18C Irish George II Mahogany Silver Chest on Amazing Carved Stand

PRESENTING AN ABOLUTELY STUNNING PIECE OF IRISH FURNITURE HISTORY, namely, an 18C Irish George II Mahogany Silver Chest on Amazing Carved Stand.

VERY RARE and HIGHLY IMPORTANT EARLY Irish Georgian piece!

Made circa 1745 by an obviously top quality maker.

This piece was made for someone VERY WEALTHY, a ‘Titled’ person!

It still has its original brass handles, escutcheon, hinges and lock.

The chest would have been used for storing silver and probably would have been located in the Lord’s living room. It would have been displayed in a prominent place in his Manor House or Castle, as it ‘screams’ out to “Look at my enormous and high quality silver chest, I own a lot of silver and did I tell you, I’m VERY WEALTHY!”.

The Chest itself is of simple construction, solid Cuban flamed mahogany and it fits/sits onto a carved stand specifically built for it.

The base is where all the ‘action’ begins!

It is an extremely finely carved base with scrolling floral motifs, centering on a scallop shell motif which is the classic Irish Georgian signature!

THE BASE IS QUITE SIMPLY, STUNNING!

The legs are finely carved lions paw feet.

The piece has a GLORIOUS NATURAL PATINA throughout in the flamed mahogany.

The top is hinged and lifts to be held in place by a wooden support.

GEORGE II: George II (George Augustus; German: Georg II. August; 30 October / 9 November 1683O.S./N.S. – 25 October 1760) was King of Great Britain and Ireland, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg (Hanover) and Prince-elector of the Holy Roman Empire from 11 June 1727 (O.S.) until his death.

George was the last British monarch born outside Great Britain: he was born and brought up in northern Germany. His grandmother, Sophia of Hanover, became second in line to the British throne after about 50 Catholics higher in line were excluded by the Act of Settlement 1701 and the Acts of Union 1707, which restricted the succession to Protestants. After the deaths of Sophia and Anne, Queen of Great Britain, in 1714, his father George I, Elector of Hanover, inherited the British throne. In the first years of his father’s reign as king, George was associated with opposition politicians, until they re-joined the governing party in 1720.

As king from 1727, George exercised little control over British domestic policy, which was largely controlled by the Parliament of Great Britain. As elector, he spent 12 summers in Hanover, where he had more direct control over government policy. He had a difficult relationship with his eldest son, Frederick, who supported the parliamentary opposition. During the War of the Austrian Succession, George participated at the Battle of Dettingen in 1743, and thus became the last British monarch to lead an army in battle. In 1745, supporters of the Catholic claimant to the British throne, James Francis Edward Stuart (“The Old Pretender”), led by James’s son Charles Edward Stuart (“The Young Pretender” or “Bonnie Prince Charlie”), attempted and failed to depose George in the last of the Jacobite rebellions. Frederick died unexpectedly in 1751, nine years before his father, and so George II was ultimately succeeded by his grandson, George III.

For two centuries after George II’s death, history tended to view him with disdain, concentrating on his mistresses, short temper and boorishness. Since then, most scholars have re-assessed his legacy and conclude that he held and exercised influence in foreign policy and military appointments.

Link: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_II_of_Great_Britain