Chair
William Ince (1737–1804) and John Mayhew (1736–1811)
Category
Furniture
Date
circa 1760
Materials
Mahogany, beech frame, textile
Measurements
95 x 56 x 69 cm
Place of origin
London
Order this imageCollection
Dyrham, Gloucestershire
NT 453059.8
Summary
An armchair from a set of ten pieces of mahogany upholstered seat furniture, in the manner of William Ince (1737–1804) and John Mayhew (1736–1811) London, circa 1760. Comprising of four armchairs and six side chairs. The waved top rail above a padded back and seat, the armchairs with fully upholstered arm panels, above a scroll and lunette carved seat rail continuing to corner brackets or spandrels and raised on square section legs carved with blind fret work and joined by angled square section fluted baluster stretchers. All upholstered in a later floral patterned red damask.
Full description
Ince and Mayhew were a partnership of furniture designers, upholsterers and cabinetmakers, founded and run by William Ince (1737–1804) and John Mayhew (1736–1811) in London, from 1759 to 1803. Their premises were in Broad Street, Soho, 1763–83, and in Marshall Street, Carnaby Market, 1783–1809.The partnership was one of the most significant, probably the longest lived but, as far as identified furniture is concerned, the least well-documented of any of the major London cabinet makers of the 18th century. It is very difficult to attribute this type furniture to a specific workshop as there were many designs produced around the middle years of the 18th century which incorporated similar design features. Thomas Chippendale, Robert Mainwaring, William and John Linnell to name but a few were all publishing designs of a similar style and taste. Plates 4 and 21 of Ince and Mayhew’s volume of engraved designs, ‘The Universal System of Household Furniture’(published in parts, 1759–63) and dedicated to the Duke of Marlborough has engravings of various chair designs which share certain characteristics with the Dyrham seat furniture; the carved seat apron which continues into the corner spandrels, simplistic blind fret work to the front legs and the angled stretcher. See also: British and Irish Furniture Makers Online https://bifmo.data.history.ac.uk for a further discussion on Ince and Mayhew. James Weedon (December 2017)
Provenance
Indigenous collection purchased by Ministry of Works and given to Dyrham Park in 1961
Makers and roles
William Ince (1737–1804) and John Mayhew (1736–1811), furniture designer and maker
References
Ince, William & Mahew, John 'The universal system of household furniture' Published in parts, 1759–63, plates 4 & 21