Syrie Maugham

Please note that the bookcase is bowed and probably originally fit into an oval or circular room or niche; Country house condition; the marble top cracked in the middle with subsequent losses; chip and wear to the edges with stains scratches and wear; chips and losses to the painted surface throughout; mirrors to the back are replaced; red paint to the shelves is refreshed; sturdy.
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.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

The present bookcase is very similar to a bookcase depicted in a drawing of the North Drawing Room of The Royal Pavilion at Brighton by Augustus Pugin in 1821 seen beneath a large pier mirror (illustrated, Morley, op. cit., p. 138, fig. 125).  The first building of the Royal Pavilion at Brighton to be erected on the orders of the then Prince was on an area of the Steine, an open area near to the sea, used by fishermen to dry their nets. In this picturesque setting a new Marine Pavilion was built to the designs of Henry Holland, who was also responsible for the remodeling of Carlton House for the Prince of Wales. In the neo-classical style, its architecture gives no hint of the extravagant building in the oriental style which was to evolve on the site over the next three decades. Originally the interiors of the Pavilion were decorated and furnished in the French style, some of the pieces having been acquired in Paris in the sales held after the revolution.  However, shortly after 1800, the firm of John and his son Frederick Crace began work on the first phase of the transformation of interiors of the Pavilion to the chinoiserie style for which they not only supplied drawings for the decorative schemes, but also appeared to act as agents in acquiring quantities of Chinese porcelains and decorative objects. Furniture supplied by the firm included: One very Fine Japan Indie Cabinet; Two Bamboo Tables with Japan tops and 18 Bamboo Chairs, all of which were probably Chinese. Further furniture in this style was commissioned by the Prince from the London firm of Elward, Marsh and Tatham including a group of cabinets, some of which are seen in Nash’s illustration of The Corridor. Supplied in 1802, the cabinet frames are in simulated bamboo, a set of six being supplied with doors inset with Japanese lacquer panels (Musgrave, op. cit., fig. 24A), another four slightly larger with pleated silk panel (Walkling, op. cit. p. 27). They are both closely related to the present example, with similar profiles and the use of turned and japanned frames simulating bamboo, the second set having tops painted to simulate yellow marble. Another related cabinet attributed to Marsh and Tatham is now at Temple Newsam House (Gilbert, op. cit.). This has a simulated bamboo frame, the doors inset with panels of Chinese lacquer inlaid with mother-of-pearl.

See:
John Nash, The Royal Pavilion at Brighton, 1826
Clifford Musgrave, Royal Pavilion An Episode in the Romantic, 1959
Clifford Musgrave, Regency Furniture 1800-1830, 1961
John Morley, The Making of the Royal Pavilion Brighton, Boston, 1984
Martyn Goff, The Royal Pavilion, 1986
Gillian Walkling, Antique Bamboo Furniture, 1979, pp. 21-28
Megan Aldrich, The Craces – Royal Decorators 1768-1899, 1990
Christopher Gilbert, Furniture at Temple Newsam House and Lotherton Hall, Volume III, 1998, p.570-571, item 684, col. Ill. 15