10 ANTIQUE CIRCA 1780 ITALIAN LEATHER DINING CHAIRS FROM DONNINGTON CASTLE HOUSE

Description

Royal House Antiques

Royal House Antiques is delighted to offer for sale this lovely suite of ten handmade original Italian circa 1760-1780 Dining chairs with the period leather upholstery with gold leaf embossing that came from Donnington Castle House 

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.

This is a once in a lifetime chance to own this suite of chairs, they are 240-260 years old from new, in Walnut and Oak with mostly all the period leather which is held in place with massive decorative floral head studs 

The chairs came from as mentioned Donnington Castle House which is a Grade II listed building, I will include below a brief history of the estate 

Condition wise we have lightly cleaned waxed and polished the chairs from top to bottom, the timber is all strong and stable with a fantastic rich warm grain. The leather is very very old, it has aged and worn well, one seat pad has been replaced as you can see in the pictures and I think one top back line as well, the hide just screams originality, it is gold leaf embossed with the Family Crest in the middle and Fleur De Lis in the corners

Dimensions

Height:- 105cm

Width:- 47cm

Depth:- 51cm

Seat height:- 47cm

Please note all measurements are taken at the widest point, if you would like any additional or specific measurements please ask.

Donnington Castle House 

In 1632, Donnington Castle had been purchased by John Packer of Shellingford Castle. During the 2nd Battle of Newbury in 1644, it was held for the King and received such severe damage that, three years later, it was described as “ruinous”. However, the associated estate survived intact, along with the old steward’s lodge which had not been quite so badly damaged.

Having regained his Donnington property, Packer had the lodge rebuilt in 1648, using some materials from the old castle, although the house is essentially of brick. It then consisted only of the main entrance range, with two facing gables and flanking diamond chimneys. The two gables apparently once joined in the centre. The woodwork, including the fine staircase and some of the panelling, was undertaken by Richard Vesey of Westminster. The extensive eastern wings were added some time later.

Packer died the following year and Donnington was left to his eldest son, Robert. He resided at Shellingford, but let his younger brother, William, occupy Donnington Castle House. He took a great interest in the Donnington Hospital. At the death of the brothers Packer, their heir, another Robert, was just a boy, so the estate was managed by a barrister named Michael Mallett. However, Robert’s son, Winchcombe Howard Packer, favoured Donnington Castle House as his principal residence and received many of the chief wits and celebrities of the early 18th-century there: one of whom in a birthday-ode describes him as the “Patriot, generous and humane.” The family had married a number of great heiresses though and inherited large properties at Little Sodbury Manor in Gloucestershire and Bucklebury House in Berkshire, so Donnington was moving still further down the list of their desirable residences. Winchcombe’s sister and heiress, Elizabeth Packer and her husband, David Hartley, the famous physician and philosopher, did live at Donnington Castle House for a year in the mid-18th century. They considered making it their permanent residence, but in the end decided that they preferred London and Bath.

From the 1790s, the house was rented out to tenants. The Bacon brothers appear to have both been in residence at some time. Anthony and Thomas Bushby Bacon were the illegitimate sons and joint-surviving heirs of the great Welsh ironmaster, Anthony Bacon, who made Merthyr Tydfil what it is today. They became two of the richest men in the country, but had no interest in their ironworks and sold them or rented them out. They became English country gentlemen in Berkshire instead. Anthony lived at Donnington Grove, then possibly Donnington Castle House. He moved to Benham Park in 1811, before retiring to Elcot Park in Kintbury in 1823. For twenty years, he was Commander of the Donnington Castle and Newbury Troop of the 1st Berkshire Cavalry. His son was the famous General Bacon who served in the Napoleonic Wars. Thomas lived at Padworth House during his brother’s lifetime, but rented Donnington Castle House, the former residence of Lieutenant-Colonel Francis Sacheverell Stead, from 1830. In 1840, he moved to Redlands House, adjoining what is now Wantage Hall in Reading. His daughter was the grandmother of the local Berkshire historian, Emma Elizabeth Thoyts of Sulhamstead House. The Bacon family vault is in Shaw-cum-Donnington Church.

In 1924, the house and estate were sold to Edward Festus Kelly, the publisher of Kelly’s Directories, and, in 1950, to Derek Parker-Bowles, the former father-in-law of the present Duchess of Cornwall. He became Sheriff of Berkshire in 1966.

Any questions please feel free to ask before you bid.  

 

ABOUT US

Royal House Antiques is a privately owned family ran business founded in Wimbledon SW19 and now based in Pulborough RH20. We specialise in finding, restoring very fine luxury antique leather seating, along with every single other type of antique ranging from the 16th century to the 20th century. We also stock a number of designer brands such as Fritz Hansen, Ralph Lauren, Cavalli, Charles & Ray Eames, Vitra, David Linley, Rolex, Tiffany, Jager Le Coulter and so on     

 

PAYMENTS

We accept payment via Bitcoin, Bitcoin cash, Ethereum, Bacs, Chaps, PayPal or Card, we would kindly ask that all items are paid for within 48 hours and collected within 7 working days, we can hold all paid items for 14 days free of charge, there after a £20 a week storage fee will apply. We have long term storage which is very economically priced, we are happy to hold stock for as long as needed providing it is arranged prior to the purchase 

If sold items aren’t collected within three months and no arrangements have been made for long term storage you will forfeit the item and payment

 

CONDITION

Please view the very detailed pictures as they form part of the description pertaining to the condition. Please also ask any questions before you bid and not after, all of our items are sold as seen and as listed

Royal House Antiques cannot be held liable for any independent assumptions made regarding the items we sell, if you are unsure on any point, please feel free to ask for clarity  

Please note vintage period and original items such as leather seating will always have natural patina in the form of creasing and wear, we recommend annual waxing to ensure no moisture is lost, also hand dyed leather is not recommended to sit in direct sunlight for prolonged periods of time as it will dry out and fade   

 

DELIVERY OR COLLECTION

This item is available for collection from our Pulborough warehouses RH20-1DF by appointment only, alternatively we can have it delivered nationwide to include Scotland, Wales and Ireland for a fee

Please contact me via email, alternatively my contact information is under the business seller section of the listing, with your postcode for a delivery quotation, as mentioned above the fee listed covers with the M25 for the UK, for international deliveries the amount listed covers local Europe only so parts of Belgium and France

Please be sure to include which item you would like to buy as the price is determined on size and distance, if you would like more than one piece of furniture the courier offers a substantial discount on the second and third item, for international shipping please view the below information   

  

COURIER, LARGE ITEMS ONLY THAT CAN’T BE POSTED

We can arrange delivery nationwide, mostly with our nominated couriers, for Europe we use one reasonably priced professional company that we trust, for the rest of the world we use international shippers that can send any size item crated via air freight within 7-14 days after crating or soft packed and container shipped via sea freight within 30-60 days. The time frames outlined are guides only, non-domestic shipping is almost entirely governed by the airlines, sea freight loading times and custom clearances

Whomever delivers will always require help on the larger items to unload, the price you will be quoted will always be based on this assumption, if this is not possible, please let us know as it will affect the price to send a two-person team

Delivery is to the ground floor only, again if you need help upstairs or in flats etc that’s absolutely not a problem, the couriers charge £10-£20 per flight per man per item, if you have a working elevator then naturally there’s no additional fee

All courier fees are paid by yourself directly to the courier company, the contract for delivery is between yourselves the client and whichever courier you chose from those available I’m happy to accommodate your own courier after a cleared payment has been received, they need to book in a collection time with at least 24 hours notice, all collections must be made within 14 working days of the close of the sale unless agreed by prior arrangement  

 

IMPORT DUTY

Most countries charge some kind of import duty however almost all of our items won’t incur any charges as the items are exempt from tax due to the age and materials used

For European deliveries the price you will be quoted will include all clearance documentation and any customs charges so there won’t be any additional fees

For international deliveries such as the United States there can be some import duty to pay and or a clearance fee, I would estimate that 99% of all deliveries clear customs without being stopped for either

All duties are the responsibility of the purchaser who is the importer, they can’t be covered by the seller or shipping agent or factored in with additional retrospective discounts

 

RETURNS

Royal House Antiques offers a no quibble return policy if the item is not as described, if there are any issues with the piece you will be refunded in full once the item has been returned and inspected within 14 days, alternatively if there is a small issue, we can discuss finding a mutual resolution that makes all parties happy

We don’t offer a sale on approval service which means you can purchase the item, have it delivered and if you simply don’t like it, return it, this comes under change of mind or doesn’t fit. There is a lot of time, money and work involved in transporting goods around the world, the costs incurred can be vast so my advice would be if you are unsure on a piece please ask as many questions as you like to make sure you understand everything before you buy, if you are still unsure then please either arrange a viewing in person or if that’s not possible then don’t buy from an online retailer, perhaps look for a local gallery instead