Historic stools remain in the UK under temporary export bar

132/08
12 December 2008

Culture Minister, Barbara Follett, has placed a temporary export bar on a pair of important Queen Anne giltwood stools.  This will provide a last chance to raise the money to prevent this furniture from leaving the United Kingdom.

The Minister’s ruling follows a recommendation by the Reviewing Committee on the Export of Works of Art and Objects of Cultural Interest, administered by the Museums, Libraries and Archives Council. The Committee recommended that the export decision be deferred on the grounds that the Queen Anne stools are of outstanding significance for the study of the history of furniture and upholstery.

The pair of stools, made c. 1705, have been attributed to Royal Cabinet-maker Gerrit Jensen. They originally formed part of a suite comprising a bed, two armchairs and six stools which was reputedly made for Queen Anne, and later given by George III to Francis Greville, 1st Earl of Warwick.  The suite has been at Warwick Castle since at least 1807. Each of the carved and gilded stools is upholstered with a lipped platform supporting a cushion.  

The stools were deemed highly important for study because, exceptionally, they retain most of their original upholstery. The lipped platforms that support the cushions are covered by a remarkable confection of crimson velvet and silk, trimmed with yellow and green silk braid, and are secured to the upholstery foundation with crimson bows. The cushions themselves are covered in crimson velvet edged with braid, with central panels of pink and green silks.  One of the cushions retains its original ‘boxed’ form, and is the only known example of this type of construction surviving in the UK.

Simon Swynfen Jervis, Reviewing Committee member, said: “Upholstery has always been a poor relation of furniture studies because it is so fragile, and is so often altered. These remarkable giltwood stools are rare survivals of the highest quality, with a possible royal connection, and will add much to our knowledge of the history of upholstery.”

The decision on the export licence application for the pair of stools will be deferred for a period ending on 11 February 2009 inclusive. This period may be extended until 11 May 2009 inclusive if a serious intention to raise funds with a view to making an offer to purchase the stools at the recommended price of £337,250 (excluding VAT) is expressed.

Anyone interested in making an offer to purchase the pair of stools should contact the owner’s agent through:
 
The Secretary
The Reviewing Committee on the Export of Works of Art and Objects of Cultural Interest
Museums, Libraries and Archives Council,
Wellcome Wolfson Building
165 Queen’s Gate
South Kensington
London SW7 5HD
Telephone 020 7273 8270

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Notes to Editors

  1. Media enquiries on the operation of and casework arising from the work of the Reviewing Committee on the Export of Works of Art and Objects of Cultural Interest (RCEWA) should  be directed to Senior Media Relations Adviser,  Sunita Sharma, on 020 7273 8299, email: sunita.sharma@mla.gov.uk

  2. The Reviewing Committee on the Export of Works of Art and Objects of Cultural Interest is an independent body, serviced by MLA, which advises the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport on whether a cultural object, intended for export, is of national importance under specified criteria. Where the Committee finds that an object meets one or more of the criteria, it will normally recommend that the decision on the export licence application should be deferred for a specified period. An offer may then be made from within the United Kingdom at or above the fair market price.

  3. Pictures of this item are available. Please email sunita.sharma@mla.gov.uk (MLA no longer subscribes to the PixMedia website service).

  4. Further details about the stools can be found in the auction catalogue at the Sotheby's website. 

  5. The two stools are of carved and gilt beech (oil-gilt over traces of original water-gilding), each upholstered with a lipped platform supporting a cushion, retaining most of the original upholstery of crimson velvet lined with silk and trimmed with silk lace and fringe; English, c. 1705, the frames perhaps by Thomas Pelletier or Gerrit Jensen; each stool 62 cm high by 66 cm wide by 48 cm deep.

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