supplied a veneered yew wood commode to Sir Brook Bridges of Goodnestone Park, Kent, that was exhibited in Treasures from Kent Houses, Royal Museum, Canterbury, September-October 1984, no. 57.The firm of Ince and Mayhew (active 1758/59-1804) were best known for their skilled innovative use of marquetry. Their earliest known commode decorated solely with marquetry dates from as early as 1764. They were also the first to produce semi-elliptical commodes through their involvement with the Countess of Derby's Etruscan commodes for which they were employed by Adam in 1774. Ince and Mayhew's mature Neoclassical marquetry depended upon a vocabulary of large scale motifs, such as urns, tripods and swags, 'coloured and boldly inlaid upon contrasting fields [and] subtle foliage inlaid in different woods'.Comparative LiteratureR. Edwards and P. Macquoid, The Dictionary of English Furniture, rev. edn., 1954, vol. II, p. 52, fig. 56L. Wood, The Lady Lever Art Gallery: Catalogue of Commodes, London, 1994, p. 213, fig. 201.H. Roberts and C. Cator, Industry and Ingenuity: The Partnership of William Ince and John Mayhew, 2022, p. 311, pl's. 165-166 and p. 326, pl's. 213-214.For further information on this lot please visit Bonhams.com

A set of twelve unusual hand painted 'Les Chasses de Compiegne' panoramic wallpaper panelsProbably early 20th century after designs by Antoine Charles Horace Vernet aka. Carle Vernet (French, 1758-1836) circa 1814 and originally colour block printed by Jacquemart et Bénard, ParisThe panels depicting scenes from an early 19th century stag hunt with elegant huntsmen and ladies on foot and horseback, with local peasants within a park and the surrounding countryside of a chateau or castle including the meet, the chase, a picnic and the kill, the rolls mostly numbered verso in pencil and with the tracers and painters' names along with tallies of the hours and days spent on each roll, each panel, 365cm x 122cm (12)Footnotes:ProvenanceWith Toynbee-Clarke Interiors, Mount Street, London, circa 2002.George Toynbee-Clarke founded the firm of Toynbee-Clarke Interiors, which he and his wife Daphne ran for 50 years — dealing for most of that time in antique wallpapers, and become famous in interior decorating circles around the worldTowards the end of the 18th century scenic wallpapers became fashionable, primarily in Europe and America. Block printed in a wide range of colours in France, many featured vast panoramic views, including of note 'Sauvages de la Mer du Pacifique,' (Savages of the Pacific) which was designed by the artist Jean Gabriel Charvet for the French manufacturer Joseph Dufour et Cie, showing the voyages of Captain Cook. This was the largest panoramic wallpaper of its time and made Dufour et Cie a great success, particularly in America where scenic papers were highly coveted.Other French manufacturers of panoramic, scenic and trompe l'oeil papers include Jacquemart & Bérnard, Arthur et Robert and Zuber et Cie . Zubers 1834 'Views of North America' now hangs in the diplomatic reception of The White House, Washington USA.The La Chasse de Compiègne' ('La Chasse aux Courses') series of scenic wallpaper panels were designed by the artist Carle Vernet in 1814 and depict a continuous hunting scene, including the meet, the hunt, a picnic and the kill. Printed by the prestigious wallpaper manufacturer Jacquemart & Bérnard, originally as a set of twenty-five panels, a set is now in the permanent collection of the Victoria and Albert Museum. The present lot, comprising twelve panels, is a unique free-hand painted version of this early 19th century printed set and from the pencil annotations including names of the various female 'paintresses', it is apparent that the set was painted in England or the USA, possibly for a high end decorating firm as special commission in the late 1920's /early 1930's.This lot is subject to the following lot symbols: TPTP For auctions held in Scotland: Lots will be moved to an offsite storage location (Constantine, Constantine House, North Caldeen Road, Coatbridge ML5 4EF, Scotland, UK) and will only be available for collection from this location at the date stated in the catalogue. Please refer to the catalogue for further information.For all other auctions: Lots will be moved to an offsite storage location (Cadogan Tate, Auction House Services, 241 Acton Lane, London NW10 7NP, UK) and will only be available for collection from this location at the date stated in the catalogue. Please note transfer and storage charges will apply to any lots not collected after 14 calendar days from the auction date.For further information on this lot please visit Bonhams.com

An early Victorian porcelain and ormolu mounted rosewood and tulipwood jewellery coffer on stand or coffre a bijoux attributed to Johann Martin Levien (1811-1871)Circa 1845, an identical model forms part of the Royal CollectionThe quarter veneered box superstructure mounted with five oval Sevres style porcelain plaques painted with a trio of putti and four pairs of putti, variously allegorical of viniculture, geography, astronomy, literature, music and fire making, each plaque set within a shaped C- and S-scroll, floral, foliate and rocaille panel mount, the superstructure comprised of a hinged top enclosing a velvet lined interior, above a cavetto leaf mounted panelled frieze, with canted floral clasped angles, over a re-entrant panel mounted hinged fall front enclosing two pigeon holes, two short mahogany lined tulipwood veneered drawers and one shelf, on a stand with a shaped apron mounted with four oval Sevres style painted porcelain plaques, each within a ribbon tied entwined twin oak leaf branch and oak leaf wreath mount, on keeled cabriole legs each headed by a floral swagged, paterae embedded scrolled corbel, beaded and acanthus clasped mount, with guilloche cast chutes terminating in scrolled foliate sabots, approximately: 54cm wide x 49cm deep x 110cm high, (21in wide x 19in deep x 43in high)Footnotes:An identical model of jewellery cabinet on stand (referred to as a coffre a bijoux in French), which is dated 1846 and is also, as with the present lot, attributed to Johann Martin Levien, forms part of the Royal collection, see www.rct.uk, RCIN 169.Although Levien is famed for his furniture executed in assorted exotic specimen woods, the latter of which were predominantly sourced from New Zealand, the vast majority of his work was in fact made from more traditional timbers. And this seems to have been the case for his output in French styles, particularly those in the Louis XV taste as with the offered model and the Royal comparable. The latter coffre a bijoux, along with the above example, are representative of the endorsement of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert, especially during the 1840s, for French-inspired pieces. The modified or updated Louis XV (or Rococo revival) style was evidently the one preferred by the Royal couple at that time. The porcelain plaques on both of these jewellery cabinets, which are painted in the Sèvres style with scènes galantes, birds and flowers within gilded cartouches, are almost certainly of English manufacture, for more information please refer to Victoria & Albert: Art and Love, 2010, London.Johann Martin LevienLevien was born in Barth on the Baltic coast, in what is today part of Germany. During his youth he was apprenticed to a cabinet maker there before travelling extensively across Europe. Following a trip to Brazil in 1837, Levien took the decision to set himself up there as both a cabinet maker and dealer responsible for making and selling pieces comprised of or incorporating a wide array of exotic timbers. However, the trade in this area evidently proved too competitive at that time in South America and represented too difficult a prospect for the young Levien. Consequently he chose a different course, specifically by boarding an English ship destined for New Zealand in 1840. By the end of the following year, Johann Martin had established a new furniture enterprise in New Zealand. Also, even in what was a relatively brief period, the diligent cabinet maker had greatly expanded his collection of exotic specimen wood samples. And although clearly prospering there, in 1843 Levien moved once again, but on this particular occasion to England. Interestingly he would never return to New Zealand thereafter.His career and renown progressed so rapidly in London, that in hardly any time after his arrival there, Levien was able to set up workshops at New Zealand Company on Broad Street, as well as develop the main room at this location as a space in which to properly display his firm's impressive 'wares'. His most notable clients tended to be affluent and aristocratic, whilst on occasion they were even members of the Royal family, tending to be either from the British or Prussian courts.Included among Levien's most important and illustrious patrons were figures such as: the Prussian ambassador, Christian Charles Josias von Bunsen (later Baron von Bunsen); Frederick William IV, King of Prussia; Baron von Stockmar, Baron Rothschild, Stewart Marjoribanks, Lord Ilchester, John Abel Smith, Lord Ingestre and of course most significantly Queen Victoria.In 1846 a Royal appointment was bestowed upon Levien and this honour was triumphantly announced by 'The London Sun' only a couple of weeks afterwards in the following way: 'We are happy to announce that Her Majesty has been pleased to confer upon Mr Levien the appointment of cabinet-maker to Her Majesty, in token of the very elegant specimens of workmanship made by him... Her Majesty the Queen was the first to patronise him. And he has secured great favour with Her Majesty by his workmanship, his skill, and his woods.'A mere two years later, in 1848, Johann Levien was awarded both a gold medal and a further Royal appointment, albeit on this occasion from the King of Prussia. In fact that year was an especially successful one for Levien's business since they were doing well enough to re-establish themselves at the exclusive and highly sought after 10 Davies Street address, located in Grosvenor Square. Subsequently Levien submitted four pieces to the famous 1851 Great Exhibition.Despite his prolific output and widespread renown, only a very small number of stamped or documented examples of Levien's furniture are known to exist or remain. This seems particularly odd considering the fact that by the time the cabinet maker retired and subsequently sold the firm in 1868, hundreds of works must have been produced in his name. Although it does seem extremely likely that the vast majority of his output was almost certainly left unsigned or unmarked, whilst a great deal of it also went on to be later sold by retailers such as R. Lucas & Co.This lot is subject to the following lot symbols: TP YTP For auctions held in Scotland: Lots will be moved to an offsite storage location (Constantine, Constantine House, North Caldeen Road, Coatbridge ML5 4EF, Scotland, UK) and will only be available for collection from this location at the date stated in the catalogue. Please refer to the catalogue for further information.For all other auctions: Lots will be moved to an offsite storage location (Cadogan Tate, Auction House Services, 241 Acton Lane, London NW10 7NP, UK) and will only be available for collection from this location at the date stated in the catalogue. Please note transfer and storage charges will apply to any lots not collected after 14 calendar days from the auction date.Y Subject to CITES regulations when exporting items outside of the UK, see clause 13.For further information on this lot please visit Bonhams.com

A Napoleon III porcelain and ormolu mounted mahogany, sycamore and marquetry two-tier gueridon or serviteur-fideleCirca 1865, in the Louis XV/XVI Transitional styleThe adjustable ratcheted and dished panel mounted upper tier with a pierced gallery inset with a porcelain plaque painted with a ribbon tied bunch of assorted flowers, on an octagonal column with moulded angles, the lower tier mounted with a trefoil-pattern gallery, the circular moulded base terminating in three downswept and tapering square section legs, each inlaid with a bellflower pendant, with scrolled acanthus cast sabots, the underside with an old printed paper label which reads: 'EARL OF ROSEBERY', the approximate diameter of the lower tier: 30cm; approximately 46cm wide x 46cm deep.Footnotes:ProvenanceThe offered lot was formerly housed at Mentmore Towers, Buckinghamshire, the historic home of the Earls of Rosebery.This serviteur fidele or two-tier gueridon subsequently sold Sotheby Parke Bernet & Co., Mentmore, 18-20 May 1977, Mentmore, Vol. I Furniture, lot 95, wherein it was described as being 19th century in the Louis XVI style. A porcelain mounted gueridon a double plateau, circa 1770, made by Roger Vandercruse dit La Croix (RVLC), which is of similar form and design to the present lot, appears illustrated in C. Roinet, Roger Vandercruse dit La Croix, 1727-1799, 2000, Paris, fig. 42, pp.'s 100-101. In fact this comparable example bears the Lacroix or RVLC stamp. It is notable that the Lacroix gueridon has a slightly larger lower tier, whereas both tiers on the offered lot are of the same proportions. The latter is also evidently the case with regards to another related porcelain mounted model, one executed and stamped by Carlin in circa 1776, which also features Ibid, fig. 43, pp.'s 100-101.This lot is subject to the following lot symbols: TPTP For auctions held in Scotland: Lots will be moved to an offsite storage location (Constantine, Constantine House, North Caldeen Road, Coatbridge ML5 4EF, Scotland, UK) and will only be available for collection from this location at the date stated in the catalogue. Please refer to the catalogue for further information.For all other auctions: Lots will be moved to an offsite storage location (Cadogan Tate, Auction House Services, 241 Acton Lane, London NW10 7NP, UK) and will only be available for collection from this location at the date stated in the catalogue. Please note transfer and storage charges will apply to any lots not collected after 14 calendar days from the auction date.For further information on this lot please visit Bonhams.com

A William IV or early Victorian 'Antiquarian' yew wood centre table of large proportions1830-1845, possibly after a design by Thomas WillementThe circular segmented radiating veneered top with a twin ebony and boxwood strung border and an ogee moulded edge, on three spiral twist turned columnar supports, the concave tripartite base carved with a gadrooned edge and surmounted to the centre by an egg-and-leaf moulded baluster urn finial, terminating in hipped scrolled acanthus, beaded and foliate carved S-scroll form feet with recessed ceramic castors, approximate diameter of the top: 162cm; approximate height: 73.5cm.Footnotes:An early Victorian walnut and ash centre table attributed to Thomas Willement (1786-1871), which is of similar design to the offered lot and has closely comparable spiral twist turned legs, sold The Pedestal, 24 April 2018, Fine Furniture and Objects, lot 199. Willement is renowned for his furniture, wallpaper, panelling and stained glass designs which were directly influenced by the medieval and English Renaissance periods. Another related table, also attributed to Willement, albeit one of rectangular outline, appears illustrated in Signed and Designed II, the Origin of Ornament, the Country Seat catalogue, p.2. In this Country Seat catalogue it is noted that this 'Antiquarian' style (or perhaps more accurately movement) arguably found most favour at two specific English country houses during the mid 19th century. These are Charlecote, Warwickshire, where Willement was employed for a time, and Mamhead, in Devon. For more information on the origins of this style one must refer to O. Jones, 'Grammar of Ornament', Elizabethan No. 1, pl. LXXXIII, along with the text written by J.B. Waring which accompanies it.Another major figure closely associated with 'Antiquarianism', and who worked during the same period of 1830-1850 was Richard Bridgens (1785-1846). Furthermore, a burr elm and elm oval table with a marquetry top, which is defined as being 'in the manner of Bridgens' and has almost identical large scale spiral twist turned legs, sold Christie's, London, 7 May 2008, Fasque: the Scottish Seat of the Gladstones, lot 138.This lot is subject to the following lot symbols: TPTP For auctions held in Scotland: Lots will be moved to an offsite storage location (Constantine, Constantine House, North Caldeen Road, Coatbridge ML5 4EF, Scotland, UK) and will only be available for collection from this location at the date stated in the catalogue. Please refer to the catalogue for further information.For all other auctions: Lots will be moved to an offsite storage location (Cadogan Tate, Auction House Services, 241 Acton Lane, London NW10 7NP, UK) and will only be available for collection from this location at the date stated in the catalogue. Please note transfer and storage charges will apply to any lots not collected after 14 calendar days from the auction date.For further information on this lot please visit Bonhams.com

A German third quarter 18th century Rococo giltwood overmantel mirror1750-1765, probably of South German originOf asymmetrical design, the later shaped bevelled plate within a shaped C-scroll, rocaille, bulrush, scrolled acanthus, floral and wheat sheaf carved surround, each side with intricately carved assorted seashell and ribbon entwined reeds, surmounted by a C-scroll, rockwork, foliate scrolled and shell carved cresting, approximately: 159cm high x 112cm wide.Footnotes:Designs for related asymmetrical German Rococo mirrors with characteristics and carved details in common with the present lot appear illustrated in H. Kreisel & G. Himmelheber, Die Kunst des Deutschen Mobels, Spatbarock und Rokoko, 1983, Munich, pl.'s 537, 538 and 745.This lot is subject to the following lot symbols: TPTP For auctions held in Scotland: Lots will be moved to an offsite storage location (Constantine, Constantine House, North Caldeen Road, Coatbridge ML5 4EF, Scotland, UK) and will only be available for collection from this location at the date stated in the catalogue. Please refer to the catalogue for further information.For all other auctions: Lots will be moved to an offsite storage location (Cadogan Tate, Auction House Services, 241 Acton Lane, London NW10 7NP, UK) and will only be available for collection from this location at the date stated in the catalogue. Please note transfer and storage charges will apply to any lots not collected after 14 calendar days from the auction date.For further information on this lot please visit Bonhams.com

A French late 19th century ormolu mounted rosewood and Vernis Martin serpentine meuble d'appui in the Louis XV styleStamped: 'T. Vincent'The shaped moulded marble top with projecting eared angles, above one long and two short scrolled acanthus and foliate C-scroll embellished panel mounts to the frieze incorporating a long central secret catch-activated and spring loaded frieze drawer, over a rocaille, C- and S-scroll, floral and acanthus cast cartouche shaped mount, encompassing a moulded door surround inset with a Vernis Martin panel decorated with an 18th century fete galante comprising two small groups of courtly figures dressed in elegant attire, enclosing two adjustable shelves, flanked to each side by a similar cartouche shaped panel mount, interspersed with four shell, oak leaf, scroll and acanthus mounted keeled angles, with chutes terminating in rocaille, C-scroll and foliate clasps, over a shaped ovolo apron terminating in four square section cabriole legs each mounted with acanthus scroll sabots, the carcass top stamped: 'T. VINCENT', the panelled back with an old paper label bearing a now illegible ink inscription, approximately: 132cm wide x 53cm deep x 119cm high, (51 1/2in wide x 20 1/2in deep x 46 1/2in high)Footnotes:The present lot is stamped: 'T. Vincent' but, although several cabinet makers with the surname of Vincent are documented as working in Paris during the 19th century, unfortunately their Christian names remain unknown. However, individuals or firms bearing the surname Vincent appear to have been based at the following locations from 1839 onwards; 24 rue des Tournelles; 17 rue de la Croix in 1844; rue Jean-Robert between 1846 and 1850; 65 rue des Gravilliers in 1853; 22 rue des Tournelles in 1856 and 16 on the same road from 1860. It is not obvious whether these addresses are successive ones relating to one specific ebeniste called Vincent, or they perhaps represent a mixture of different businesses operating more or less contemporaneously, D. Ledoux-Lebard, Le Mobilier Francais du XIXeme Siecle, 1989, Paris, p. 616.French 19th century meubles d'appui which incorporate Vernis Martin panels are often by or attributable to some of the most renowned cabinet makers of the period such as Henry Dasson, Joseph-Emmanuel Zwiener, Francois Linke, Paul Sormani and Louis-Auguste-Alfred Beurdeley. And although it is not clear which Vincent was responsible for making the offered lot, it is evident that this particular work is of very high quality, and thus was undoubtedly executed by a firm of some significant repute within this particular field. These cabinets tend to be in either the Louis XV or Louis XVI style, and the above is clearly in the former vein.Arguably the two most notable 19th century figures who produced some of the finest pieces of this type of furniture were Henry Dasson and Joseph-Emanuel Zwiener. Examples of such meubles d'appui which have sold at auction include: one by Henry Dasson, sold Christie's, London, 19 March 2009, 19th Century Furniture, lot 177; one by Zwiener sold Christie's, London, 14 November 2019, lot 563; another Zwiener version sold Christie's, New York, 17 October 2017, The Collector, lot 79; a model attributed to Zwiener, Christie's, New York, 24 October 2006, 19th Century Furniture, lot 491; another attributed to Zwiener, Christie's, New York, 22 October 2010, 500 Years: Decorative Arts Europe, lot 318; and also a further cabinet sold Christie's, New York, 15 April 2011, 500 Years: Decorative Arts Europe, lot 160.A Dasson grand meuble d'appui with an impressive central classical scene in Vernis Martin is illustrated in C. Mestdagh, l'Ameublement d'Art Francais, 1850-1900, Paris, 2010, fig. 282, p. 240 whilst a narrower example by Zwiener appears in D. Ledoux-Lebard, Le Mobilier Francais du XIXeme Siecle, 1989, Paris, p. 645.This lot is subject to the following lot symbols: TP YTP For auctions held in Scotland: Lots will be moved to an offsite storage location (Constantine, Constantine House, North Caldeen Road, Coatbridge ML5 4EF, Scotland, UK) and will only be available for collection from this location at the date stated in the catalogue. Please refer to the catalogue for further information.For all other auctions: Lots will be moved to an offsite storage location (Cadogan Tate, Auction House Services, 241 Acton Lane, London NW10 7NP, UK) and will only be available for collection from this location at the date stated in the catalogue. Please note transfer and storage charges will apply to any lots not collected after 14 calendar days from the auction date.Y Subject to CITES regulations when exporting items outside of the UK, see clause 13.For further information on this lot please visit Bonhams.com

An early Victorian walnut, ebonised, tulipwood crossbanded, sycamore and fruitwood marquetry breakfast tableCirca 1845, possibly retailed by Edward Holmes BaldockThe circular quarter veneered tilt-top inlaid with a tasselled ribboned border with alternating floral swags and ribbon tied floral pendants, on a flared and concave triform column inlaid with three tasselled ribbon tied floral and foliate pendant, with a shaped base terminating in scrolled feet, on recessed brass castors, 135cm wide x 134cm deep x 73cm high, (53in wide x 52 1/2in deep x 28 1/2in high)Footnotes:The form of the offered lot is based upon a design for a marquetry centre table, published by Richard Bridgens in his 1838 publication Furniture with Candelabra and Interior Decoration. Traditionally these distinctive marquetry tables are linked to Edward Holmes Baldock as several known examples bear his 'EHB' cypher including one produced for the Dukes of Buccleuch in 1840, now in the collection at Temple Newsam, C. Gilbert, Furniture at Temple Newsam and Lotherton Hall, Vol II, London, 1978, no. 395.Edward Holmes Baldock (1777-1845) is documented in London Trade Directories of the period in various capacities but first appears listed at 7 Hanway Street, London in 1805 described as a '...dealer in china and glass'. But by 1826 the various facets of the business included '...buying and selling, exchanging and valuing china, cabinets, screens, bronzes etc'. Baldock's business seems to have largely involved trading in foreign items and during the period, 1832-7, he was the purveyor of earthenware and glass to William IV and later purveyor of china to Queen Victoria from 1838 until his death. He is known to have repaired, remodelled and adapted furniture, often 18th century pieces, but he also designed furniture in an impressive array of styles.It is likely that there is a strong connection between the manufacture of such marquetry tables and the Blake family of inlayers. The fashion for this type of inlay was popularised by the Tottenham Court Road inlayer and 'buhl' manufacturer Robert Blake in the 1820s. By the 1840s the firm were trading as Blake, Geo. & Brothers, inlayers, etc' in Tottenham Court Road and Mount Street, Mayfair and were renamed George Blake & Co. sometime in the 1840's, see C. Gilbert, Pictorial Dictionary of Marked London Furniture, 1700-1840, Leeds, 1996, p.18; and M.P. Levy, Furniture History Society Newsletter, no. 158, May 2005.This lot is subject to the following lot symbols: TPTP For auctions held in Scotland: Lots will be moved to an offsite storage location (Constantine, Constantine House, North Caldeen Road, Coatbridge ML5 4EF, Scotland, UK) and will only be available for collection from this location at the date stated in the catalogue. Please refer to the catalogue for further information.For all other auctions: Lots will be moved to an offsite storage location (Cadogan Tate, Auction House Services, 241 Acton Lane, London NW10 7NP, UK) and will only be available for collection from this location at the date stated in the catalogue. Please note transfer and storage charges will apply to any lots not collected after 14 calendar days from the auction date.For further information on this lot please visit Bonhams.com

A George I japanned and engraved gilt brass mounted cabinet on a later standThe cabinet: 1710-1725, the stand probably late 19th/early 20th centuryDecorated with assorted figures, exotic birds, boats, pagodas, waterways, trees and foliage, the pair of doors enclosing an arrangement of ten drawers of various proportions, on a pierced and entwined S-scroll carved stand terminating in chamfered square section legs and moulded block feet, the back with old depository labels, the cabinet: 99cm wide x 51cm deep x 92cm, including the stand: 106cm wide x 55cm deep x 176cm high, (41 1/2in wide x 21 1/2in deep x 69in high)Footnotes:ProvenancePurchased Christie's, London, 8 June 2021, Julians Park and Six Private Collections, lot 177 in which sale it had been described as forming part of 'Property from an East Anglian Country House'.This lot is subject to the following lot symbols: TPTP For auctions held in Scotland: Lots will be moved to an offsite storage location (Constantine, Constantine House, North Caldeen Road, Coatbridge ML5 4EF, Scotland, UK) and will only be available for collection from this location at the date stated in the catalogue. Please refer to the catalogue for further information.For all other auctions: Lots will be moved to an offsite storage location (Cadogan Tate, Auction House Services, 241 Acton Lane, London NW10 7NP, UK) and will only be available for collection from this location at the date stated in the catalogue. Please note transfer and storage charges will apply to any lots not collected after 14 calendar days from the auction date.For further information on this lot please visit Bonhams.com

Frederic Leighton, 1st Baron Leighton P.R.A., R.W.S., known as Sir Frederic Leighton (British, 1830-1896): An important bronze figure of 'An Athlete Wrestling A Python'The posthumous cast published by Ernest Brown and Phillips at the Leicester Galleries, circa 1909On rectangular naturalistic base, signed, dated and numbered to one side F. LEIGHTON 1877 XVI, and inscribed to the base verso PUBD BY ERNEST BROWN & PHILLIPS AT THE LEICESTER GALLERIES, LEICESTER SQUARE, LONDON., brown patina, raised on a corresponding verde antico shallow square plinth, the bronze, 52cm high, 34m wide, 29cm deep, the marble plinth, 2.5vm high, 31cm wide, 22cm deepFootnotes:ProvenanceAcquired by Sunderland businessman, Paul Wayman, circa 1920Thence by family descent to the present owner. Although Leighton's fame as a renowned and celebrated painter was firmly established by the close of the third quarter of the 19th century, his success in sculptural terms did come until 1877 when he debuted his work 'Athlete Wrestling with a Python' at the Royal Academy. At the time of exhibition, it was also alternatively known to reviewers as 'An Athlete Strangling a Python' and 'An Athlete Struggling with a Python'. Whichever title its reviewers used, the finished work was held to great acclaim by both critics and the public and it catapulted Leighton to an international spotlight, later leading him to be proclaimed as 'the father of the English New Sculpture movement'. However, even though he only returned to the medium of sculpture on two subsequent occasions with his figures of 'Needless Alarms' and 'The Sluggard', both of which also proved highly successful, it was this sculpture that defined him for posterity to both critics and the public alike. Influenced by antique Greek sculpture and particularly 'The Laocoön' which formed part of the Vatican sculpture collection, the work represents a dramatic life and death scene of a classical male nude contending a python which is coiled around his left thigh and whose head is held at bay by his rigidly outstretched arm. Leighton's powerful and complex design commands a sense of suppressed energy and opposing forces momentarily balanced at a point of supreme tension. Although the realism of the figures anatomy was undoubtedly influenced by the sculptors of antiquity and the Renaissance including the work of Michelangelo, it also owned a debt to contemporary French sculpture which gave it a naturalism far removed from the uniform excesses of the neo-classical works produced by sculptors of a generation before.The model for the work was the professional sitter, Angelo Colorosi who was a leading figure in the Italian group of professional male models in the later 19th century. From contemporary interviews which Leighton made with the Studio magazine in the early 1890's, he confirmed he originally modelled the piece as a small-scale clay figure. However, the decision to turn it into a large-scale bronze was made on the encouragement of either the sculptor Jules Dalou (French, 1838-1901) who was in exile in London during that time or perhaps his contemporary, Alphonse Legros (French, 1837-1911). Assisted by Leighton's protégé, Thomas Brock (British, 1847-1922), the full-size model was first modelled in plaster and then cast in bronze by Cox & Son before it was exhibited at the Royal Academy. Its influence was also far reaching to the new generation of emerging New Sculpture artists including the young Brock, Hamo Thorneycroft, Edward Onslow Ford, George Frampton and interestingly, Alfred Gilbert, who's first work, a figure of 'Icarus' was coincidentally commissioned by Leighton. The sculpture's popularity was sealed when it was purchased on behalf of the Tate by the Chantrey Bequest in 1877 and it won the gold medal when it appeared at the prestigious Exposition Universelle in Paris the following year. A monumental marble replica of the sculpture was subsequently commissioned by the wealthy Danish brewer Carl Jacobsen for the museum bearing his name in 1882 and much of the carving for this work was done by the New Sculpture sculptor Frederick Pomeroy (British, 1856-1924) at the start of his career whilst still working in Brocks studios.Reductions of the bronze were posthumously published in edition casts of two similar sizes between 1903-1910. The first edition was published by Arthur Collie. The second edition was published by Ernest Brown and Phillips at the Leicester Galleries. In 1909, The Magazine of Art announced that the Leicester Galleries were to publish Leighton's 'An Athlete Struggling with a Python' in an unspecified limited edition. The offered lot appears to be a relatively early cast from this second edition.Frederic Leighton was the son of doctor and began his artistic education in Italy when he travelled to Rome and Florence in 1840 before becoming a pupil of Zanetti and meeting the American sculptor Hiram Powers. Moving to Frankfurt in 1844 he studied under the Nazarene painter E. J. von Steinle at the Institut Staedel before travelling to Brussels and Paris then finally returning to Rome in 1852.Surrounded by a group of ex-patriot writers and artists such as Thackeray, Browning and Gibson, he established his reputation as a painter with his work 'Cimabue's Madonna carried in Procession' which was exhibited at the Royal Academy in 1855 and subsequently purchased by Queen Victorian and Prince Albert for the Royal Collection.At the Royal Academy, Leighton progressed from ARA in 1864 and RA in 1868 to become President in 1878. At the same time in keeping with his growing stature he also began work on his house, no. 2 Holland Park Road (now the Leighton House Museum) in 1865. In public life, he was the only sculptor to receive a barony being created a baronet in 1886 and Baron Leighton of Stretton in 1896.Related LiteratureStephen Jones, Christopher Newall, Leonée Ormond, Richard Ormond, Benedict Read, Frederic, Lord Leighton, Eminent Victorian Artist, 1996, Harry N. Abrams, Inc, Pub. with The Royal Academy of Arts, London, p. 182-183.Peyton Skipwith, Sir Alfred Gilbert & The New Sculpture, British Sculpture 1850-1930, The Fine Art Society in association with Robert Bowman, p. 72-75.This lot is subject to the following lot symbols: ** VAT on imported items at a preferential rate of 5% on Hammer Price and the prevailing rate on Buyer's Premium.For further information on this lot please visit Bonhams.com

A George II walnut armchair1750-1755, either made by the firm of Wright and Elwick or executed by Paul SaundersThe shaped beaded and scrolled acanthus wrapped toprail carved with a central sunflower head, with volute scrolled and acanthus clasped arms, above a shaped, foliate scroll carved and channelled seat frame centred by a shell and acanthus spray, on bellflower pendant, scrolled and foliate adorned cabriole legs terminating in scroll feet, with an old metal plaque which reads: 'ANTIQUE FURNITURE FROM NORMAN ADAMS LTD., 8-10 Hans Road, London, SW3', approximately: 71cm wide x 74cm deep x 96cm high, (27 1/2in wide x 29in deep x 37 1/2in high)Footnotes:ProvenanceThe present lot was previously with Norman Adams Ltd., most likely during the 1970s and also into the early 1980s, from which period the metal plaque applied to its seat rail appears to date.The same model of chair sold Christie's, New York, 25 October 1986, Fine English and Continental Furniture, lot 54. Much more recently, an identical pair of these chairs (possibly part of the same set originally as the offered example) sold Christie's, London, 20 May 2021, The Collector, lot 32. It seems highly probable that the partnership of Wright and Elwick, active from 1748 and based in Wakefield, West Yorkshire, was responsible for the making of the present chair. Also it is interesting to note that Richard Wright, who formed one half of this impressive duo, had earlier on worked alongside Paul Saunders (1722-1771). The latter of whom was one of the most significant cabinet makers (and notably chair makers) who flourished in England during the 1750s and 1760s. Saunders also served as Tapestry Maker to His Majesty the King, whilst being based at 'The Royal Soho Manufactory, Soho Square'. During the early part of his career he operated with George Smith Bradshaw (1717-1812), who was then much like a business partner of his. Together they took over, circa 1755, the workshop of William Bradshaw, which was based at 59 Greek Street, also in Soho, and at the same time acquired the stock and pattern books already there. As a consequence of this, there are many similarities among the contemporaneous design elements and motifs employed by Wright and Elwick, Saunders and indeed Bradshaw as well.An example of this shared visual vocabulary is the acanthus carving to the legs of the above chair which appears, albeit slightly varied upon each individual model, on seat furniture produced by all three of the aforementioned makers. These include; a set of four armchairs with tapestry upholstery which were evidently provided for Chesterfield House, London by Bradshaw but are today housed at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, and which feature in G. Beard, Furniture Maker and Tapestry Weaver Metropolitan Museum Journal, Vol.37, 2002, p.168, fig. 1; two sets of dining chairs (1755-1758) made by Saunders on behalf of the 1st Earl of Leicester at Holkham Hall, Norfolk, illustrated in A. Coleridge, Some Mid-Georgian Cabinet-Makers at Holkham, Apollo, February 1964, fig.'s 1 and 2; and a group of twelve chairs most likely supplied by Wright and Elwick to Nostell Priory, Yorkshire, National Trust, NT 959745.The Nostell Priory variant of this type, which was seemingly devised and executed by Wright and Elwick, incorporates a very similar carved cartouche to that appearing on the seat frame of the offered chair. Further to this, the present lot relates to a group of dining chairs, also believed to have been provided by this same firm, albeit for Kippax Park, Yorkshire. The latter appear in M. Harris and Sons, The English Chair, London, 1946, pl. LI, p. 123. All of this lends serious weight to the view that the above is a production of the renowned Wakefield business.Additional seat furniture of this closely comparable design was previously located at Swaines Hill Manor, Hampshire. Whilst a pair of armchairs together with a sofa from this suite, which had formed part of the collection of the late Marjorie Wiggin Prescott, Belle Haven, Greenwich, Connecticut, sold Christie's, New York, 31 January 1981, lot 354. Subsequently, the same sofa sold Christie's, London, 11 May-1 June 2020, lot 108. These notable pieces feature in R. Edwards, C. Claxton-Stevens and S. Whittington, 18th Century English Furniture, The Norman Adams Collection, 1983, Woodbridge, pp.'s 38 & 39. It is possible that the present lot is indeed the exact same armchair which is illustrated therein.This lot is subject to the following lot symbols: TPTP For auctions held in Scotland: Lots will be moved to an offsite storage location (Constantine, Constantine House, North Caldeen Road, Coatbridge ML5 4EF, Scotland, UK) and will only be available for collection from this location at the date stated in the catalogue. Please refer to the catalogue for further information.For all other auctions: Lots will be moved to an offsite storage location (Cadogan Tate, Auction House Services, 241 Acton Lane, London NW10 7NP, UK) and will only be available for collection from this location at the date stated in the catalogue. Please note transfer and storage charges will apply to any lots not collected after 14 calendar days from the auction date.For further information on this lot please visit Bonhams.com

DOROTHEA SOPHIE OF NEUBURG: (1670-1748) Countess Palatine, Duchess of Parma 1695-1727. She served as Regent of the Duchy of Parma 1731-35 for her grandson Charles of Spain and future King of Spain as Charles III. An excellent and rare L.S., `Dorotea Sofia..´, one page, 4to, Parma, 3rd of August 1714, to Prince Borghese in Rome, in Italian. The Duchess responds to her correspondent´s letter of congratulations on the occasion of the forthcoming wedding of her daughter Elisabeth Farnese with Charles V, King of Spain, stating in part `Fra gli ufici che ho ricevuti di congratulazioni per le nozze della Principessa Elisabetta mia figlia colla Maiestá del Re Cattolico Filippo quinto, ho accolto con particular distinzioni quella di Vostra Eccellenza perche vo zocanto ella goda di felici avvenimenti di questa Casa…´ (Translation: “Among the offices that I have received congratulations on the wedding of Princess Elizabeth, my daughter, to His Majesty the Catholic King Philip the Fifth, I have welcomed with particular distinction that of Your Excellency because I wish you could enjoy the happy events of this House…”) Princess Elizabeth will marry King Philip V of Spain a month later, in September 1714. With blank integral leaf, bearing a small contemporary clerk annotation to the verso referring to the date and content of the letter. Small overall creasing, otherwise G to VG Elisabeth Farnese (1692-1766) Queen of Spain 1714-46 as spouse of King Philip V. Elisabeth was in fact a De Facto ruler of Spain since she did manage the affairs of State, and was particularly known for her great influence over Spain´s foreign policy affairs. On 16 September 1714 Elisabeth Farnese was married by proxy at Parma to Philip V of Spain, the former Queen of Spain, Maria Luisa of Savoy, had passed away seven months earlier on February 14th. The marriage was arranged because of the sexual need of Philip V, as his religious scruples prevented him from having a sexual life outside of marriage and he had insisted upon his conjugal rights almost until the last days of his previous consort's life A very interesting historical event occurred on Elizabeth arrival to Spain, when she met the Princesse des Ursins, Marie Anne de la Trémoille (1642-1722) a French Courtier and Royal favourite known for her political influence and for acting as the De Facto ruler of Spain from 1701 to 1714, and who had just been newly appointed Mistress of the Robes to the Queen. The Princesse des Ursins wished to present herself before Elisabeth met Philip V. The Princess had sent out spies who reported that Elisabeth was in fact not at all a timid person who would be easy to control. Elisabeth received des Ursins and asked to speak with her privately. Shortly after, the party could hear the sounds of a violent argument, after which des Ursins was arrested, fired, and immediately escorted over the border to France. There have been many different versions of this incident, and different suggestions as to how it occurred. When Philip V met Elisabeth a day later at Guadalajara, the day before Christmas, he quickly fell in love with her at first sight, just as he had with his former spouse.

DUMAS ALEXANDRE Pere: (1802-1870) French Writer whose works include The Three Musketeers. A fine and clean A.L.S., `Al Dumas´, one page, 8vo, n.p. [Paris], n.d., to Paul Gavarni, in French. On his personal stationery, bearing a blind embossed seal with his laureated capital initials to the upper left corner of the letter, Dumas refers to one of his main works The Count of Montecristo (1844) and to the illustrations he wishes his correspondent to do, stating `Mon cher Gavarni, je suis passé chez vous pour causer Montecristo avec vous. Pourriez-vous vous charger de 200 dessins petits et grands don’t nous débattrions le prix si nous pouvions nous rencontrer…´ (Translation: “My dear Gavarni, I came to your house to talk Montecristo with you. Could you take care of 200 drawings large and small, the price of which we would discuss if we could meet?...”) With blank integral leaf. EX Paul Gavarni (1804-1866) French illustrator. Paul Gavarni was the pen name of Sulpice Guillaume Chevalier. Gavarni had a close and friendly relationship with Dumas, Balzac and other authors. He illustrated Dumas´ work The Count of Montecristo, as well as some Balzac´s novels, and made drawings for Vautrin one of the main characters of Balzac´s La Comédie humaine. The drawings Dumas refers to are the ones of The Count of Montecristo, for the edition to be published after the publication by volumes in the Le Siecle journal. The 200 drawings were for portraits of the main roles. Dumas will be shortly after very pleased with the final drawings by Gavarni

BOSCO JOHN: (1815-1888) Don Bosco. Italian Roman Catholic Priest, Educator and Writer. He developed teaching methods based on love rather than punishment, a method known as the Salesian Preventive System. Founder of the Salesians of Don Bosco. Canonized as a saint in 1934. Rare A.L.S., `Obbl.[igatissi]mo Servitore Sac. G. Bosco´, three pages, small 4to, Turin, 15th May 1870, to Countess Callori, in Italian. Bosco thanks his correspondent for her help and charity and refers to his recent trip stating `Benemerita Signora Contessa, la sua lettera mi venne a raggiungere in Mornese che é il Paradiso terrestre della Provincia Acquese - Ella abbonda in bontá e carité ed io la ringrazio. Il mio viaggio fu ottimo. Cessazione dalle ordinarie occupazioni, un po´ piu di riposo, buoni pranzi mi hanno fatto benissimo, al corpo s´intende-…´ (Translation: “Well-deserving Madam Countess, your letter reached me in Mornese which is the earthly paradise of the Acquese Province - You abound in goodness and charity and I thank you. My trip was excellent. Cessation from ordinary occupations, a little more rest, good lunches have done me very well, for the body of course -…”) Saint John Bosco further unusually recommends a relative, saying `Le mando unito un biglietto pel benevolo cav. Giacosa. E´ la prima volta che raccomando un parente; glielo avevo promesso come premio e lo fo perché lo ha guadagnato…´ (Translation: “I am also sending you a note for the kind gentleman Giacosa. It's the first time I've recommended a relative; I promised it to him as a reward and I do it because he deserved it…”) Further again, and before concluding, Bosco explains his near future travelling plan, stating `Se potró andare a Mirabello la preverró e faro certamente una stazione a sua casa – L´altro ieri si tenne seduta a Roma riguardo all chiesa di S. Giovanni della Pigna – il risultato fu per noi: forse dovró fare una corsa a Roma; oggi ho scritto per vedere se posso farne a meno a al meno differire…´ (Translation: “If I can go to Mirabello, I will anticipate it and certainly make a stop at your house - The day before yesterday there was a session in Rome regarding the church of S. Giovanni della Pigna - the result was that perhaps I will have to make a trip to Rome; I wrote today to see if I can cancel it or at least postpone it…”) Overall minor age wear, with a very small hole not affecting the text or signature and few minor foxing stains, otherwise G Countess Carlota Calori di Vignale (1827-1911) one of the most important financial benefactors of Bosco´s projects. Bosco considered Countess Callori as his second-mother.

BARTOK BELA: (1881 - 1945) Hungarian Composer. Signed printed paper cover score book, `Bartok Belator´, one hundred and sixty pages, dated 1st of July 1935 in Bartok´s hand, in German. Signed by Bartok `Bartok Bela[Vik]tor´ to the first inside title page, with same printed text as front cover, in bold dark ink. Also signed by his second wife Ditta Pasztory (1903-1982), and by a third unidentified signature. The printed book is entitled `Melodien der Rumanischen Colinde (Weihnachtslieder) 484 Melodien mit einem einleitenden ausfsatz´ (`Melodies of the Romanian Colinde (Chrsitmas songs) 484 Melodies with introductory preface´) `Colinde´ meaning in Romanian is `Go from house to house singing´ which is a most popular custom. The book includes over forty pages of preface and introduction, and one hundred and six pages of printed musical scores of songs.G

BORROMEO CHARLES: (1538-1584) Italian Cardinal of the Catholic Church who served as Archbishop of Milan 1564-84 and was a leading figure of the Counter-Reformation. Borromeo was canonized as a saint by Pope Paul V in 1610. A rare L.S., `Il Car[dina]le Borromeo´, one page, 4to, Rome, 19th August 1564, to Count Cesare Gonzaga at Mantova, his brother-in-law, in Italian. Borromeo was formally appointed Archbishop of Milan only three months before the present letter was written. The Cardinal responds to his correspondent´s request, stating in part 'Vostra Eccellenza sà con quanto ristritto, et riservationi convenga procedero nei casi di religioni, et di fidi tuttania per il mio continuo desiderio che tengo di servirla…´ (Translation: “Your Excellency knows how strictly and with what reservations it is appropriate to proceed in cases of religions and trusts, however, due to my continuous desire to serve you...”) Further, Borromeo grants the way this matter will be handled saying `…ma vostra Eccellenza, si può assicurare che no gli si farà torto alcuno... altra mira che del servitio di Dio et della giustizia...´ (Translation: “...but I can assure Your Excellency that no harm will be done to him... no other aim that the service of God and justice…”) With blank address leaf, bearing a paper seal affixed in fine condition. Small overall minor age wear and toning, mostly to bottom and right edges, otherwise G Cesare I Gonzaga (1530-1575) Count of Gustalla and Count of Amalfi. Son of the Imperial condottiero Ferrante Gonzaga, Cesare was a member of the House of Gonzaga. In 1558 he was appointed Commander-in-chief of the troops of the King Philip II in Lombardy. He married in 1560 Camilla Borromeo (1536-1583), sister of Charles Borromeo and niece of Giovanni Angelo de´ Medici, elected Pope with the name of Pius IV.

BERLIOZ HECTOR: (1803-1869) French composer and conductor of the Romantic era. An excellent content and unusual A.L.S., `H. Berlioz´, three pages, Saint Petersburg, 19th-31st March 1847, to his father, in French. Berlioz writes to his father from Saint Petersburg, and announces the euphoric success of his works in Russia, referring also to the Russian Empress, and stating in part `Cher père, J´ai fait sans encombres ce grand voyage de Pétersburg qui vous a peut-être inquiété, et je pars tout à l´heure pour Moscou où je ne demeurerai que quinze jours, ainsi mes soeurs peuvent me répondre ici. Voici mon adresse Maison Kosikowski, perspective Newski au coin de la petite Morskoïa (Pétersburg). J´ai eu le bonheur de réussir dans mes entreprises musicales au-delà de toutes les prévisions. Ma musique a fait fureur dans toutes les classes de la Société Russe. L´impératrice m´a comblé de gracieusetés de toute espèce, et les enfants les Grands Ducs Alexandre et Constantine et la Duchesse de Lichtenstein ont suivi son exemple. L´empereur seul n´a pu assister à aucun de mes concerts. Il est malade d´une gastro-entérite qui l´inquiète et le tourmente beaucoup´ (Translation: “Dear father, I made this long trip to Petersburg, which perhaps worried you, without incident and I am leaving shortly for Moscow where I will only stay for fifteen days, so my sisters can write to me here. Here is my address Kosikowski House, Newski Prospect on the corner of Little Morskoia (Petersburg). I have had the pleasure of succeeding in my musical endeavours beyond all expectations. My music has had enormous success among all society levels of Russian Society. The Empress showered me with graces of all kinds, and the children, the Grand Dukes Alexander and Constantine and the Duchess of Lichtenstein followed her example. The Emperor alone was unable to attend any of my concerts. He is sick with gastroenteritis which worries and torments him a lot”) Berlioz further sends details of the artists performances and expresses with great enthusiasm how flattered he feels and what an unexpected experience this travel to Russia is resulting, saying `J´ai eu un orchestra excellent compose d´artistes Allemands qui m´ont interprété avec une fidélité et une verve extraordinaires, on a mis à mes ordres pour les choeurs, les choristes des theatres, ceux de la chapelle impériale et ceux de plusieurs regiments de la garde qui ont marché parfaitement. L´effet produit par mon dernier ouvrage surtout a été magnifique, on a fait répéter une foule de morceaux, l´Impératrice m´a fait appeler après la première partie du concert et m´a chaleureusement complimeenté ainsi que ses fils´ (Translation: “I had an excellent orchestra composed of German artists who interpreted my works with extraordinary fidelity and verve, they put at my command for the choirs, the choristers of the theatres, those of the Imperial chapel and those of several regiments of the guards who worked perfectly. The effect produced by my last work especially was magnificent, we had a host of pieces rehearsed, the Empress called me after the first part of the concert and warmly complimented me as well as her sons”) Further again, Berlioz refers to the concerts important box-office collection, and compares France and Russia in different ways, stating in part `Les recettes des deux concerts ont attaint un chiffre où nous ne pouvons pretendre en France, et malgré l´énormité des frais il me reste à cette heure une quinzaine de mille francs de benefice…Peut-être à mon retour la direction du grand theatre pourra-t-elle interrompre les travaux de son repertoire pour monter ma partition de Roméo et Juliette… Toute l´aristocratie Russe me comble de politesses de toute espèce. On me prédit un très beau résultat de ma course à Moscou. Tout ici est grandiose, et rien ne ressemble ni pour les moeurs ni pour les institutions aux idées saugrenues que nous nous en faisons en France…´ (Translation: “The funds collection from the two concerts have reached a figure which we cannot imagine in France, and despite the enormity of the expenses involved, I have at this time around fifteen thousand francs of profit left... Perhaps on my return the management of the Grand Theatre will be able to interrupt the work on their repertoire to produce my score for Romeo and Juliet... The entire Russian aristocracy showers me with politeness of all kinds. I am predicted a very good result for my concerts in Moscow. Everything here is grandiose, and nothing resembles either the morals or the institutions of the crazy ideas that we have of them in France…”) With address page to the fourth and last page, in his hand `Monsieur Berlioz´, bearing remnants of a red wax seal, and two ink stamps. Overall age creasing with several tears to the folds, and a small hole to the last page as a result of the letter opening, although the full letter remains perfectly legible. About G Louis Berlioz (1776-1848) Father of Hector Berlioz, was a respected Physician credited as the first European to practise and write about acupuncture. He had planned a medical career for his son Hector. Louis and his wife Marie-Antoinette Joséphine had six children, three of whom died in infancy, the eldest being Hector, and his two surviving daughters Nanci and Adele who Berlioz mentions in the present letter, remained close to Hector throughout their lives. Berlioz composed his “Symphonie dramatique” Roméo et Juliette in 1839, a large-scale symphony based on Shakespeare´s play Roméo and Juliet. Widely regarded as one of Berlioz´s finest works. Berlioz refers to the Royal Russian family of Emperor Nicholas I, the Empress Alexandra Feodorovna (Charlotte of Prussia), and their sons Grand Duke and future Tsar Alexander and his younger brother Grand Duke Konstantin

GOYA FRANCISCO JOSE DE: (1746-1828) Spanish Painter. Goya is considered the most important Spanish Painter of the late 18th and early 19th centuries and is regarded as the last of the Old Masters and the first of the moderns. A precursor of the Expressionism. His masterpiece portrayal of a naked woman, La Maja Desnuda ("The Naked Maja"), now in the Museo del Prado in Madrid, was a remarkably daring nude for the time, renowned for the unashamed gaze of the model towards the viewer without negative connotations. An exceptionally rare L.S., `Fran[cis]co de Goya´, three pages, 4to, Bordeaux, 30th November 1824, to the Duchess of San Fernando, in Spanish. Goya apologies for his hasty departure from Paris preventing him from saying goodbye to her himself, stating in part `Cuando salí de Paris para venir a esta [ciudad], dispuse atropelladamente mi viaje; el tiempo urgía, me hallaba sin dinero, y admití la oferta de unos amigos que me anticiparon los gastos del camino…´ (Translation: `When I left Paris to come to this [city], I hastily organized my trip; time was urgent, I was without money, and I accepted the offer of some friends who anticipated the expenses of the trip…") Goya is still not sure about his near future and explains that his has requested to the King of Spain an extension of his permission to leave his court painter obligations, saying `Aqui estoy, sin saber lo que debo hacer de mi. He pedido una prórroga, siquiera para poder pasar el invierno al calor de la chimenea, y no se si S[u] M[ajestad] tendrá a bien de concedérmela…´ (Translation: "Here I am, not knowing what I should make of myself. I have asked for an extension, at least that I can spend the winter in the warmth before a fireplace, and I don't know if H[is] M[ajesty] will be good enough to grant it to me…") Further again, Goya explains in full detail what the present he has sent to his correspondent is, being some drafts, drawings and figurines of three dwarfs, stating in part `Me tomo la libertad de remitir a V.E. esos tres comisionados, a quienes doy el encargo especial de asegurarla cuan agradecido estoy a la memoria que conserva de mi, y cuanto deseo complacerla y servirla. Son tres enanos que se presentaron en la feria de Burdeos dos meses hace, y me pareció conveniente sacar un tanteo de sus caras y sus figurillas. El de los pantaloncitos tiene 18 pulgadas, de los otros dos (que son marido y mujer) ella tiene 21 pulgadas y el esposo 20. Celebraré que cumplan su comisión, según los deseos del invalido que los envia´ (Translation: `I take the liberty of sending to Y.E. those three commissioners [referring to his three dwarfs figurines], to whom I give the special charge of assuring you how grateful I am to the memory you keep of me, and how much I wish to please and serve you. They are three dwarfs who appeared at the Bordeaux fair two months ago, and I thought it convenient to make a test of their faces and their figurines. The one with the short trousers is 18 inches, and the other two (who are husband and wife) she is 21 inches and the husband is 20. I will celebrate that they fulfil their commission, according to the wishes of the invalid who sends them" [Goya refers here to himself]) Goya has a lengthy list of important portraits paintings of dwarfs. An exceptional document, with very interesting content related to Goya´s last years, short after his arrival to France, and referring to his work on three dwarves he met at a fair in Bordeaux. A letter in very fine condition. VG Goya became a court painter to the Spanish Crown in 1786 and this early part of his career is marked by portraits of the Spanish aristocracy. In 1793 an illness left him deaf, after which his work became progressively darker. In 1799 Goya became the First Court Painter, the highest rank for a Spanish court Painter, under King Charles IV of Spain. During the Peninsular War and Napoleon´s invasion of Spain, Goya remained in Madrid, and his series of paintings Disasters of War, or his painting The Second of May 1808, show how much this war affected him deeply, fearing for his country´s fate. He also painted important portraits of the Royal Spanish family and of Lord Wellington.His late period is marked by the Black Paintings, on the plaster walls of his own house "La Quinta del Sordo" ("The House of the Deaf Man") where disillusioned by political and religious corruption, and by social developments in Spain, he lived near isolation. He also painted dwarves, and persons with insanity or in mental asylums, as well as themes related with witches and fantastical creatures. Goya abandoned Spain in 1824, the year of the present letter, to retire to the French city of Bordeaux from where the present letter is written. He was accompanied by his maid and companion Leocadia Weiss, 42 years younger than him, although it remains unclear if she was or not his lover.It was at that time and in Bordeaux where Goya completed his well-known series of paintings La Tauromaquia, depicting bullfighting scenes. Goya died and was buried in Bordeaux, but was later re-interred in the Royal Hermitage of San Antonio de la Florida in Madrid. Famously, the skull was missing, and the Spanish consul to Bordeaux reported so to his superiors in Madrid, who wired back "Send Goya, with or without head". The present letter is most probably in the hand of Leandro Fernández de Moratín (1760-1828) Spanish Dramatist, Poet, and translator of works of Moliere and Shakespeare into Spanish. Goya made his friend´s portrait in his late years in Bordeaux. Fernandez de Moratin lived his late years in exile in France and died in Paris only two months after Goya passed away in Bordeaux. The present letter is written to Maria Luisa of Bourbon and Villabriga (1783-1846) Duchess of San Fernando de Quiroga. She was directly related to several Kings of Spain, being the grand-daughter of Philip V, the niece of Charles III, and cousin of Charles IV. Maria Luisa and her husband, first duke of San Fernando, went into exile in 1823 to Paris.

ITALIAN COMPOSERS & MUSICIANS: A very fine small selection of two Autograph Letters signed and a signed photograph also including an Autograph musical quotation, by three renowned Italian Composers and musicians of the 1800´s, comprising BOTTESINI GIOVANNI (1821-1889) Italian Composer, Conductor and a double bass Virtuoso. When conducting opera, Bottesini would frequently bring his double bass on stage during the intermission to play fantasies on the evening's opera. His fantasies on Lucia di Lamermoor or I Puritani are virtuosic tours de force that are still popular with those who are highly accomplished on the instrument. He was called “the Paganini of the double bass”. Scarce A.L.S., `Gio. Bottesini´, one page, 4.5 x 5 page, n.p., n.d., in Italian. Bottesini states in part `Carissimo Cavaliere, La fiorentini vi ringrazia infinitamente. Io ritardo la partenza per Sicilia d´alcuni giorni..´ (Translation: “Dear Cavaliere, the Fiorentini thanks you infinitely. I delay my departure for Sicily for a few days…”); SGAMBATI GIOVANNI (1841-1914) Italian Pianist, Composer and Conductor. A pupil of Franz Liszt. Sgambati conducted the Italian premieres of Beethoven´s Third and Seventh symphonies. A.L.S., `G. Sgambati´, seven pages, 8vo, Rome, Via de la Croce, 7th March, n.y., to Rene, in Italian. Sgambati answers his correspondent´s letter and states, in part `La tua proposta mi a stato graditissima… stato tanto preoccupato dalla grave malattia di mio fratello… Sono agitatissimo in questo momento… vostri concerti settimanale... Io avrei accetato di gran cuore la tua gentile proposta… vuole eseguire dalla Societa orchestrale il mio Concerto per Piano e Orchestra, e la terza esecuzione nelle spazio di un mese… Alla prima esecuzione erano piu di 700 persone ogni volta. Si la tua festa fossi stato ritardata…la tua serata con un mio Progetto, di dare due concerti orchestrali a Firenze… Naturalmente …il mio concerto e un concerto di Beethoven, due poemi sinfonici di Liszt… Dimi si credi il mio projetto per Firenze effettuabile…´ (Translation: “Your offer has been very welcome... I was so worried about my brother´s serious illness… In these dates we are busy with the weekly concerts. I would have liked to have accepted heartedly your kind offer.... The Orchestral Society wants to perform my Concert for Piano and Orchestra again, it is the third performance this month and due to the high interest I can't renounce to it. At the first performance there were 700 persons each time. If yours was later I would have cheered your soirèe with my plan of performing two orchestral concerts in Florence ...I would play my Concert and one of Beethoven, moreover I would conduct two symphonic poems of Liszt.... Perhaps we could also perform a chamber music concert with the Quartet Romano but in this case we would need an impresario. I received an offer for four concerts in Milan with the Quartet but I have some problems to get an orchestra. Please tell me if my project would be possible on different dates....´. A letter of interesting musical content, & MANCINELLI LUIGI (1848-1921) Italian Composer, Conductor and Cellist. Mancinelli was a reputed conductor, being for many years the principal conductor at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden in London and at the Metropolitan Opera House in New York. Signed 3.5 x 5.5 postcard photograph, bearing an inscription and an autograph musical quotation to the verso. Signed to the front and verso. The image shows Mancinelli in a formal head and shoulders pose. Signed in red ink to the lower white border, also dated in his hand, 1908. Mancinelli carefully pens two bars of music, adding above the tempo “Lento”, and writing beneath the word text in Italian “Quali colombe dal disio chiamate” (Translation: “Those doves from desire that you call”) VG, 3

Extensive collection of soft toys to include TY bears, Toy Story, Me To You bears, McDonald's, Bear In The Big Blue House, The Magic Roundabout, Comparethe meerkat.com Star Wars, The Wombles, etc, plus a boxed Son Ai Toys Cha Cha Drummer Clown battery operated toy and a Leonardo Collection doll. (11 boxes)

Lundby Stockholm dolls house, circa 1970's, with furniture & accessories to include kitchen units, dining table & chairs, armchairs, fireplace, bathtub, bed, etc. (Crack to dolls house)

R. C. Thomas. 'A Road in the Duchy,' First edition, 22 pages, blue textured paper boards with blue cloth spine, paper title label on front board, post WW2 poetry ‘’Whilst the horrors of war were threatening to destroy Plymouth and the neighbouring district, the author residing in a nearby Cornish village determined to preserve the memory of one of nature’s treasures by describing the beauties of the coastal countryside and the quiet, decent lives of the Cornish inhabitants, in a poem which is reproduced in the pages of this volume', pubs notes, very slightly rubbed otherwise a good copy, a rare work, Hocage House Publishing Co, London, 1946.P. J . Kislingbury, 'Cornwall ‘The English Riviera’, first edition, 59 pages, in original binding with gilt lettering to the front cover, a good copy of a scarce work, J. W. Arrowsmith Ltd, Bristol, 1911.Wesley Chapel, Camborne/St Mary Magdalene, Launceston/The Salvation Army Truro 81ST Corps, Anniversary with The Treviscoe Male Voice Choir, 3 pamphlets, 1970’s in boards. (5)

'The Case of the Borough of Saltash, in the County of Cornwall'. Volumes bound in one. Original binding relaid.Saltash was a ‘’Rotten Borough’’ in Cornwall, which returned two members of parliament to the House of Commons in the English and later British parliament from 1552 to 1832 When it was abolished by the Great Reform Act. Like most of the Cornish boroughs enfranchised or re-enfranchised during the tudor period, it wad a rotten borough from the start. Saltast was a Burgage Borough, meaning that the right to vote rested with the tenants of certain specified properties. For a long period in the 18th century there was a contest for control of the borough between the Government and the Buller family of Morval (some 14 miles away). Depending partly on legal uncertainities over the precise number and identity of the burgage properties, to which vote were attached. In the 1760’s it was considered an entirely secure Admiralty Borough, where the naval influence could sway all the voters, but by 1831 the Bullers owned all the tenancies and considered them the patrons. This is a faithfull copy by John Kipling ,1785, Clerk of the Rolls. 159 pages plus title page, with fold out tables, copy of poll for 1713 and instructions for a poll att an eleconn for 2 members to serve in next parliament. Saltash 13th Aprill 1722.Samuel Carpenter Esq of the Inner Temple, Barrister at Law. 'A Statement of the Evidence and Arguments of Counsel Before the Committee of the House of Commons Upon the Controverted Election for Saltash. Together with a Few Annotations,' first edition, 1808, printed by Luke Hansford & Sons, London and published by W. Reed, Law Bookseller, Bell-Yard, Temple-Bar, London. ‘’The final object of the enquiry in this case was to ascertain in whom the elective franchise was vested…. at the time Saltash was first represented in parliament’’ : P. VII.. from elizabeth 1st to the very late 18th century, 231 pages, with the stamp and bookplate of The Birmingham Law Society, original morocco boards with gilt lettering on the front cover and gilt motif of the society on the back cover, with a little foxing (given the age not surprising), overall a very good copy.

St Austell and Fowey interest. Four early guides, 1920’s. A. L. Rowse. 'St Austell Church, Town, Parish,' first edition, hardcover, very good condition with dustwrapper (slight tear), subscribers edition (larger format than the standard edition), limited to 719 copies this one being 123, 94 pages, 35 photographs and illustyrations, including a map of st austell, signed by A. L. Rowse, tipped in 12 newspaper cuttings, 4 invoices from local suppliers dated 1890/1891, a ‘’Walk-Round-The Church’’guide circa 1965, with a list of arrangements for the ‘Festival of Flowers Holy Trinity, St Austell 25th-27th June 1965, pub by H. E. Warne Ltd, St Austell, 1960.Four early Fowey guides bound in 1 volume: 'Fifty Years Vicar of Fowey a Memento of Trinity Sunday 1917,' pub by A. R. Mowbray & Co Ltd, London; H. S. Graham. 'Fowey Official Guide,' pub by William Brendon and Son Ltd, Plymouth, 33 pages plus copious local advertisements, circa 1920’s; 'Fowey South ‘The Official Guide’, circa 1930’s, pub by the Home Publishing co, Croydon, introduction by Arthur Quiller-Couch, 39 pages plus many pages of local advertisements; 'Fowey Official Guide,' pub by Vickery, Kyrle & Co Ltd, London, circa 1910; With the booklate of John Blowey.Harold Warren. 'The History of St Austell Market House,' circa 1980’s, 32 pages. (3)

[ Admiral Keyes / U-Boat ] A Great War Imperial German Kaiserliche Marine white surrender flag and canvas pouch, the cotton flag bearing stamped Kaiserliche Marine Imperial crown and initial M mark and "Parlamentair Flg 1.5 x 1.00", the pouch bearing corresponding markings, together with a related letter addressed to Lady Keyes inscribed "U.117's White flag from Captain Addison", a period photographic postcard of "Surrendered "U" Boats at Harwich Novbr 1918" and research documents. [ Provenance; acquired during the 1990s when chattels form the Keyes' residence Tingewick House were being dispersed.] [U Boat / German Navy ]

Nineteen assorted children's titles, many Enid Blyton, including: 'Five on a Treasure Island', L, Hodder & Stoughton, August 1942, 1st edition, full page ills. by Eileen Soper, original cloth (very worn), inner joints weak, contemporary ownership signature/inscription on FFEP, 'Five Run Away Together', L, H & S, August 1944, 1st edition, orig. cloth (worn), ownership sig/inscription FFEP, 'Five Go Off in a Caravan', L, H & S, November 1946, 1st edition, orig. cloth (v. worn), ownership sig/inscription FFEP, 'Five Get Into Trouble', Oct. 1949, 1st in d/w (worn, ownership sig./inscription at front, etc; plus Alexei Tolstoy: 'Russian Tales for Children', ill. K. Kouznetsov, L, Routledge, 1944, 1st UK edition, orig. pictorial cloth, d/w, Ivy Russell: 'Four with a Purpose', L, Latimer House, 1950, 1st edition, orig. cloth, d/w, Elinor M. Brent-Dyer: 'Peggy of the Chalet School', L, Chambers, 1950, 1st edition, orig. cloth, d/w, etc (19)

(Epigrams, Latin, Medieval and modern) John Owen: 'Epigrammatum Ioan. OwenI Cambro-Britanni Oxoniensis editio postrema : correctissima, & posthumis quibusdam adaucta.', Amsterdam, Elzevir, 1647, engraved portrait frontispiece, engraved title page, [4],212pp, 24mo (10.5 x 6.5cm), old full calf gilt, spine gilt in compartments, all edges gilt; together with (Turkey, History, Süleyman I, Sultan of the Turks.) Ogier Ghislain de Busbecq: 'A. Gislenii Busbequii omnia quae extant', Lugd. Batavorum [Leyden] : Ex officina Elzeviriana [House of Elzevir], 1633, engraved title page, 575 [i.e. 577], [23]pp, numerous errors in pagination e.g. page no. 479-480 repeated, 16mo (11.5 x 6cm), contemporary vellum, m/s title to spine (2)

Dennis Potter: 'The Singing Detective', London, Faber, 1986, 1st edition, original cloth, dust wrapper, Tennessee Williams, 3 titles, all first editions, all London, Secker & Warburg, all orig. cloth, all in d/w's: 'Baby Doll', 1957, 'Orpheus Descending', 1958, 'Four Plays', 1956 (first collected edition), Matt Crowley: 'A Breeze from the Gulf', NY, Farrar Straus Giroux, 1974, 1st edition, signed & inscribed on FFEP dated 8.14.75, orig. cloth, d/w, Brian Friel: 'Lovers, Winners & Losers', NY, Farrar Straus Giroux, 1968, 1st edition, orig. cloth, d/w, Richard Rodgers & Oscar Hammerstein: 'Me and Juliet', NY, Random House, 1953, 1st edition, orig. cloth, d/w, Harry Bloom: 'King Kong an African Jazz Opera', L, Collins, 1961, 1st edition, orig. cloth, d/w, William J. Kerr: 'Images of Imagination', NY, Exposition Books, 1954, 1st edition, signed & inscribed by author to Paul Gallico on FFEP, orig. cloth, Joe Orton: 'Between Us Girls', L, 1998, 1st edition, orig. cloth, d/w (10)

John le Carré, 17 titles, all original cloth, all in dust wrappers, of which 9 UK first editions/first impressions: 'The Looking-Glass War', L, Heinemann, 1965, 'A Small Town in Germany', L, Heinemann, 1968, 'Smiley's People', L, Hodder & Stoughton, 1980, 'A Perfect Spy', L, H & S, 1986, 'Singe & Single', L, H & S, 1999, 'Absolute Friends', L, H & S, 2004, 'The Mission Song', L, H & S, 2006, 'Agent Running in the Field', L, Viking, 2019, 'Silverview', L, Viking, 2021, plus US first edition/first impressions of 'Call for the Dead', NY, Walker, 1962 (dust wrapper with no price), 'The Russia House', NY, Viking, 1989, 'The Secret Pilgrim', NY Knopf, 1991, 'Our Game', NY Knopf, 1995, 'The Tailor of Panama', NY, Knopf, 1996, 'Single & Single', NY, Scribner, 1999, plus 2 others UK later impressions (17)

A packet containing approx. 70 b/w press photographs c.1960's by E.H. Emanuel, official photographer to the Jewish Chronicle, prominent member of the Institute of British Photographers, with his professional inkstamps verso, images include David Ben Gurion shaking hands with Sir Winston Churchill during his visit to London, 1961; David Ben Gurion and Israeli ambassador; various images AJEX parade, cenotaph, London; Chief Rabbi at the unveiling of an ambulance to be sent out to Israel; various images of Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh (1921-2021) including with Lord Samuel at the Guildhall; various Princess Margaret including visiting Maccabi House, 1962, opening of Stamford Hill blind centre; plus others Princess Alice, Princess Marie-Louise, P.M. Sir Douglas Home and Mrs Goldemeir (Israel Mistress of Foreign Affairs), etc etc, images approx. 18 x 22cm, with some associated E.H. Emanuel items including Jewish Welfare Board invitation, Savoy Hotel, 1964, printed obituary etc

(Interior Design, Georgina Fairholme, John Fowler.) Five books on interior design, art etc. from the estate of the interior designer Georgina Fairholme (1921-2019,) protégé of decorator John Beresford Fowler (1906-1977), founder of the esteemed London firm of Colefax & Fowler, some with autograph letters signed from John Fowler to Georgona Fairholme loosely inserted, others signed & inscribed by Fowler to Fairholme or by the author to Fairholme. Items include Richard Hampton Jenrette: 'Adventures With Old Houses', foreword by HRH The Prince of Wales, Charleston, Wyrick & Company, 2005, 1st edition, content includes 1 Sutton Place North (p.33-41), New York town house purchased by Richard H. Jenrette in 1972. Jenrette decided that he wanted a distinctly British look for the interiors, so he called New York designers Harrison Cultra (1941-1983) and Georgina Fairholme (1927-2019) for a “quick fix on this grand English-style Georgian house.” (p.37.) With 25 mainly black & white photographs of the interior of the property loosely inserted, Cultra-Fairholme inkstamps verso, together with 2 Autograph Letters Signed from John Fowler to Georgina Fairholme 1974, "...My Dear Georgina. It was so nice to hear from you and to hear that you are doing well & enjoying it. I am so glad...I am better thank you but feel weak & very tired but i'm getting better I am sure. I probably work too hard both for the N.T. & now that P.[rince] Charles has decided to make Chevening his home there is a great deal to do & organise. I saw him there last week & he's so thrilled with the possibilities of the house it's very fine & we must make it really nice; he's such a dear fellow...I shall much look forward to seeing you when you are over & I do hope you will come for a weekend here. No more now as i've got to go up to London this morning. I hate it! Lots of Love J.", 39 lines, 2 leaves, The Hunting Lodge, Odiham, Hampshire headed paper, original hand written addressed postally used envelope, with another 23 line ALS from Fowler to Fairholme similar period, plus original Typed Letter Signed from the firm Sibyl Colefax and John Fowler Ltd., 10th September 1964, to Georgina Fairholme offering her the job as advertised, signed D.J. Nuttman, secretary, all loosely inserted in the book, original pictorial wraps; plus John Fowler and John cornforth: 'English Decoration in the 18th Century', L, Barrie & Jenkins, 1974, 1st UK edition, 20 page ALS from John Fowler to Georgina Fairholme c.1970's loosely inserted, together with some other associated cuttings and ephemera incl. John Fowler in memoriam Order of Service 24th November 1977 etc., orig. cloth gilt, dust wrapper (d/w worn); plus Stalker & Parker: 'A Treatise of Japanning Varnishing and Guilding 1688', L, Alec Tiranti, 1960, John Fowler's copy with his ownership signature dated Jan. 1961 at head of FFEP, subsequently signed & inscribed by Fowler to Georgina Fairholme beneath and dated October 1970, orig. boards gilt, Stella Margetson: 'Leisure and Pleasure in the Eighteenth Century', L, Cassell, 1970, 1st edition, signed & inscribed on FFEP from Fowler to Fairholme Christmas 1970, orig. cloth, dust wrapper, plus Erica Brown: 'Interior Views - Design at Its Best', NY, Viking Press, 1980, 1st edition, signed & inscribed by the author to Georgina Fairholme on FFEP "For Georgina With love - & admiration Erica Brown", orig. cloth gilt, dust wrapper. Interior designer John Beresford Fowler CBE (1906–1977) joined the decorating and antiques firm Thornton Smith, where he painted Chinese-style wallpaper (sold as 18th century originals), and learned other paint decoration techniques, such as marbling and graining, and subsequently decorated furniture for Peter Jones. He established his own business on the Kings Road in Chelsea in 1934, and then went into business with Sybil Colefax, founding Colefax & Fowler. Nancy Lancaster employed him to help with the decoration of her own rooms but became fascinated with decoration herself. At the end of World War II she bought the firm that became Colefax and Fowler from the retiring Colefax. He leased the Hunting Lodge at Odiham in Hampshire from the National Trust in 1947, and his simple but elegant decorative scheme made a great impact. Fowler was involved in the redecoration of dozens of substantial country houses and town houses, including Radbourne Hall, Daylesford House, Tyninghame House and Grimsthorpe Castle. He also worked on decorative schemes for Buckingham Palace, Holyroodhouse, Chequers, Chevening, Christ Church, Oxford, and the Bank of England. In the 1960s and '70s Fowler was still engaged in major commercial projects but increasingly preferred to work with the National Trust. By the time of his death in 1977, at the age of 71, John Fowler was recognized as the éminence grise of English decoration.Georgine Fairholme was born in London, 18 August 1927, and attended St Martin’s School of Art in London. She subsequently worked at interior designer Joy King’s Elizabeth Eaton shop in Belgravia before joining the esteemed London firm Colefax & Fowler in 1964, where she became a protégé of decorator John Fowler, founder of the firm. She re-located to New York to work in the firm’s Manhattan office and later joined Rose Cumming, in whose studio she presumably met the designer Harrison Cultra (1941-1983.) Together they formed the Cultra-Fairholme partnership, clients included Richard H. Jenrette and Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis amongst others. Following the dissolution of the partnership, in 1978 she opened her own firm in New York City in a fiercely competitive sector but ran a book with many famous and notable clients including Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, Mr. and Mrs. Paul Mellon as well as Mr. and Mrs. John Hay “Jock” Whitney. In 1986, Architectural Digest called Fairholme the “doyenne of English Country Style.” In addition to designing interiors, she designed furniture, china, fabrics and wall coverings. On retirement she moved to Italy thence for the last 17 years of her life to Lavenham, Suffolk. She died in Bury St Edmunds 27 August 2019 – soon after her 92nd birthday. Provenance by descent

Cynthia Asquith: 'This Mortal Coil', Sauk City, WI, Arkham House, 1947, 1st edition, one of 2,609 copies, signed & inscribed by the author to David Higham (1895-1978), literary agent, on FFEP "David Higham from Cynthia Asquith Xmas 1947", m/s pen & ink annotations to text and margins, original black cloth lettered in gilt (rubbed/worn). Collection of nine of the author's supernatural, horror, fantasy short stories; Dion Fortune: 'The Demon Lover', L, The Aquarian Press, 1957, 2nd edition, original cloth gilt, dust wrapper. Dion Fortune was among a generation of occult horror writers that formed popular culture's obsession with secret societies, vampires, demons, ritual magick, and dark powers lurking in the shadows; Beverley Nichols: 'Powers That Be', L, Cape, 1966, 1st edition, original cloth, dust wrapper (3)