A fine and beautifully proportioned pair of George III carved and gilded girandoles, headed by ho-ho birds above shaped frames carved with rockwork, icicles and acanthus leaves.

These girandoles incorporate many of the design ideas popularised by Thomas Chippendale in his The Gentleman and Cabinet-Maker’s Director. Asymmetrical and naturalistic, and carved with C-scrolls and sprays of acanthus leaves, they are strongly Rococo in character, reminiscent of the earliest designs for French girandoles published by Thomas Johnson, carver and gilder of Queen St., Seven Dials, in Twelve Girandoles, 1755.

Yet, surmounted by finely carved ho-ho birds and featuring rockwork, dripping icicles and architectural shaped shoulders, they reflect the powerful influence of Chinese design at the time.

The present pair bare strong similarities to Johnson’s sketches, including the depiction of the ho-ho bird and the strong architectural and balanced form.