18th May, 2024 9:30 GMT/BST
Country House Sale
656
British School (Early 20th Century)
Portrait of a gentleman, believed to be a Governor of Malta
Indistinctly signed and dated 1913, oil on canvas, 100cm by 74.5cm
Sold for £380
Estimated at £400 - £600
The painting is lined, with one original tacking margin at the right side preserved, the rest removed. Fairly slack tension, but all keys present. The edge of the original tacking margins is just visible at the top edge from the face. The impasto has beens slighly reduced in the lining process. There is a 1 inch ruch at the edge of the original canvas at the top edge, with associated loss of paint, and a six inch flap of the original canvas is overlapping the frame at the bottom edge (see images). There are slightly lumpy passages at the edges of the painting, and a slight distortion top right corner. There is a 1.5 inch dent at the left middle of the painting at the edge of the stretcher. The canvas is not broken, but there has been some minor flaking/loss (see images). There is old finescale brittle age craquelure throughtou, mostly not elevated and secure. However, there is a line of elevated actively flaking paint and associated loss of paint and ground at the lower right edge. Futher scuffs and losses of paint and ground at both edges, and a small amount at the top edge. There are a few tiny, scattered unrestored losses under the current varnish. There are patches of overpaint in the hand holding the glove, which appear slighly lighter than the original paint.
There is a patchy, thick residual layer of an old varnish that is visible as more orangy/yellow under strong light.
There is a quantity of ingrained varnish and dirt in the troughts of the paint. There are a few scattered very minor surface scuffs, and a lump of material embedded towards the top middle of the picture. There is a slightly uneven surface gloss and a light layer of surface dirt.
We are happy to provide Condition Reports to Prospective Buyers, but would welcome your request as soon as possible, preferably at least 48 hours before the Day of Sale.
We cannot guarantee a reply to any requests made within 48 hours of the start of the auction. The absence of a condition report from a lot does not mean that the lot is in perfect condition.
A Condition Report is an honest expression of our opinion, not a statement of fact and is provided as a service to the Seller. All lots are available on public view ahead of an auction and we encourage people to see an item in person when possible.
Our Condition Reports are not prepared by professional conservators, restorers or engineers, and are prepared with the naked eye unless otherwise stated.
Works are not examined out of the frame, unless specifically stated. We accept no liability for the opinions expressed in any Condition Report.
Tennants Auctioneers do not cover damage to gilded wood or plaster picture frames, or to picture frame glass whilst the item is in our possession.
Auction: Country House Sale, 18th May, 2024
The Country House Sales offer an appealing mix of traditional antiques and curiosities, good furnishing pieces and specialist collectors’ items. The sales incorporate the contents of important properties and private collections as well as individually consigned lots redolent of the English Country House.
Included in the sale will be an extraordinary collection of Treen and Metalware, put together over many years by David and Hilary Hide. The Hides, who lived in the North of England, had a fascination for British vernacular objects and developed a deep knowledge of their subject. The extensive collection will be sold in fifty lots. Highlights of the collection include an 18th Century Treen Lignum Vitae Mortar with similar hardwood pestle (estimate: £300-500 all figures exclude buyer’s premium), a Pair of George III Carved and Turned Mahogany Candlesticks sold with a Pair of Olive Wood Brighton Bun Travelling Candlesticks (estimate: £150-250), and a group of three George III Mahogany Cats or plate stands (estimate: £100-150). Also of interest are a group of three Mid-19th Century Toleware Spice Boxes (Estimate: £80-120), and a group of Lignum Vitae Treen String Boxes from the 19th Century (estimate: £100-150).
The sale will also include rugs from the Collection of the Late Nicola Pyne. Nicola Pyne was born in 1948 in South-West London. Her early years were spent at the family house in Strawberry Hill, which backed onto the Thames. She was academically able, attending Lady Eleanor Holles School before obtaining a BSc in Physics from Birmingham University. She had a lifelong love of studying and also completed a degree in Biology from Birkbeck. Nicola worked for many years with IBM before leaving to pursue a teaching career specialising in Physics, Chemistry and Biology. She loved to travel and visited many countries in Central Asia, the Middle East and India, developing a love of different cultures and filling her house with artefacts from around the globe. Her travels led to an interest in ethnic items including jewellery, wood carving and of course tribal rugs and related weavings. The items in this collection will be denoted throughout the catalogue with a ~ symbol.
Viewing
Wednesday 15 May - Friday 17 May 10am-4pm and morning of sale from 8am
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