the upright back with moulded and panelled frame inset with a stylized lyre of scrolled foliate form entwined over the crest rail centred by a leafy finial over brass 'strings' with flowerhead ties, the square panelled arms with foliate scrolls with pendant husks at the top curving downwards to inward scrolled bases ornamented with a long leaf, and inset with brass rods, the upholstered seat on square tapered fluted legs, the feet with collars of upright stiff leaves above ball toes

Almost certainly supplied to Robert Child Esq. for his house at 38 Berkeley Square, London.
Thence by descent to his grand-daughter, Lady Sarah Sophia Fane (1785-1867) who married George Villiers, 5th Earl of Jersey in 1804.
Thence by descent with the Earls of Jersey.

Recorded in the `Inventory of the Household and Decorative Furniture Glass China, Linen, Wines Books Pictures Carriages Horses & Other Effects in and upon the House Offices and Stabling No 38 Berkeley Square the property of the late Right Hon.ble the Dowager Countess of Jersey valued for Probate Feby 4th & following days 1867.
Furniture in Front Library HL 3 Mahogany Chairs ( Arm) Lyre backs A- ditto- frame chair'

 Furniture in Middle Library HL - 5 mahogany frame Arm Chairs, Lyre backs'

 (London City Archive ref......)

P. Macquoid and R. Edwards, The Dictionary of English Furniture, London, 1954, vo. I, p. 292, fig. 212 (the example at the🌸 Victoria and Albert Museum).

These chairs are in excellent original condition. The colour and patination are extremely good. There are slight variations on colour. The upholstery is not original and has some stains. One chair has a small patch on the top of the right hand rear leg and a small patch on the top of the left hand front leg. This chair has some colouring in at the top of the right hand upright suggesting a small repair. Both chairs have small filled holes at the base of the rear upright splat of the rear arm support suggesting the original upholstery may have been done slightly differently originally. There are some minor age cracks to the lyre splats of the chairs which are scarcely visible and do not detract. All have old marks and scratches which could easily be made less visible with a little light re-polishing. The rails appear to be original. The front rails appear to have some filled holes along the front suggesting that there was originally brass studs or other ornament attaching the upholstery which is consistent with other chairs believed from the same commission that still have this additional ornament. The bottom of the front left hand leg is chipped and scratched and will ned minor restoration. They are an exceptional pair of chairs- extremely elegant and with an interesting and important historical provenance and we have no hesitation in recommending them.
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

John Linnell (1729–1796), cabinet-maker, upholster and carver, was the son of the distinguished cabinet-maker William Linnell (b.c.1703–1763), joining his father's firm in the late 1740s. He studied at St. Martin's Lane Academy, which had been founded by William Hogarth in 1735, becoming closely acquainted with Rococo design through his contacts with an international group of fellow students. His talent for design is apparent through the large number of surviving drawings (many of which are in the collections of the Victoria and Albert Museum)  and was a large factor in the rapid expansion of the family firm in the early 1750s.

In 1754 the Linnells establised new and larger workshops, together with a dwelling house at 28 Berkeley Square, and at his father's death in 1763, John Linnell inherited a firm employing some forty or fifty people. The proximity of Linnell's new premises to the London house of Robert Child at 38 Berkeley Square led to a productive relationship. Robert Child's brother, Francis, had retained the services of William and John Linnell for the fitting up of Osterley Park prior to his sudden death in 1763 at which point his entire estate, including Osterley, was left to his brother Robert. Under Robert Child's patronage John Linnell continued to supply furniture at Osterley, where he worked alongside Robert Adam in the creation of the wonderful neo-classic interiors. Robert Adam was also engaged to re-model 38 Berkeley Square, London which had become the town house of the Child family. Much of the furniture commissioned for Osterley still survives in situ and is expertly documented by Maurice Tomlin, Catalogue of Adam Period Furniture, London, 1982, groups B-M, pp. 16-102. The 1782 inventory of Osterley lists three sets of chairs with lyre-form backs, all of which remain and are illustrated by Tomlin, op.cit., figs C/1, E/1 and K/3. The current chairs are most closely related to a design for a lyre back chair by Linnell, in the collections of the Victorian and Albert Museum, London (E.80 1929) and published by Helena Hayward and Pat Kirkham, William and John Linnell, Lon✅don, 1980, vol. II, p. 38, fig. 62 𒁃and reproduced here as fig. 2. 

The current chairs, whilst not recognisable in the 1782 inventory, which was undertaken upon Robert Child's death by Linnell's brother William, do however appear in the 1867 probate valuation recorded at the death of Child's grand-daughter, the Dowager Countess of Jersey, as listed above, where nine of these chairs are recorded. This does not appear to have been the complete set, as in addition to the four current chairs, a further six are in the collection of the Earls of Rosebery at Dalmไeny House, Midlothian, four are in a private collection, there is the example in the Victoria and Albert Museum, London, and finally a single chair was sold from the Collection of Mr. Gerald Hochschild, Sotheby's London, 1st December 1978, lot 65, suggesting an original set of at least  sixteen in all likelihood.

The form and design of these chairs are heavily influenced by the emerging neo-classical influence that wa♌s gaining momentum in the latter years of the 1760s. Most avidly promoted by Robert Adam, the celebrated architect, the desire to recreate the elegance of the ‘Antique’ was propagated by the discoveries of the ruins at Pompeii and Herculaneum earlier in the century. As the aristocracy and the intellectual elite undertook their Grand Tours of Europe, these ruins became an essential part of such travels. No clearer a classical motif can be found than lyre form back which was adopted by Adam and subsequently fashioned by all the most celebrated makers of the time, including Thomas Chippendale in the chairs supplied for Nostell Priory and Brocket Hall.

The lyre motif derives from the Greek God, Apollo. Apollo was one of the twelve Gods of Olympus and was the embodiment of the classical Greek spirit, standing for the rational and civilized side of man`s nature. He was the mythological God of poetry, music and dance and leader of the Muses and his stringed lyre was thought to represent not just artistic sensibilities but also harmony and heavenly peace, social order, and all that was rational in ancient Greece. The harp-like instrument and its sounds were understandably beloved by the ancient Greeks and the lyre accompanied recitations of Homer. It is interesting to note that the present chairs were recorded 🌞in the front and middle libraries of 38 Berkeley Square. It would seem likely that they were conceived specifically for these two rooms, as rooms of classical learning, culture and enlightenment and designed  to harmonise with these intellectual ideals as well as any decorative schemes designed by Adam.