An exceptional set of eight Regency period chairs, of well-shaped 'Klismos' outline and rare generous proportions, attributed to George Oakley of Bond Street.
London, circa 1810.
 
Why we like them
With its front legs unusually splayed in two dimensions, this elegant model is one the most sophisticated examples from the Regency period. Unusual in their form, subtle in ornamentation and outstanding in quality, these chairs display the decorative techniques of cabinetmaking, rather than joinery. The veneers and greek-key brass-inlays cover the seatrails and front legs joints, a highly unusual feature for chairs, that demonstrates the superb cabinetmaking skills of the craftsman or a high-end workshop origin.
 
Attribution
Extremely rare with this 'double-splayed' form of front legs, deriving from the ancient Greek 'Klismos' seats, these chairs feature exquisite brass inlays throughout, and share similarities with a number of pieces of furniture traditionally associated with the oeuvre of George Oakley (1773-1840), one of the most prominent London cabinetmakers of the era.
 
The distinctive scrolling foliage pattern of the inlays on the back tablets of these chairs is identical to those adorning the top of a spider-leg sofa table, illustrated in F. Collard, Regency Furniture, Woodbridge, 1987, p. 317, and in Mallett, The age of Matthew Boulton - Masterpieces of neo-classicism, London, 2000, pp. 112-113. This table belongs to a group of furniture firmly attributed to George Oakley and most likely originates from the same workshop as the present chairs. An identically decorated daybed, en-suite with the present chairs, is illustrated in the same Mallett's catalogue, pp. 94-95. A magnificent centre table, featuring the same set of inlays, certainly from the same workshop and possibly part of the same suite with the present chairs, was sold Christie's, New York, 29 January 1994, lot 342.
 
An identical pair of chairs is illustrated in Ronald Phillips, Fine Antique English Furniture 2018, pp. 158-159.
 
George Oakley
The firm of George Oakley produced stylish furniture in the Grecian taste during the decades spanning the turn of the 19th century, and was one of the pioneers of ‘Buhl’ inlay, a form of decoration that regained popularity during the early years of the Regency. Fashionable materials such as rosewood, mahogany and calamander were often used in Oakley's furniture, combined with inlays of satinwood and ebony, and brass stars and bands of metalwork. The high-class furniture made by George Oakley earned him a royal appointment and a contemporary reputation for fine craftsmanship.
 
Visits by the royal family to Oakley's Bond St Showrooms are recorded in the Morning Chronicle of 1799. In May ‘the ROYAL FAMILY, with the PRINCE and PRINCESS of ORANGE did Mr. OAKLEY the honor of viewing his Printed Furniture Warehouse in New Bond Street; when her MAJESTY, the Duke and Duckess of YORK, and the PRINCESSES, &c., highly approved of the splendid variety which has justly attracted the notice of the fashionable world.’ Two weeks later, ‘Notwithstanding the fatigues which the Royal Family underwent [at the King's Birthday Parade], the Queen and Princesses, accompanied by the Duke and Duchess of York made a tour of the most elegant shops and manufactories in the different lines of the useful Arts. We saw them at Oakley and Shackleton's magazine of furniture in Old Bond Street … and thus Their Majesties, in the prevailing taste for magnificence in every article of decoration, give the most flattering encouragement to the arts by their countenance and protection’. On the evening of the celebrations in honor of the King's Birthday, ‘the illuminations were mostly confined to the gaming houses and the tradesmen. OAKLEY's furniture magazine was the most tasteful and novel in its design’. [Morning Chronicle, 23 May, 5, 6 and 17 June] The accolade of Royal Appointment followed shortly after this tribute to royal patronage, and on 2 July an entry in the Morning Chronicle advertising the wide stock of fabrics available at 67 New Bond St is headed ‘GEO. OAKLEY and Co. FURNITURE PRINTERS to her MAJESTY’.