Thirlestaine House: A History Full of Art

Thirlestaine House in Cheltenham once housed one of the greatest picture collections in the nineteenth century.  It was originally built by an amateur architect named J.R. Scott in 1820.  British Listed Buildings describes the house as follows: 'Thirlestaine House represents the apogee of the Cheltenham villa and is the only surviving example of the grand villa …

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Prized Porcelain: James Giles and Worcester Porcelain

A Worcester Teacup and Saucer by the atelier of James Giles from the Saltram Service Mackinnon Fine Furniture Collection James Giles (1718-1780) was an outstanding English porcelain and glass painter who worked for all of the major porcelain manufacturers, including Worcester, Derby, Bow, and Chelsea.  Giles’ father, also James Giles, was a ‘China Painter’ by …

Friday Finds: A Look Back at the Archives

A Pair of George III Marquetry Card Tables attributed to John Cobb from Stowe, Buckinghamshire Mackinnon Fine Furniture Collection We are continuing our series 'Friday Finds' looking at some archival material related to the exceptional pair of Stowe card tables in our collection. This very fine pair of George III kingwood and brass-inlaid card tables …

The Age of Walnut Exhibition Spotlight: A Pair of George II Green Japanned Bureau Bookcases

A Pair of George II Green Japanned Bureau Bookcases attributed to Giles Grendey Mackinnon Fine Furniture Collection Our Age of Walnut exhibition continues in the gallery this week, and today we are highlighting a magnificent piece from the exhibition. We are always on the search for the rare, the unique, and the magnificent.  We are delighted …

To Pick a Colour…

We are revisiting one of our favourite topics today: working with antiques allows you to see a piece transform and come back to life, all with a simple change of upholstery.  It is incredible to see how much a chair's carved or gilded appearance can be enhanced with the right colour fabric.  We thought we would …

Dressing Decadently: A Queen Anne Black & Gilt Japanned Dressing Mirror

We are delighted to present this exceptional Queen Anne black and gilt japanned dressing mirror.  The shaped mirror frame features turned supports on uprights, the fall front below has a stepped interior of pigeon holes and drawers, and the base drawers contains a nest of compartments and comb slots. The whole is decorated with the …

The Kidney Desk: A History

We are delighted to share one of our latest acquisitions: this very fine 19th century walnut kidney desk with ebonised moulding and parquetry inlay.  The green vellum lined top with its brass gallery surround stands above three frieze drawers and cupboard doors opening to reveal interior fitted drawers.  The reverse of the desk features central open …

Celebrating Celadon: A Ceramic History

Celadon is a celebrated type of pottery that originated in Asia and is defined by its distinctive jade green glaze. Although the pottery comes from Asia, the term 'celadon' is European.  It is possible that the 17th century shepherd Celadon in Honoré d'Urfé's L'Astrée is linked to the origin of the term, as he was known for …

A Peek at the Past: Japanning as Craft

In the course of doing research on pieces in our collection, we came across this wonderful record of a letter that Edmund Verney wrote to his daughter Molly in 1689.  Molly was at school at 'Great Chelsey' when she received the following encouragement from her father: I find you have a desire to learn to …

The Feet on Furniture: Animal Paw Feet

If you had a look at our Instagram today, you would have seen that we are starting a new Friday tradition taking a close look at the feet on pieces of furniture in our collection. We will explore the different styles and motifs that were popular throughout the 18th century on chairs, table, chests, and …