1870s Building and Garden Elements

A large and grand 19th Century Scottish Victorian arched spandrel fireplace surround in well figured Carrara marble. A generous top shelf with an edged profile sits gracefully abov...

George Trollope and Sons. Exhibited at the Paris Universal Exhibition in 1878 winning a Gold Medal for Excellence. The set forms the four sides of a complete panelled room that was exhibited as a boudoir room or petit salon at the Paris Exhibition 1878 . The main feature and centrepiece of this boudoir room is the Rosso Antico marble fireplace surmounted by an open display niche carved in cedar wood. Each side of the room is composed of various panels and are as follows: One side with a grand Rosso Antico marble fireplace flanked by two doorways. One side with French doors originally opening onto a balcony, flanked by two large bookshelves. One side with a window flanked by two mirrors. The opposite side with three large mirrors. The complete room measures: 21 ft / 6.4 m wide, 17 ft / 5.18 m deep, and 12 ft / 3.65 m high. It could also be used in a number of different combinations to suit various room layouts. The mirrors could be replaced with windows or further bookcases. Each side is decorated with various sizes of finely carved panels and holds ornate Corinthian style columns surmounted with cherubim's on the capitals. Three cherubs are formed at the top of each corner with three columns, at the column bases there are circular carved pedestals to display statues. Published & illustrated in the ‘Illustrated Catalogue of the Paris International Exhibition’. The main part of this room, the Rosso Antico marble fireplace is surmounted by a large open display niche carved in cedar wood are illustrated with a line drawing in the Paris Universal Exhibition catalogue on page 209. The whereabouts of the seminaked caryatids and the marble bust of Alexander Pope are unknown. The bust of Alexander Pope was copied from the original one in Westminster Abbey, London. The Corinthian columns now flanking the niche above the fireplace are also in cedar wood having the identical carved fluting to the rest of the room and were made to replace the caryatid figures. Those Corinthian columns are period to the room and can only have been made shortly after it arrived back to London and before it was reassembled and fitted into the house built by George Trollope and Sons in the 1880's, and where we removed it all from. George Trollope made clever use of Alexander Pope's early 18th-century poetical successes in Great Britain and France by using ‘The Rape of Lock’, a mock-heroic narrative poem Pope wrote in 1712 about Petre who cut off a lock of Arabella’s hair without her permission, as the theme of the boudoir room or petit salon at the 1878 Paris Exhibition. In the original exhibition display of the room set, tapestries depicting the Rape of Lock were hung where the mirrors are now positioned. Alexander Pope's The Rape of the Lock is a humorous indictment of the vanities and idleness of 18th-century high society. Basing his poem on an actual incident among two families of his acquaintance, Pope intended his verses to quench hot tempers and to encourage his friends to laugh at their own foolishness. The poem is an outstanding example in the English language of the genre of mock-epic. The 'epic' was considered one of the most serious of literary forms; it had been applied, in the classical period, to the trivialities of love and war. Pope’s mock-epic is not to mock the form itself, but to mock his society in its very failure to rise to epic standards, exposing its pettiness by casting it against the grandeur of the traditional epic subjects and the bravery and fortitude of epic heroes: Pope’s mock-heroic treatment in The Rape of the Lock underlines the ridiculousness of a society in which values have lost all proportion, and the trivial is handled with the gravity and solemnity that ought to be accorded to truly important issues. The 18th-century society in this poem fails to distinguish between things that are important and things that are not. The poem mocks the men it portrays by representing them as unworthy of a heroic culture. Therefore the mock-epic follows the epic in that its main concerns are serious and moral. The point that the theme must now be satirical rather than earnest is symptomatic of how far the culture has fallen. Retaining the original exhibition label The back of the panelling still retains two original labels printed with the 'Union Jack' and printed adjacent to it, 'The Secretary Royal British Commission for the Universal Exhibition 1878 Champ de Mars Paris'. Adjacent to that and below, printed and written in ink vertically: Exhibitor: (and signed in ink) George Trollope & Sons. Address: (written in ink) Halkin Street West. London. Allotment in Block: (written in ink) a2. In the printed floor plan 'a2 square' is in the very first line to the right of the floor plan and handwritten in ink with a 'diamond shape' also written with '101' within it. This pin points where George Trollope's stand was located. With thousands of items being displayed at the Exhibition, this label would have been the floor plan for the craftsmen, so they knew the correct place to install the boudoir room or petit salon. The firm continued expanding house building and interior decoration side of the business and by 1849 was also trading as an estate agency, letting and controlling property for the Grosvenor Estates. A separate branch of cabinet-makers, bearing the family name, was opened at West Halkin Street, London. becoming known as 'The Museum of Decorative Arts' (looked after by George Robinson). Here Trollope and Sons also sold high-class antique furniture made by other makers. In 1851, the firm became formally known as George Trollope and Sons. West Halkin Street, London. The address was recorded in the listing for the firm in The Furniture Gazette Directory, 1876 & 1877. Period Press Coverage & Art Critic Review. everal newspapers also thoroughly describe George Trollope and Son's stand including the different tapestries that were hung where the mirrors are now, illustrating the poem 'The Rape of Lock', by Alexander Pope. Marius Vachon, a French Art Critic and journalist, who wrote for the journal ‘La France’ published an extensive review of the Trollope and Sons stand in a book called Les Merveilles de l'Exposition de 1878 (The Wonders of the 1878 Exhibition). Note: In the World Fairs translation it states door frame, Marius Vachon had originally written ‘chambranle’ in French, 'chambranle' loosely translates to a frame around something, and should read in its correct context: ‘fireplace in rosso antico’. We have taken the extract below written by Marius Vachon in its translated form from: Les Merveilles de l'Exposition de 1878, (The Wonders of the 1878 Exhibition). This puts into perspective the importance of this fine quality room interior when he viewed it at the exhibition in 1878: Marius Vachon: English furniture is very curious to observe; irreproachable from the point of view of execution, the furniture of our neighbours always reaches the last degree of respectability and comfort. One thing to be noticed is that for large pieces of furniture, the English upholsterer is transformed into a sort of architect; everything he makes takes on a monumental aspect. The first object that catches the eye when one enters the furniture class is the beautiful boudoir-salon exhibited by Mr. Trollope. The boudoir (or petit salon), of carved cedar wood, is an attempt to reproduce the style which prevailed in England during the first decade of Queen Anne's reign, and all the details have been studied, but not copied, from examples of decorative work of the time. The fireplace is in "rosso antico" movement, and the ceiling is in portable plaster. The panels painted on canvas represent scenes from the heroic-comic poem "The Abduction of the Hairpin," (The Rape of Lock) written by Alexander Pope in 1712, the eighth year of Queen Anne's reign, in which the customs and mores of the time are satirized in a pleasing manner. The apotheosis of the Loop and its sidereal transformations will form the decoration of the ceiling. In these illustrations of Pope's charming poem, the costumes and accessories have been taken from models of the time; and the bust of the poet, copied from his tomb in Westminster Abbey, occupies the niche in the centre of the mantelpiece. M. Marius Vachon, the period writer of the above continues with: Now we shall mention at random the magnificent dining table of Messrs. Johnston and Co., their oak mantelpiece, their boudoir table; Mr. Watt's drawing-room mantelpiece stepped in the old style and imitating the Japanese; Mr. James Shoolbred's great The Decorative Arts Society on Trollope and Sons The boudoir or petit salon is mentioned again in the Decorative Arts Society: Trollope did not exhibit such highly rated objects at the 1878 Paris Exhibition as at previous exhibitions; items included a large mirror frame carved in limewood in Renaissance style and a satinwood cabinet in Adam revival style, with a similar armchair (illus. Meyer (2006), p. 242) and probably two rooms; one was a boudoir in cedar wood in Queen Anne style and the other was a boudoir decorated by the firm in the theme of Pope’s The Rape of Lock. In the above extract, it is quite clear that the two rooms mentioned are in fact the very same room, because the fireplace and niche are illustrated in The Paris Universal Exhibition catalogue on page 209 and Marius Vachon describes the rest of the room set in the above… Trollope and Sons exhibition pieces listed and described by Meyer in an article he wrote for: The Decorative Arts Society 1850 to present, Journal 25 in 2001., where he points out the importance of George Trollope and Sons and mentions a table by Trollope exhibited at the 1867 exhibition that sold for £40,000 in 1996. He also mentions a cabinet exhibited by Trollope at the International Exhibition of 1862 that sold at Sotheby's in 1997 for £150,000. Interest was not as strong in the 1990's as it is today for rare exhibition pieces, high quality items were abundant back then, it was a golden era when the most beautiful works of art just kept coming onto the market. But there are exceptions as in this instance, when a unique, gold medal-winning exhibition work of art comes onto the market for the very first time. Meyer continued researching and writing about the great exhibitions and released his book in 2006, 'The Great Exhibitions, London, New York, Paris and Philadelphia 1851- 1900, where he mentions only in passing, The Boudoir Room or Petite Salon exhibited by Trollope, he even states that an image was not reproduced and that Trollope's exhibits in 1878 were not up to the quality and class of the items Trollope exhibited in London in 1862 and Paris in 1868. This is probably because Meyer didn't know of the line drawing illustrating the Roso Antico Fireplace, Niche and Panelling reproduced in The Illustrated Catalogue of the Paris International Exhibition 1878 shown in the above which Geering recently uncovered. John Meyer continues in the DAS journal: Undoubtedly they (Trollope) are a firm worthy of further research as they were right at the forefront of the furniture business in London from 1860 to 1880. Our research shows that the Petite Boudoir was awarded the gold medal for excellence in 1878 (see Journal La Liberté 23-10-1878 with the list of all medals attributed), something George Trollope and Sons did not achieve at the London 1862 and the Paris 1867 exhibitions. Jonathan Meyer joined Bonham's in 1977. He was Director at Sotheby's in charge of 19th Century Furniture from 1994 to June 2007. He was also chairman of the Fine Arts Faculty for The Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors. In the original description from the article in Les Merveilles de l’exposition de 1878, M. Marius Vachon states: The first object that catches the eye when one enters the (English) furniture class is the beautiful boudoir-salon exhibited by Mr. Trollope. Suggesting, it was in his opinion the very best on display in the English section, and being awarded the gold medal for excellence can only add weight to this. Adjacent to the original label that was printed by The Secretary - Royal British Commission for the Universal Exhibition 1878 in stencil ‘TO BE KEPT’, i.e. ‘to be returned’. This confirms why it came back to London. We removed the Boudoir Room or Petite Salon from a Trollope house, part of a grand high-class housing estate in London which around the time of the exhibition Trollope and Sons were in the process of building, and where the room set was installed directly after it returned from the exhibition in 1878 until now. Worthy of note is the machines that did the carving for the Boudoir Room or Petite Salon and also did all of the decorative carving (most of which was linenfold carving) for the Houses of Parliament, London. This machine, the engraving and description of which we copy from Engineering, was specially designed by its inventor, Mr. Jordan, for assisting in the production of the vast amount of carved decorations required for the walls and ceilings of the Houses of Parliament, London, and it was so employed during the entire progress of the work. The late Sir Charles Barry was so well satisfied with it, that he frequently declared it would have been impossible to have accomplished the work without it. The Department of Woods and Forests employed five of the machines at the Government Works, Thames Bank, for several years; and the machines have now passed into the hands of Messrs. George Trollope and Son, and are still used in the same building. They also exhibited the new technique of xylatechnography and sgraffito, methods of impressing coloured design into soft wood and engraving veneer to reveal the base wood. The newspaper, La Liberte October, 23rd 1878 listing the medal winners of the Paris 1878 exhibition. Third column, ''GROUPE III MOBILIER ET ACCESSOIRES'', (GROUP III FURNITURE AND ACCESSORIES). Medailles d'or. (Gold Medals) where G Trollope et fils (G Trollope and Sons...

Corinthian Capital, French, of finely hand carved wood finished with 24 carats gold leafing. The architectural element which can serve as a side table features a hand carved décor o...

This is a heavy antique Patent fireproof safe. An English, cast iron lock box by Milners of Liverpool, dating to the Victorian period, circa 1870. Superb example of Milners’ renowned 212 Patent fireproof model Exceptionally robust cast iron construction with fire-resistant lining Distinctive deep green exterior finish with appealing aged patina Striking relief medallion to fascia, bearing Milners of Liverpool maker’s mark Secondary lid plaque features coat of arms motif and engraved details Lid opens smoothly and remains upright via hinged internal stays Attractive bright green interior offers pleasing contrast and practical storage Fascia hosting a lock escutcheon — in working order, key present Equipped with stout carry handles to each side for two-person lift Ideal as a unique statement piece for office, hallway, or retail interior This antique Milners safe...

Fabulous and freshly painted mid victorian cast iron garden bench Strong and stable as the day it was made with a cross x stretcher between the 4 legs Ornate with precise castings of...

A large and versatile 19th Century Victorian lightly veined Carrara marble fireplace surround. A generous top shelf rests above a stepped frieze with a high relief central flower. Fl...

Designed by Dr C Dresser for Colebrookdale A cast iron Aesthetic Movement garden Canopy Seat named 'Waterplants'. The first image here is an example to ...

An Aesthetic Movement Victorian cast iron garden table by G Hufton of Birmingham with stylised floral and zig-zag details throughout, an arched stretcher uniting the side uprights st...

Antique French Store Counter Repurposed by our Old Plank Artisans into a Country French Style Kitchen Island. The Antique White French Oak...

Sculptural pair of American lightning rods dating from the 1870's. They still maintain their original copper skin on its wrought iron twist rod staff wh...

A fine example of an oversized cast iron 19th century polychrome hand crank coffee grinder embossed with “Enterprise Mfg Co, Philadelphia USA” on each wheel and on base, “ Pat Oct 2...

19th Century French Louis XIV Wrought Iron Bombe Balcony Railing is a stunning work of the metal sculptor's art! Hand-forged during the heyday of the Napoleon III Period, it feature...

Nice decorative pair of late 19th cast iron planters French circa 1870’s 12 inches high 16 inches diameter

This is a delightful antique log layer. An English, copper and brass fireside fuel tray, dating to the Victorian period, circa 1870. Showcasing distinctive Cornish copper craftsmansh...

19th century copies of renaissance examples each with lions over cartouches and bracket legs with winged caryatids. The design of these is very reminiscent of Jacque I Androuet du C...

Set of 19th century French wrought iron balustrades ~ window guards were designed to beautify the exterior as well as provide a safeguard railing to the low-hung windows in vogue at the time. This pair were designed to be very complementary but not identical, probably appearing on different walls of the same home. The classic French scrolls with stamped flower motifs create a pleasing visual appeal that was designed to enhance the exterior architecture...

3-791 English cast iron lyre boot scraper resting on an oval scalloped edge base late 19th century

A fine and rare terra-cotta figure of Flora in contrapposto pose, classically robed with hair swept up and in curls, with a floral wreath in the figure’s proper right hand, and a nos...

A beautiful set of two antique andirons, decorative elements for the fireplace. These are made of gilded bronze, with beautiful figures of a boy and a girl reaching out to each other...

Splendid Pair of Minton Majolica Cobalt-Blue Ground Reticulated Garden Seats Shape no. 1364. Each hexagonal, with a paneled side pierced in the Aesthetic style with yellow-centered w...

Pair of American cast iron dachshund fire place andirons with painted eyes, mouth, and curled tails. Late 19th century.

F. Barbedienne fonduer Ferdinand Barbedienne (6 August 1810 – 21 March 1892) was a French metalworker and manufacturer, who was well known as a bronze founder. The son of a small farmer from Calvados, he started his career as a dealer in wallpaper in Paris. In 1838 he went into partnership with Achille Collas (1795-1859), who had just invented a machine to create miniature bronze replicas of statues. Together they started a business selling miniatures of antique statues from museums all over Europe, thus democratising art and making it more accessible to households.[2] From 1843 they extended their scope by reproducing the work of living artists and also diversified by making enamelled household objects. With the outbreak of the Franco-Prussian war in 1870 the firm briefly had to switch to cannon founding owing to the shortage of metals but resumed business afterwards. Following Barbedienne's death in 1892, he was buried in the Père-Lachaise cemetery and the firm was carried on by his nephew Gustave Leblanc until 1952. Among the principal artists reproduced by the firm were Antoine Louis Barye and Auguste Rodin. The Dying Galata (Italian: Galata morente...

These beautiful reclaimed antique Carrara marble floor tiles are recuperated out of old castles and mansions. They are from the 18th, 19th and 20...

This is an antique coal purdonium. An English, walnut and brass fireside fuel keep, dating to the Victorian period, circa 1870. A fine example o...

A large copper container having welded seam, flat lipped rim and a hinged lid with lift ring and hole. Retaining original well-utilized and workshop-aged surface. Good size for logs ...

A two-tier cast-iron fountain with two fountain bowls, the lower bowl larger, each bowl with scalloped edge and cherub masks on the underside, the smaller bowl surmounted by a founta...

Rare salvaged young Queen Victoria Coronation Railings circa 1877 depicting crown and braid profile. These were balcony facade railings from an ol...

Set of American brass fire tools on stand with urn finial tops resting on squared decorative hand chased base. Set consist of shovel, tong, and poker. Late 19th Century.

Very unique double oak doors with overlight. Recuperated out of a mansion near Paris, France. We have 5 sets of them.

A Scottish 19th century Victorian pencil veined Carrara marble fireplace surround. A classic Scottish design in a prominent well figured marble. A squ...

A Magnificent Pair of Italian Carrara Marble Medici Vases with Neoclassical Motifs in Relief. Standing tall at an impressive height of 30 inches, t...

A large 19th century George II style Dog grate in steel and brass. The broken front leg supports capped with steeple finials, flanking a decorative cut brass fret with geometric apro...

A pair of antique gilt bronze fireplace andirons in renaissance style. Coups with on top flames, flanked with ram heads, resting on lions...

These Vernacular door knobs were made by Hopkins & Dickinson in the 1879 catalog. It is part of the K-21300 group. The ornate brass rosettes are newly made. The rosette mounting scre...

Dr C Dresser. An important and probably unique Aesthetic movement black marble fire surround, with stylized bull rushes and floral incised g...

A substantial and impressive architectural late 19th century profusely carved pine and lime wood fireplace surround in the Georgian manner of R...

A Whimsical Antique Chinese Frog planter with textured body in a bright spring green glaze over black with lavender eyes. These planters were a st...

Elegant Gothic Revival ebonized pedestal from the 19th century. Carved Lion heads are set on 4 sides with carved paw feet at base. Ebonized carved wood. 1870s USA. Measures: top 14...

Iron Campaign adjustable folding chair/chaise/bed. Wilson's 1871. Early industrial design. Multi-position. Chair, chaise longue, bed.

American cast bronze garden fountain with standing figural boy holding Koi fish on a two-tiered shell form scrolled base with turtle at his feet, Late 19th century.

Antique Italian holy water font from the second half of the 19th century. Tub in veined red marble in seventeenth-century style composed of a circular basin with molded edge and mult...

A beautiful French antique fireplace screen, dating from circa 1870-1880. Crafted in bronze with a beautifully aged patina, this piece features an elegant Rococo design with finely c...

American cast iron two tiered foliage fountain with central fluted bulbous plumed column, flanking decorative swans, and resting on an arched circular bulbous base. Fiske / Mott, New...

A 19th century Black Forest jardinière hand carved of solid walnut in the Alsace region of France, circa 1870s. The detailed, intricately carved wood planter features a realistic han...

Antique French empire fireplace screen, made of wood, faux bamboo, second Empire period, France, 2nd half of the 19th century It is in empire black color with touches of gold on the ...

19th century English brass trimmed wrought iron nursery guard with wide "fish-net" mesh. Used originally to protect pets and children from the fireplace. Now a decorative accessory.

A superb, tall and elegant 19th century rare Victorian corbeled and panelled period fireplace in rich variated- fossilised soft Grey Ashburton marble...

Antique Dutch fireplace mantel to place around the chimney from the 19th Century.

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A mid 19th century French Louis XV style fireplace in Breche Violette marble. The curved shaped, stop-fluted jambs surmounted by ormolu mounted carved paterae, frieze and moulded she...

Very nice grey marble vintage wall fountain to place in to your garden.

Hand-carved in France, circa 1870, this small brocatelle marble mantel once graced the fireplace of a Parisian apartment. Brocatelle marble is named after the famous Italian fabric b...

A beautiful 19th century French oval shaped and carved walnut jardinière or planter raised on a turned and carved baluster with a tripod base, circa 1870s. Carved on all sides with a...

Yellow/pink Marble Boudin Freplace Mantel from the 19th Century to place in front of the chimney. For all other sizes, see the last photo.

Pair of circa 1880 American molded copper architectural building ornaments in the best original verdigris surface. Now wired for hanging. Supper original surface.

This exquisite antique cast stone garden urn, inspired by Victorian-era English jardinieres, is a stunning example of classical garden design and timeless craftsmanship. Dating back ...

A large Baroque style cast iron Victorian fire basket with a shaped fire back, a two barred serpentine shaped grate mounted with a pair of brass ...

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A simple Scottish 19th Century Victorian splayed cast iron fireplace insert by the renowned Carron of Falkirk foundry. An outer frame with a raised border splayed sides envelop to t...