Today in History…

April 21 2009, 1:12pm

On April 21, 1688 William III and Mary Stuart were proclaimed king and queen of England. Their reign represented a period of transition in the decorative arts, with Dutch and French tastes influencing the gradually developed style. “Elaborate turnings, carvings in high relief, severe curves, large unified shapes, and contrasts of color were typical elements”1 of this period in the decorative arts.

A very rare pair of William and Mary walnut torcheres in our collection, circa 1690, employ a pierced double-bind turning with a shaped and inlaid base raised on bun feet. The tray to the top is inlaid with ebony and bone. Another example of the William and Mary taste is found in a pair of gilt-bronze twelve-light chandeliers by E. F. Caldwell, circa 1900. The design for the present chandeliers was undoubtedly taken from a model made by Francis Garthorne (fl. 1690-1713), frequently employed by William and Mary, for the King’s Presence Chamber at Hampton Court (circa 1690), the former royal residence, now part of the Royal Collection. The four shell-topped cartouches that surmount the top of both the original and the Caldwell chandeliers contain the symbols of a rose, a fleur-de-lys, a thistle and a harp. These represent England, Wales, Scotland and Ireland, respectively, and are the symbols adorning, among other objects, the Hampton House Palace gates. Footnote: 1. Butler, Joseph T., Kathleen Eagen Johnson, and Ray Skibinski. Field Guide to American Antique Furniture. New York: H. Holt, 1986. 25.