A pair of George II giltwood pier mirrors attributed to Matthias Lock

c.1740 and later, each frame surmounted by a carved ostrich-feather cresting, with foliate scrolls and swags and centred by a shell, the sides carved with hirsute masks on dolphin supports, with further foliate scrolls on a scaled ground, the apron with two crossed quivers flanking a shell, enclosing a mercury glass plate,
106cm wide
183cm high (2)

Provenance: Charles Hughes, Billesley Manor, Warwickshire, possibly purchased from Christie’s, c.1940s;
thence by descent.

This striking pair of mirrors display several stylistic similarities to other works attributed to Matthias Lock. The vertical scrolls headed by masks decorating the upper sides of the frames are a distinctive feature of Lock, and closely resemble those featured in his engraved mirror designs from Six Sconces (1744) [Figs. 1, 2]. Similar decorative elements can be seen on the grand mirror Lock supplied to the 2nd Earl Poulett for the Tapestry Room at Hinton House, Somerset (now in the Victoria and Albert Museum, London; illustrated in Geoffrey Wills, English Looking-Glasses).

The closest known comparable mirrors are a pair formerly belonging to the 1st Viscount Chandos (sold at Sotheby’s, 5 November 1971, lot 117; one illustrated in Graham Child, World Mirrors 1650-1990). Other similar examples include a pair of pier glasses at Uppark, West Sussex, a pair formerly at Ramsbury Manor, Wiltshire (illustrated in R Edwards and P Macquoid, The Dictionary of English Furniture), and a pair from the Van Cliburn collection (sold at Christie’s, 17 May 2012, lot 114).

Matthias Lock (c.1710-1765) was one of the foremost exponents of the rococo style in mid-18th-century England. His most significant work, A New Book of Ornaments with Twelve Leaves Consisting of Chimneys, Sconces, Tables, Spandle Panels, Spring Clock Cases, Stands, a Chandelier and Girandole, etc. (1752), was produced in collaboration with the engraver Henry Copland and stands as the principal rococo pattern book preceding Chippendale’s Director (1754). Thomas Johnson's autobiography begun in 1777 reveals that Lock was working with James Whittle (d.1759), 'Carver' to Frederick, Prince of Wales (d.1752) by 1744, a relationship that lasted until at least 1755 (J Simon, 'Thomas Johnson's The Life of the Author,', Furniture History, 2003, p.3).

In 1862-63, the newly established Victoria and Albert Museum acquired more than two hundred of Lock’s original drawings from his descendants. Notes on some of these sheets indicate that Lock created furniture for Lord Holderness, the 1st Duke of Northumberland, and a ‘Mr Bradshaw,’ likely the London cabinetmaker William Bradshaw (fl.1728-d.1775). The collection also contains drawings attributed to Thomas Chippendale, suggesting that Lock may have undertaken subcontracted work for him. After Lock’s death, his designs were reissued by the publisher Roger Sayer in 1768, who described him as ‘the famous Mr. Matt Lock, recently deceased, who was reputed the best draftsman in that way that had ever been in England.’

We are very grateful to Adam Bowett and Christopher Coles for their assistance in the cataloguing of these mirrors.

Condition Report

Both mirrors have undergone reasonable modification over time. The appear to have been reduced in size, altering the original proportions. The foliate cresting and projecting tassel ornaments are 19th-century additions, with surrounding foliage re-carved, likely to restore decorative balance following the reduction. These interventions, while notable, are consistent across both mirrors, suggesting they were conceived as a pair and altered contemporaneously.

The carving throughout appears fundamentally period, and the overall construction supports the notion of a shared origin. The mirror plates are 19th-century replacements, with pleasant foxing and mottling.

Both mirrors have been re-gilded using an oil-based technique, yet traces of the original bole and water-gilding remain beneath a layer of 19th-century gesso. The survival of original gilding beneath later layers is particularly encouraging, as it allows for the possibility of recovering some of the original surface character through careful restoration.

There are some chips, losses and repairs to some of the carvings. There is flaking and loss to the gilding throughout. The joints are sound and solid, and the mirrors are structurally stable overall.

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