A REGENCY MAHOGANY HALL BENCH ATTRIBUTED TO MARSH AND TATHAM
W: 60" / 152cm
D: 17" / 45cm
Provenance
Ronald Phillips, London
Important Private Collection: New York, US
Literature
Charles Heathcote Tatham first published the design on which this bench is based in his Etchings of Ancient Ornamental Architecture drawn from the Originals in Rome and Other Parts of Italy during the years 1794, 1795 and 1796, 1799, pl. 46
F. Collard, Regency Furniture (Woodbridge, 1985), pp. 52, 55, for a stool by Tatham of this design, though marbled and draped
The moulded seat and rounded terminals headed by roundels above collared tapering fluted legs, terminating in spade feet.
This handsome bench is attributed to the firm Marsh & Tatham.
Marsh and Tatham
Active in London from the late 18th century until the 1820s, Marsh and Tatham were among the most important cabinetmakers and upholsterers of the Regency period. Operating from premises on Mount Street, Mayfair, the firm was led by Thomas Marsh and later joined by George Tatham, whose partnership brought the business to prominence at the turn of the 19th century.
They held Royal appointments and were principal suppliers to George, Prince of Wales (later George IV), contributing extensively to the furnishing of Carlton House under the direction of Henry Holland. Their aristocratic clientele included the Dukes of Bedford, Devonshire and Norfolk, for whom they furnished major commissions at Southill, Chatsworth and Arundel Castle. The firm’s output was characterised by a refined neoclassicism, executed to the highest standards of craftsmanship and design.