Secrétaire
Ernest Gimson (1864 - 1919)
Category
Furniture
Date
circa 1904
Materials
Walnut and brass.
Measurements
970 x 1410 x 620 mm
Order this imageCollection
Stoneywell Cottage, Leicestershire
NT 1702040
Summary
Secretaire-chest, walnut, with six wide drawers, two narrow drawers, two cupboards and a pull out desktop with brass handles, Ernest Gimson (1864-1919), c.1904. This is probably the 'walnut chest of drawers and writing cabinet' purchased by Jane ‘Jeannie’ Gimson (1859-1923) from her brother-in-law for £30 on 16 December 1904 (The Wilson, Cheltenham, 2006.5.286d). Although previously attributed to Sidney Barnsley (1865-1926), a design drawing by Gimson for an almost identical piece is held at The Wilson, Cheltenham (1941.222.347). The chest was presented to Basil Gimson (1887-1953) on his 21st birthday in 1908, and furnished his home at Five Oaks, Hampshire before Stoneywell, Leicestershire.
Provenance
Secretaire-chest attributed to Ernest Gimson (1864-1919), probably the 'Walnut chest of drawers and writing cabinet' purchased by Jane ‘Jeannie’ Gimson (1859-1923) for £30 on 16 December 1904. Presented to her son, Basil (1887-1953) on his 21st birthday in 1908. Furnished Five Oaks, Hampshire then Stoneywell, Leicestershire from 1947. Thence by descent and on loan to the National Trust since 2012.
Makers and roles
Ernest Gimson (1864 - 1919), designer previously catalogued as by Sidney Howard Barnsley (1865 - 1926), maker