British Racks and Stands

This is a striking vintage stick stand. An English, copper and brass umbrella rack in Art Deco revival taste, dating to the late 20th century, circa 1970. A graceful reception hall p...

Stunning Nouveau coat racks made in bent walnut wood. Two pieces available. This charming coat racks were designed by the mastery of Michael Thonet and produced in the early 1900s in...

A delightful 19th century Victorian English mahogany lectern hand-crafted in England circa 1860 featuring a tilt top that can be placed at different angles, a well turned and banded ...

A classic design. It fits many decors.

Joseph Ellwood is a British designer and maker, he has been named one of 10 'Future Icons' in design by Wallpaper* magazine, collaborated with the luxury brand Rimowa and embarked on...

Philip Webb for Morris and Co. A rare walnut sheet music or folio stand with elongated turned finials, pierced circular decoration and a three quarter turned gallery below with three...

Tall English picture easel with London stamp. There are various holes to insert the rods that hold the painting. Interesting item ! ref. O/6809.

English mahogany Canterbury with brass handles and castors.

Stylish and seperable/demountable antique bookcase. This rare, three-tier and free standing bookcase could be the perfect finish to a small area for reading, rest and relaxation. Ho...

This petite sized oak umbrella stand features spool turned legs and sides, with carved finials at the top, bun feet and a galvanize metal removable drip pan. "While spool-turned is ...

Large Windsor and Newton artist’s fully adjustable studio easel raised up on trestle base terminating in four lignum vitae casters Dimensions Height 71.5 Inches ajustable to 97 Inche...

A very nice late 18th century blacksmith handwrought iron game rack with a center ring with six hooks supported by three arms. Game racks are used to hang small game meat such as fow...

This is an antique Canterbury stand. An English, mahogany three sectioned magazine or newspaper rack, dating to the Victorian period, circa 1900. Exuberant craftsmanship, ideal fo...

English Adam style (19th Cent) gilt easel stand with carved swag and plume top. Condition: Good; Wear consistent with age and use

19th century oak umbrella or cane stand from England. The back has lovely serpentine and scalloped details, which give it a lovely shape and will lend itself to a beautiful silhouet...

19th century oak corner walking stick stand from England. The top has a scalloped and hand carved decorated back, decorated further with hand turned finials for additional design in...

Circa 1880 carved umbrella & stick stand, English. Oak with central brass carrying handle. Bobbin turned, ball tipped standards & carved structure of leaves. Two large sections. Orig...

Dimitri Omersa has been quietly crafting unique leather animal foot stools and magazine holders .Dimitry continue to use traditional methods of cr...

Fabulous carved and paint decorated in the Arts & Crafts manner. Copper bottom with cutouts on all four sides. This item can be parcel posted. Feet to keep it elevated. In excellent ...

English Art & Crafts stained oak stand supporting an Asian bronze gong with striker.

Large late 19th century oak sculptors stand French circa 1890's Height 44 inches Width 24 inches Depth 19 inches

An English brass umbrella stand, circa 1920, with striking swan-head finials and elegantly cast palmed feet. The polished brass frame is both decorative and functional, offering a re...

This is an antique gentleman's stick stand. An English, gilt metal reception hall umbrella rack or loop, dating to the mid Victorian period, circa 1860. Magnificent stand, with fas...

English Regency rosewood pedestal base music stand with an adjustable lyre design rack and 2 side telescoping brass candleholders.

An English iron umbrella stand from the 20th century depicting a dog obediently sitting in front of a tree. Embrace the whimsical charm of this 20th-century English iron umbrella sta...

Late Sheraton English Canterbury in mahogany with four ring turned corner supports ending in brass castors. It features four downswept dividers above a single drawer.

A good Arts and Crafts oak Hall stand by Shapland and Petter with a seat to the left and a mirror and glove drawer to the right, the lower section with Shaplands typical square shape...

This antique walking stick or umbrella stand is unsigned, but presumed to have originated from England and date to approximately 1900 and done in the period Edwardian style. The stan...

An English, Aesthetic Period cast iron hall tree by John and Thomas Cox of Birmingham. This design was registered on October 6, 1884. This Victorian hall tree features a mirror, shel...

Orb finials and three compartment slats over a drawer with wood knobs, raised on turned legs.

RARE FIND~~ Antique English Barley Twist Dinner Gong with Original Mallet 33" tall x 24" wide x 15" deep Gong measures 15.5" round x 3" deep Mallet is 20.5" long Sturdy, solid ...

Most likely by Gillows of Lancaster. Excellent timber. Three shelves each with molded edges and carved volute brackets and panelled ends, raised on flattened ball feet with casters. ...

Mahogany Canterbury of good scale, fine turned legs finishing on brass cup casters, making it easy to move around. This large Canterbury has four slatted divisions, so plenty of spac...

Falkirk cast iron umbrella/stick stand, having an architectural top with flower head and foliated scrolls. The base with a removable drip tin all raised up on plinth base. Dimensions...

Good late 19th century English oak and brass umbrella stand with serpentine brass rail on brass rope twist support and shaped base, retaining original rain catcher, the back with pie...

Former English army shell case from the end of the 19th century beginning of the 20th century Large model which is unusual which can be used as an umbrella holder or stick stand or a...

Late 19th century oak umbrella or cane stand from England. This is a lovely umbrella stand, made solidly from nice English oak. The back legs are simple, to allow for easy placemen...

Art Deco Oak & Ebonised Hall stand/ hat & Coat Stand circa 1930s Arch shaped mirror, mirror glass recently re placed, Bombe shaped pedestal with Art Deco stylised, inlaid oak detai...

This is a fine antique stick stand. An English, golden oak cane or umbrella rack in Arts & Crafts taste, dating to the late Victorian period, circa 1900. With its striking colour, he...

A handcrafted thick saddle leather vintage British fire , powder bucket with handle and canvas interior . A matching strap handle with grommets attach it to the container which can b...

A 19th century English Aesthetic Movement umbrella or walking stick stand. Made of oak with decorative stick and ball design. Square wood body with curved and rounded bentwood trim a...

A rare Arts & Crafts oak record cabinet for holding 1978 (LP's do not fit into this cabinet but singles do). With a roll up door retaining the original key ...

A stunning 19th Century heavy cast iron umbrella or stick stand of exceptional quality. The finely wrought pierced back support surmounted with cherub is decorated intricately throu...

Circa 1900 period Edwardian oak still or umbrella stand that fits in a corner. The top is decorated with finials and a curved front rail and simple side rails. The top is supported...

An English Victorian period brass umbrella stand from the 19th century, with petit finials, red accents and removable low plaque with handles. Created in England during the reign of ...

A very nice early 20th Century umbrella / stick stand, made from tubular brass with cast iron base. Dates from the early 20th Century, a compact Demi Lume design which fits and look...

Aesthetic Bamboo Hall Stand, England circa 1870 The frame set with 4 turquoise Minton, Hollins & Co tiles decorated with cupids and butterflies Eboni...

Vintage Beech Shop Display Glove Stand circa 1930s Maker : Harris & Sheldoon Ltd B, Ham Mounted on Brass & Copper Telescopic stand Beech Carved Hand for glove Display. Brass & Cop...

With central finial and double lyre ratcheted sheet music holders and a single attached brass candle arm, raised on a turned reeded support, shaped triang...

Found in England, this large mahogany and brass hall stand dates from the 1920s. Stand features brass drying rods at the top, a single fixed shelf in the middle, umbrella stands at b...

A fine antique English burl walnut music Canterbury whatnot stand etagere, circa 1880. This late 19th century music Canterbury having a twin-tiered what...

Shapland and Petter in the Liberty style. An Arts & Crafts oak music or storage cabinet with slightly angled sides. The top display area with stylized cut-out to the back and extend...

Beautiful Victorian hand crafted wood and veneer Canterbury rack to hold sheet music or magazines with one drawer and brass wheels.

Royal House Antiques Royal House Antiques is delighted to offer for sale this stunning original Arts & Crafts Shapland & Petter Hall stand with hand hammered Copper panels over a Walnut frame with inset sheild mirror Please note the delivery fee listed is just a guide, it covers within the M25 only for the UK and local Europe only for international, if you would like an accurate quote please send me your postcode and I’ll provide you with the exact price A very good looking well made and decorative hat glove coat and scarf rack, this one is rare as it has the central mirror and its an earlier than usual example circa 1900 Made by Shapland & Petter, a full blub on their life and works can be found below In terms of the condition it is straight and solid, the piece sits well in any setting and looks decorative and very English country house, we have cleaned waxed and polished the timber, there is one hook slightly bent, otherwise its in fine order Dimensions Height:- 205cm Width:- 113cm Depth:- 40cm Please note all measurements are taken at the widest point, if you would like any additional or specific measurements please ask Shapland and Petter of Barnstaple Introduction This Barnstaple based company manufactured some of the finest pieces of furniture in Arts and Crafts style but very little has been written about the company or the pieces they produced. It a great shame that whilst Shapland and Petter pieces have been illustrated in books and auction catalogues they are invariably attributed to other makers such as Liberty and Co in London or Wylie and Lochhead in Glasgow. With this feature, we intend to inspire a more thorough appreciation of the work of the company; readers are invited to help with the task by sending photographs and information. Collectors and auction houses are now showing significantly more interest in Shapland and Petter pieces. The company, based in Barnstaple, England produced a very wide range of furniture in several different styles including many pieces in period reproduction and municipal style for town halls and commercial premises alongside their superb Arts and Crafts range Distinctive features of their superb Arts and Crafts style are the use of heart shaped piercing, geometric shapes with angled arches and the application of repousse copper panels. Decoration with marquetry, metal inlay, mounting of ceramic and enamel cabochons were techniques which they mastered with a combination of state of the art technology and traditional craftsmanship. Most distinctively, the pieces were extremely well made, with care and very best quality materials The growing interest in Shapland and Petter has raised many questions about the origins of the firm, and the sources of influence on their designs, some of which resemble designs by Ashbee, Ballie Scott, Voysey and Talwin Morris. Links have been assumed with Liberty and Co with the supposition Shapland and Petter worked on commissions for Liberty. There appears to be little evidence to support many of the assumptions which have developed around the company and this article is intended to help to start the discussion and to stimulate research The History of Shapland and Petter The Museum of North Devon in Barnstaple have an archive of Shapland and Petter which includes some company records and a small display of furniture and related items. The following text gives history of the company and is reproduced from the display boards in the museum with kind permission of North Devon Museums For over 100 years the Shapland and Petter factory has stood at the end of Barnstaple Long Bridge. Manufacturers of doors, door sets, and custom wood interiors, NT Shapland and Petter Ltd are still one of the towns largest employers. The company was established by Henry Shapland (b. 1823), a cabinet maker by trade. He embarked on a voyage to America in 1848, where he was inspired by an invention for a wave-moulding machine. He was only allowed to see it if he left the country immediately. Returning home with only rough notes, he reproduced the machine and in 1854 began a cabinet making business in one room at the Raleigh woolen mill in Pilton. Later the firm moved to Bear Street in Barnstaple. Henry Petter was an accountant who entered into partnership with Mr Shapland. The business progressed and in 1864 they bought the Raleigh Factory where Shapland first began his work. Success was rapid, but in 1888 the building burnt down. Immediately work began on a bigger and better factory - their present site by the Long Bridge - which included many modern inventions The two Henrys died within two years of each other - Petter in 1907 and Shapland in 1909. In 1924 Shapland and Petter merged with the Barnstaple Cabinet Company, producing North Devon's biggest industry. During the First World War Shapland and Petter's skilled craftsmen turned their hands to wooden propellers for the aircraft of the Royal Flying Corps. After the war, public tastes changed, and hand carved furniture was too expensive for many. Shapland and Petter's output now included elegant veneered pieces with smooth Art Deco lines. The company fitted out Pullman carriages and ocean liners and made hand-carved church furniture. The famous England Rugby Captain W. W. Wakefield was appointed Company Director in 1927. Throughout the depression of the late 1920's and early 1930's the company still managed to produce high quality work Furniture manufacturing continued until the outbreak of the Second World War in 1939. Many workers left to fight, while the factory worked on Air Ministry contracts for ammunition boxes. After the war came radio cabinets and laboratory and contract furniture, until eventually large quantities of doors were being produced for hospitals, hotels, schools, offices and other buildings. Examples of Shapland and Petter's work can be seen all over North Devon. In Barnstaple, the shop front at 109 High Street is a good example, and the interior of the old Lloyd's Bank, now Chamber's Brasserie, was also Shapland's work. Examples of carving by Shapland's men can be seen in two chairs and a reading desk in Barnstaple Parish Church As cabinet makers, Shapland and Petter employed up to 350 people at a time. There were designers, carvers, cabinet makers, machinists, polishers, and labourers. The company was one of the first to install American labour-saving devices and was keen to adopt the most up-to-date machinery The fire of 1888 at the Raleigh Cabinet Works was a huge loss for the company. However, it resulted in a new factory which was altogether more modern and better equipped. The new building by the river was arranged into blocks. The production line began with the saw mills and ended with the finishing rooms. There was modern machinery in every department - one of their saws was the first of its kind in Britain. Water sprinklers and electric lights were a necessity - this factory would not burn down As well as the furniture production, Shapland and Petter imported timber by sea and rail. The new factory 's facilities were exceptional Shapland and Petter were renowned for excellent design and workmanship. The carvers were highly skilled, serving seven year apprenticeships and attending classes at the Barnstaple School of Art. Ornately carved furniture required up to a hundred tools The factory produced made to order woodwork for banks, hotels, and shops; mantelpieces, paneling and staircases. They fitted out Pullman railway carriages, the London Guildhall, and Edgar Wallace 's dining room as well as houses like Tapeley Park in North Devon Much of the work involved intricate leaded glass panels, or inlaid fruitwood designs, like the white bedroom suite shown in the exhibition here. This type of work is typical of Art Nouveau 1895 to 1910, inspired by the fluid shapes of plants and flowers Many pieces were made from standard designs. There were hundreds to choose from, and a selection could be seen in local and London showrooms and in catalogues. Although mass-produced, this furniture was well-made by skilled technicians and modern machinery Arts and Crafts designs of Shapland and Petter The development of the Arts and Crafts Movement in the South West of England has not been written up in any detail though we do know of the Art Potters of Barnstaple from the excellent book of this name by Audrey Edgeler. Less is known of the Barnstaple Guild of Metal Workers. We know of the Bath Cabinet Makers and the Newlyn School of Industrial Art in Cornwall but very little has been written about the furniture makers of Barnstaple in Devon The establishment of a large cabinet making firm in Barnstaple is not remarkable in itself; there were several cabinet makers in the area. What is interesting is that this particular Barnstaple firm should become a leading maker of Arts and Crafts furniture, copying the styles of the leading Architect designers and creating their own unique style Critics may point out that as their work was commercially driven and reliant upon machines it therefore does not really qualify as Arts and Crafts. Whilst the company was highly innovative in machine technology, they also employed many craftsmen who worked with their hands in woodcarving, marquetry work, design and application of decorative copperwork and other artistic embellishment in the true Arts and Crafts tradition. Anyone who has experience of Shapland and Petter workmanship knows the level of craftsmanship invested in each piece Sources of inspiration There appears to be no evidence to link any known architect, artist or designer to the Shapland and Petter company. Their designs appear to have been created solely by their own internal design staff none of whom appear to have published or registered their work in any other context C. R. Ashbee who established the Guild of Handicrafts visited Barnstaple in 1893 and provided a twelve week course on the design and decoration of furniture. It is presumed that this visit was hosted by Shapland and Petter, and that their own staff and those from other local furniture makers attended the course. Ashbee appears to have been unimpressed by the commercial attitudes he encountered and apparently disappointed at the lack of interest in his (high minded) lectures. What is interesting however is the similarity between some of his designs and those used by Shapland and Petter, particularly in respect to inlaid floral design. Perhaps he left a lasting influence which has not yet been verified There has been some speculation on the influence of Scottish designers, particularly because of the use of Glasgow rose designs which are typical of the Glasgow School, and particularly of Talwin Morris. There are also several designs which use similar motifs to those used by Baillie Scott, the use of two doves in flight for example. More research is needed to trace possible links here. One thing that is clear is that there was a great deal of copying and selling designs in the furniture industry at the time and a nineteenth century survey on the furniture trade recorded that '' Barnstaple pays the best prices for designs ..'' Collaboration with other companies There is evidence that Shapland and Petter organised a wide network of companies to retail their products and hence many pieces have the labels of retail furnishers added. Little is known of their marketing in Europe and America but it may be that many Arts and Crafts pieces were sold abroad. Shapland and Petter had excellent access to rail and shipping lines for importing timber and presumably for exporting their finished products The extent of their collaboration with other companies is yet to be ascertained but there is evidence that their suppliers included the Della Robbia Pottery, Pilkingtons Tile...

Hinged, two part mahogany three tier towel rail. The rails and uprights are square cut and morticed together. The two sections are joined with three brass hinges. England, circa 189...

This is an exceptional antique music recital stand. An English, walnut and boxwood articulated stand dating to the Regency period, circa 1820. Beautifully appointed and rich in decor...

A large carved and gilded wooden eagle lectern, from Wales, c. 1830, for ecclesiastical use - such as sermons and religious readings - in churches, chapels, and places of worship. ...

Pair of lovely and graceful bentwood wall hooks from England. the beauty of these is that they are separate, and can be used together or separately. We think they would make splend...

This is an antique Canterbury Whatnot. An English, burr walnut and brass three tier display stand or etagere, dating to the Regency period, circa 1820. Exceptional example, with stu...

This is an antique ornate stick stand. An English, cast iron umbrella loop, dating to the Victorian period, circa 1880. A wonderfully decorative and practical hallway piece with deli...