Our 3 and 4 December Fine Interiors sale will offer the selected contents of The Old House, a beautiful 16th century manor house in the sought-after Bedfordshire village of Aspley Guise, which features a vast array of desirable and beautiful items for your home.
11 November 2024
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© Savills
The Old House sits in a conservation area close to the woodland of the Duke of Bedford’s Woburn estate, in the pretty rural landscape of central Bedfordshire.
@jacobmilliganphotography
A late 16th-century house which in the late 1700s had the exterior ‘modernised to the Georgian taste’, the property was subsequently reverted back to its original design at the beginning of the 20th century by its new owner, Dr George Herbert Fowler (1861-1940). Fowler was a UCL professor of Zoology, who in retirement turned his interests to local history; he moved to The Old House in 1909 and meticulously set about restoring the building, as well as establishing the Bedfordshire Historical Record Society and the Bedfordshire Record Office.
@jacobmilliganphotography
The handsome house was bought by the current vendors in 2002, who have continued Fowler’s good work in their sympathetic restoration and discerning choice of interior decor. The family, aided by Raymond Horneman of Kensington Church Street, focused on period antiques and fine art to bring together a beautifully furnished home with an ‘English Country House’ elegance, housing an array of tasteful works of art, porcelain, furniture and related decorative items that complemented - but didn’t overwhelm - the house’s intrinsic charm and character. The Sworders’ team now feel privileged to assist the vendors disperse this collection, which we hope you will be equally enthralled by.
@jacobmilliganphotography
fineinteriors@sworder.co.uk | 01279 817778
As we commemorate fifty years since Alvar Aalto’s death, we are honoured to present further works by the designer in our forthcoming Design auction, taking place on 27 October.
21 September 2026
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Here, close friend, art historian and former Senior Curator of Modern British Art at Tate, Andrew Wilson, offers an insight into James Birch’s remarkable collection and the extraordinary life behind it. Having known James since the late 1980s, Andrew has witnessed first-hand his restless curiosity, his friendships with artists and his instinct for the unusual.
15 September 2026