Console table
style of William Kent (Bridlington 1685 - London 1748)
Category
Furniture
Date
circa 1725 - 1740
Materials
Carved and gilt wood with portoro buono marble
Measurements
97.0 x 131.5 x 50.5 cm
Order this imageCollection
Knole, Kent
NT 129494
Summary
A very elaborate carved and gilt console table in the style of William Kent, England, c.1730s, with a thick gadrooned cornice and a decorative frieze adorned with oak leaf festoons. At the centre, it features a bearded man's mask, which is flanked by lion's heads at the corners. The finely carved s-shaped scroll supports are leaning inwards and end in paw feet. The piece is surmounted by a black marble slab, possibly made of portoro buono, an Italian golden veined black marble also known as marmo di Portovenere. It is conceivable that this piece was commissioned by Lionel Sackville, 1st Duke of Dorset for Dorset House in London, which William Kent may have helped to decorate.
Provenance
Possibly commissioned by Lionel Sackville, 1st Duke of Dorset. Knole and the majority of its furniture were accepted by HM Treasury in part payment of death duties and transferred to the National Trust in 1946.
Makers and roles
style of William Kent (Bridlington 1685 - London 1748), designer