A GEORGE III GILTWOOD GIRANDOLE

This girandole can be attributed to William France and John Bradburn due to its many close similarities to the girandoles they supplied to Sir Laurence Dundas (d.1781) for his London mansion at 19 Arlington Street. They were part of a lavish renovation and refurbishment of all the Dundas properties which was under the direction of Robert Adam. His work for Dundas, which employed the era’s most renowned cabinet-makers, resulted in what is now recognized as the one of the greatest collections of 18th century furniture.

France and Bradburn supplied girandoles to Dundas in two sizes and they are documented in the records of both parties. A pair in the smaller size, comparable to this girandole, remains with the descendants of Lord Dundas at Aske Hall, Yorkshire (A. Coleridge, ‘Some Rococo Cabinet-makers and Sir Laurence Dundas,’ Apollo, September 1967, p.217, fig. 4). A pair in the larger size was sold from the Collection of Ogden Phipps at Sotheby’s, New York, New York, 19 October 2002, lot 75 and subsequently offered at Christie’s, London, 9 July 2015, lot 155.