May 14, 2026 10:00 EST
Old Master Paintings / Silver / English & Continental Furniture
551
Set of Six George III Mahogany Fiddle Back Side Chairs
Property from a European Decorative Arts Collector
Attributed to Gillows of Lancaster, circa 1770
Each with three serpentine pierced horizontal splats flanked by turned uprights above a padded white silk damask upholstered drop-in seat, on bamboo-turned legs joined by stretchers.
Height 36 inches (91.4 cm), width 20 inches (50.8 cm), depth 16 1/2 inches (41.9 cm).
Related Gillows workshop drawings are preserved at Winterthur Museum, searchable in its digital collections.¹
¹ Winterthur Museum, Garden & Library, Gillow & Co. drawings,
https://digitalcollections.winterthur.org/Documents/Detail/gillow-co.-drawings/62284?item=62288
Footnote:
The present set of chairs closely relates to two documented Gillows of Lancaster and London designs featuring shaped horizontal splats. In 1764, Richard Gillow wrote to Wilson & Brown of the Strand requesting a sketch of similar examples, describing "very neat chairs...with ribs fix'd level back to back...[and] seats made hollow before upholstered," (Susan Stuart, Gillows of Lancaster and London, 1730–1849, vol. 1 (Antique Collectors’ Club, 2008), vol. 1, 155–56, pls. 103–105). A related design, illustrated in December 1769 for Captain John Hasell of the East India Company, features cluster-column legs. Another watercolor in the Gillow archive depicts a near-identical model with a solid seat and bamboo-turned legs. Known as "fiddle-back" chairs, the type takes its name from the open fret splats resembling the forms of violins. This set further retains finely made, original semi-circular mahogany front corner blocks, a characteristic feature of this firm's construction during the period.
Property from a European Decorative Arts Collector
Attributed to Gillows of Lancaster, circa 1770
Each with three serpentine pierced horizontal splats flanked by turned uprights above a padded white silk damask upholstered drop-in seat, on bamboo-turned legs joined by stretchers.
Height 36 inches (91.4 cm), width 20 inches (50.8 cm), depth 16 1/2 inches (41.9 cm).
Related Gillows workshop drawings are preserved at Winterthur Museum, searchable in its digital collections.¹
¹ Winterthur Museum, Garden & Library, Gillow & Co. drawings,
https://digitalcollections.winterthur.org/Documents/Detail/gillow-co.-drawings/62284?item=62288
Footnote:
The present set of chairs closely relates to two documented Gillows of Lancaster and London designs featuring shaped horizontal splats. In 1764, Richard Gillow wrote to Wilson & Brown of the Strand requesting a sketch of similar examples, describing "very neat chairs...with ribs fix'd level back to back...[and] seats made hollow before upholstered," (Susan Stuart, Gillows of Lancaster and London, 1730–1849, vol. 1 (Antique Collectors’ Club, 2008), vol. 1, 155–56, pls. 103–105). A related design, illustrated in December 1769 for Captain John Hasell of the East India Company, features cluster-column legs. Another watercolor in the Gillow archive depicts a near-identical model with a solid seat and bamboo-turned legs. Known as "fiddle-back" chairs, the type takes its name from the open fret splats resembling the forms of violins. This set further retains finely made, original semi-circular mahogany front corner blocks, a characteristic feature of this firm's construction during the period.
With previous restorations, please note Doyle does not guarantee the condition of upholstery or overupholstered furniture frames.
Any condition statement is given as a courtesy to a client, is an opinion and should not be treated as a statement of fact and our Organization shall have no responsibility for any error or omission. Please contact the specialist department to request further information or additional images that may be available.
Auction: Old Master Paintings / Silver / English & Continental Furniture, May 14, 2026
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Auction of Old Master & 19th Century Paintings & Drawings on May 13, 2026
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Johan Julius Ringdahl's Achilles Mourning the Death of Patroclus Achieves a World Auction Record for the Artist
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Consignments Are Currently Being Accepted for Future Auctions
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We Invite You to Contact Us for a Complimentary Auction Evaluation of Your Collection
NEW YORK, NY -- Doyle held an auction of Old Master & 19th Century Paintings & Drawings on May 13, 2026 presenting works spanning the 16th through 19th centuries, including portraits, still lifes and landscapes, along with religious, historical and mythological subjects.
Johan Julius Ringdahl
A highlight of the sale was Achilles Mourning the Death of Patroclus, a rare neoclassic work by the Swedish artist Johan Julius Ringdahl (1813-1882), which tripled its $8,000-12,000 estimate, selling for an impressive $35,200—A World Auction Record for the Artist. A graduate of the Royal Swedish Academy of Fine Arts who chiefly concentrated on portraiture and genre scenes, Ringdahl’s depiction of the first episode of the eighteenth book of Homer’s Iliad was almost certainly painted on commission for a serious lover of Greek poetry. It is a poignant evocation of the hero’s grief at the death of his friend Patroclus, who has been killed in battle by the Trojan prince Hector. Equally moving is the presence of Achilles’s mother, the sea goddess Thetis, who has come to comfort him. As she touches her son’s shoulder tenderly, she presents him with the new shield and armor just made for him by the smith god Hephaestus, offering him a way forward to fulfill his destiny.
Additional Categories in the Sale
Special sections of the sale will also showcase English & Continental Silver, lots 63-193 (Read More) on Wednesday, May 13 and English & Continental Furniture & Decorative Arts, lots 301-710 (Read More) on Thursday, May 14.
We Invite You to Auction!
Consignments are currently being accepted for future auctions. We invite you to contact us for complimentary auction estimates. Our Specialists are always available to discuss the sale of a single item or an entire collection.
