A NEAR PAIR OF GEORGE II GILT-GESSO AND GILTWOOD PIER MIRRORS

H.R.H. The Duchess of Kent (née Princess Marina of Greece and Denmark) (1906-1968) married the younger son of H.M. King George V in 1934, settling at 3 Belgrave Square and The Coppins, Buckinghamshire. Celebrated for their impeccable taste and style, the couple epitomised the glamour of the 1930s, before the Duke of Kent's early death, during the Second World War.

These mirrors were later bought by the celebrated collector Mrs. Robert Tritton, for her home at Godmersham, Kent. Built in 1732, for Thomas May Knight, Godmersham Park is the epitome of an 18th-century country house of medium size. Eventually inherited by Edward Austen, the brother of Jane Austen, the novelist; Godmersham is often cited as the inspiration for Mansfield Park. After years of neglect it was purchased in 1935 by Robert Tritton and his wife Elsie, who, with the help of the architect Walter Sorrell, set about much needed renovations and creating 'the 1930s ideal of what constituted 18th-century taste' and building a superb collection of French and English 18th-century furniture, which 'was Robert Tritton’s particular joy'.