Pier table
possibly William Bradshaw (1700 - 1775)
Category
Furniture
Date
circa 1743
Materials
Carved and gilt softwood, Breccia viola marble top
Measurements
79.5 x 76 x 46.7 cm
Place of origin
London
Order this imageCollection
Ham House, Surrey
NT 1140074
Summary
A pier table, or console, from a pair with (NT 114075), surmounted by a Breccia viola marble top, above a carved gadrooned frieze of acanthus leaves and shells, on a double scroll leg headed by a mask issuing leaves. The leg terminates in a scrolling acanthus foot, raised on a square base with a rosette frieze along the top edge. There is no documentation to retrace the commission of these pier tables but an assumption that they were supplied for the 4 Earl of Dysart, as the pair in the Queen's Bed Chamber, and therefore possibly by William Bradshaw.
Provenance
In the Drawing Room (previously "The Volury Room) as recorded in the inventory of Ham House in 1844 : "A pair of handsome carved and gilt pier Brackets with marble slabs". Acquired in 1948 by HM Government when Sir Lyonel, 4th Bt (1854 – 1952) and Sir Cecil Tollemache, 5th Bt (1886 – 1969) presented Ham House to the National Trust, and entrusted to the care of the Victoria & Albert Museum, until 1990, when returned to the care of the National Trust, and to which ownership was transferred in 2002.
Makers and roles
possibly William Bradshaw (1700 - 1775), upholsterer possibly William Bradshaw (1700 - 1775), cabinetmaker
References
Rowell 2013: Christopher Rowell (ed.), Ham House, 400 Years of Collecting and Patronage, Yale University Press, New Haven & London 2013, p.289-289