Dressing stool
attributed to Gillow & Co.
Category
Furniture
Date
circa 1810
Materials
Ebonised beech, cane
Measurements
61 x 47 x 47 cm
Place of origin
England
Order this imageCollection
Belton House, Lincolnshire
NT 434907
Summary
An ebonised dressing table stool, attributed to Gillow & Co. London, circa 1810. With a twist turned bar back and caned seat, raised on sabre legs.
Full description
Gillow(s), Lancaster and London; cabinet makers, furnishers and upholsterers (c.1730 - after 1840) The firm of Gillow(s) was based in Lancaster although a full London branch had been established in Oxford St. from 1769 trading as Gillow & Co. Previously unrecorded receipts in the Belton archive provide a fascinating insight into the professional relationship between Gillow & Co. and Lord Brownlow between the years 1810-1833. The receipts not only document furniture made and supplied to Belton but also list textiles, carpets, curtain pelmets, window cornices and other furnishings. They list colour schemes, fabrics and linings down to the detail of tassels and fringes on cushions. The time taken by their men to fit and furnish the house ‘incidents and men’s time cutting out and making up’ and the packing and cartage required to move goods from London as well as correspondence regarding details and payments give us a new perspective on the relationship between craftsman and patron. It is not always possible to match furniture and furnishings exactly to the receipts but through research and previously published Gillow designs some attributions can be made with confidence.For further general discussion and extensive research see: Stuart, Susan 'Gillows of Lancaster and London 1730 - 1840' (2008) 2 vols This dressing table stool probably relates to 'A dressing stool to match ditto, handle at the back and caned seat £1-14-0' the receipt dated July 1810 from Gillow & Co. Oxford Street, London to the Honourable Lord Brownlow. This stool relates to a dressing table which is probably the one listed in the Belton collection (NT 435076). James Weedon (December 2018)
Provenance
Probably supplied to Belton by Gillow & Co. London in 1810. Purchased with a grant from the National Heritage Memorial Fund (NHMF) from Edward John Peregrine Cust, 7th Baron Brownlow (b.1936) in 1984.
Makers and roles
attributed to Gillow & Co., furniture designer and maker
References
Stuart, Susan 'Gillows of Lancaster and London 1730 - 1840' (2008) 2 vols.