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Lot Essay
This masterpiece in carved mahogany is a rare survivor in remarkable untouched condition. Formerly in the collection of the Trevelyan family of Nettlecombe Court, Somerset, it has the distinction of also having formed part of the renowned collection of Samuel Messer at Pelsham Manor in Sussex. The Messer collection of furniture, clocks and barometers epitomised the extraordinary creative output of the 18th century, the majority of which formed his landmark sale at Christie's in 1991. The present table was bequeathed to his close friend John Bragg.
This crisply carved tripod table is reminiscent of the work of Paul Saunders of Soho Square, London, one of the preeminent cabinet-makers of the 1750s and 60s, who was supplying furniture to Holkham Hall (Norfolk), Woburn Abbey (Bedfordshire) and Petworth House (West Sussex). The overall design however is probably derived from a Chippendale model; ‘Paul Saunders, upholsterer’ was a subscriber to the 1st edition of the Director (1754).
A related tripod table, possibly by Paul Saunders, with similar lobed top and pierced ribbon gallery to the present lot was in the collection of Peggy and David Rockefeller until sold The Collection of Peggy and David Rockefeller: English and European Furniture, Ceramics and Decorations, Part I; Christie’s, New York, 9 May 2018, lot 233 for $143,750 (inc. premium).
NETTLECOMBE COURT
Nettlecombe Court in Somerset came to the present family in the mid-12th century, and has since descended through the Ralegh, Whalesburgh, Trevelyan and Wolseley branches. Estates in Northumberland and Durham, including Wallington, however, did not come into the family until 1777, when Sir Walter Calverley Blackett (1707-77) died and they passed to his sister's son, Sir John Trevelyan, 4th Baronet. Sir John inherited Nettlecombe after the death of his father, Sir George Trevelyan, in 1768. Therefore, beginning in 1777, the Trevelyan baronets resided both at Wallington, now a National Trust property, and Nettlecombe Court. Between 1787 and 1788, the 4th Baronet had the rooms on the south-west side of Nettlecombe Court restored and redecorated in the Adam style (R.J.E. Bush, ‘Nettlecombe Court 1: The Trevelyans and other residents at the Court’, Field Studies, vol. 3, no. 2, September 1970, p. 9).
Sir John, 4th Baronet, was succeeded in 1828 by his eldest son, another Sir John Trevelyan (1761-1846), who spent much of his life at Wallington because his wife, Maria, preferred it. His eldest son, Sir Walter Calverley Trevelyan, 6th Baronet (1797-1879), succeeded in 1846, and upon his death without issue in 1879, Nettlecombe and the title went to a nephew, Alfred Wilson Trevelyan (1831-91), while the Wallington estate, which was not entailed, was passed on to a favourite nephew Charles Edward Trevelyan, 1st Baronet (1807-1886).
In 1931, Nettlecombe was left to Joan Alys Trevelyan, who married Garnet Ruskin Wolseley; Nettlecombe Court is still owned by the Wolseley family today.
SAMUEL MESSER
The Messer collection of furniture, clocks and barometers epitomised the extraordinary creative output of the 18th Century. In one way the sale marked the end of a generation of great English furniture collections formed in the 20th century in Britain, while on the other hand it raised the appreciation for fine English furniture to new heights inspiring a new generation of collectors. Samuel Messer was one of the very small, elite group of connoisseurs of Georgian furniture - including Percival Griffiths, Geoffrey Blackwell, J.S. Sykes, Fred Skull and James Thursby-Pelham - who formed the nucleus of their collections under the guidance of R.W. Symonds (d.1958). When advising his clients Symonds placed great emphasis on original patination, a well-balanced design and good quality timber and carving and the present lot perfectly epitomises these collecting principals.
This crisply carved tripod table is reminiscent of the work of Paul Saunders of Soho Square, London, one of the preeminent cabinet-makers of the 1750s and 60s, who was supplying furniture to Holkham Hall (Norfolk), Woburn Abbey (Bedfordshire) and Petworth House (West Sussex). The overall design however is probably derived from a Chippendale model; ‘Paul Saunders, upholsterer’ was a subscriber to the 1st edition of the Director (1754).
A related tripod table, possibly by Paul Saunders, with similar lobed top and pierced ribbon gallery to the present lot was in the collection of Peggy and David Rockefeller until sold The Collection of Peggy and David Rockefeller: English and European Furniture, Ceramics and Decorations, Part I; Christie’s, New York, 9 May 2018, lot 233 for $143,750 (inc. premium).
NETTLECOMBE COURT
Nettlecombe Court in Somerset came to the present family in the mid-12th century, and has since descended through the Ralegh, Whalesburgh, Trevelyan and Wolseley branches. Estates in Northumberland and Durham, including Wallington, however, did not come into the family until 1777, when Sir Walter Calverley Blackett (1707-77) died and they passed to his sister's son, Sir John Trevelyan, 4th Baronet. Sir John inherited Nettlecombe after the death of his father, Sir George Trevelyan, in 1768. Therefore, beginning in 1777, the Trevelyan baronets resided both at Wallington, now a National Trust property, and Nettlecombe Court. Between 1787 and 1788, the 4th Baronet had the rooms on the south-west side of Nettlecombe Court restored and redecorated in the Adam style (R.J.E. Bush, ‘Nettlecombe Court 1: The Trevelyans and other residents at the Court’, Field Studies, vol. 3, no. 2, September 1970, p. 9).
Sir John, 4th Baronet, was succeeded in 1828 by his eldest son, another Sir John Trevelyan (1761-1846), who spent much of his life at Wallington because his wife, Maria, preferred it. His eldest son, Sir Walter Calverley Trevelyan, 6th Baronet (1797-1879), succeeded in 1846, and upon his death without issue in 1879, Nettlecombe and the title went to a nephew, Alfred Wilson Trevelyan (1831-91), while the Wallington estate, which was not entailed, was passed on to a favourite nephew Charles Edward Trevelyan, 1st Baronet (1807-1886).
In 1931, Nettlecombe was left to Joan Alys Trevelyan, who married Garnet Ruskin Wolseley; Nettlecombe Court is still owned by the Wolseley family today.
SAMUEL MESSER
The Messer collection of furniture, clocks and barometers epitomised the extraordinary creative output of the 18th Century. In one way the sale marked the end of a generation of great English furniture collections formed in the 20th century in Britain, while on the other hand it raised the appreciation for fine English furniture to new heights inspiring a new generation of collectors. Samuel Messer was one of the very small, elite group of connoisseurs of Georgian furniture - including Percival Griffiths, Geoffrey Blackwell, J.S. Sykes, Fred Skull and James Thursby-Pelham - who formed the nucleus of their collections under the guidance of R.W. Symonds (d.1958). When advising his clients Symonds placed great emphasis on original patination, a well-balanced design and good quality timber and carving and the present lot perfectly epitomises these collecting principals.