Physical description
Cabinet with marquetry of flowers, initials and family arms. The cabinet is formed of three sections. The carcase is of pine, with walnut veneer inlaid with marquetry of various woods. The drawer linings are in quartered oak with fronts of wood (some with 2-plank construction). The bases are rebated into the sides with planted runners of oak. The front and back are rebated and nailed. The dovetails on the drawers are irregular.
[Cabinet] The central section, of cabinet form, consists of two central doors which open to reveal three tiers of drawers. The doors bear the monograms GL on the left hand and ML on the right. The monograms are framed by sprays of foliage tied with ribbons. The inner faces of the doors are decorated with flowers in vases set upon consoles. The consoles have simulated marble tops, an effect created by veneers of light burr walnut, with acanthus foliage springing from the bases of these consoles. The trefoil -shaped spandrels above are veneered in darker walnut. Within the cabinet section, the outer tiers contain seven drawers each, the central tier consists of six smaller upper drawers and three lower drawers with a central door. The drawer fronts are decorated with a range of naturalistic flowers in marquetry, including roses, tulips, lilies, anemones and pinks. The central door bears the coat of arms of Lawson of Harsley Castle, Yorkshire, impaling Trotter of Skelton Castle, Cleveland, Yorkshire. The arms are blazoned as :- Per Pale Arg. and Sa., a chevron counterchanged (lawson) Ar. a cheif Ermi. over all a lion rampant Azure (Trotter). The door bears the Lawson crest on its inner door - two arms in armour embowed supporting a sun proper. Each side of the inner cupboard is inlaid with a six-pointed star with on a light ground. Within are five drawers decorated alternately with arabesques in light and dark woods. The cabinet retains its original high quality brass handles.
Between the lower and central section there is a secret compartment which is accessed by removing the lowest drawer of the central tier. The dustboard beneath the drawer slides out reveal a shallow compartment of document size ( possibly intended to contain a copy of the marriage settlement) with four smaller drawers opening off the central shallow compartment. The dustboard above those on the proper left side is inscribed on the underside 'John Byfield, maker'. The inscription was discovered in June, 1998, seventy years after the cabinet was acquired for the museum.
[Cabinet] The lower section consists of a stand incorporating five drawers, banded with sycamore and decorated with sprays of berries (or possibly the dried seed pods of the 'honesty' flower) arranged in pairs and tied with ribbons which represent true lovers' knots. Bracket feet have replaced the original bun feet.
[Cresting] The uppermost pediment section is composed of four semi-circular arches, each supporting a sun proper. Each supporting a small plinth and framed in bolection mouldings with pleating where the mouldings change direction. Within the arches, there is further marquetry decoration of birds and flowers. The pediment rests on an ovolo moulded cornice.
[Drawer] Drawer on left hand side.
[Drawer] Drawer on left hand side.
[Drawer] Drawer on left hand side.
[Drawer] Drawer on left hand side.
[Drawer] Drawer on left hand side.
[Drawer] Drawer on left hand side.
[Drawer] Drawer on left hand side.
[Drawer] Drawer above inner central door.
[Drawer] Drawer above inner central door.
[Drawer] Drawer above inner central door.
[Drawer] Drawer above inner central door.
[Drawer] Drawer above inner central door.
[Drawer] Drawer above inner central door.
[Drawer] Secret drawer behind W.136:15-1928.
[Drawer] Secret drawer behind W.136:16-1928.
[Drawer] Drawer beneath inner central door.
[Drawer] Drawer beneath inner central door.
[Drawer] Drawer beneath inner central door.
[Drawer] Drawer on right hand side.
[Drawer] Drawer on right hand side.
[Drawer] Drawer on right hand side.
[Drawer] Drawer on right hand side.
[Drawer] Drawer on right hand side.
[Drawer] Drawer on right hand side.
[Drawer] Drawer on right hand side.
[Drawer] Drawer behind internal cupboard.
[Drawer] Drawer behind internal cupboard.
[Drawer] Drawer behind internal cupboard.
[Drawer] Drawer behind internal cupboard.
[Drawer] Drawer behind internal cupboard.
[Lid] Left hand lid to secret compartment in base of upper cabinet section.
[Lid] Centre lid to secret compartment in base of upper cabinet section.
[Lid] Right hand lid to secret compartment in base of upper cabinet section, with signature of maker.
[Drawer] Secret drawer.
[Drawer] Secret drawer.
[Drawer] Secret drawer.
[Drawer] Secret drawer.
[Drawer] Secret drawer.
[Drawer] Secret drawer.
[Drawer] Secret drawer.
[Drawer] Secret drawer.
[Drawer] Secret drawer.
[Keys] Keys.
Place of Origin
Yorkshire, England (probably, made)
Date
ca. 1700 (made)
Artist/maker
Byfield, John (possibly, maker)
Materials and Techniques
Marquetry of walnut, burr walnut, sycamore, other woods and ivory, with some staining, on a pine and oak carcase, with brass fittings
Marks and inscriptions
[Cabinet] Monogram 'GL', for George Lawson.
[Cabinet] Monogram 'ML', for Margaret Lawson.
[Lid] 'John Byfield, maker'
Dimensions
Height: 240 cm, Width: 136 cm cresting slightly wider, Depth: 66 cm
[Cabinet] Height: 43 cm, Width: 129 cm, Depth: 55 cm
[Cabinet] Height: 81 cm, Width: 136 cm, Depth: 63 cm
[Cresting] Height: 52 cm, Width: 145 cm, Depth: 65 cm
[Drawer] Width: 40 cm, Length: 43 cm, Height: 13.6 cm
[Drawer] Width: 40 cm, Length: 43 cm, Height: 13.1 cm
[Drawer] Width: 40 cm, Length: 43 cm, Height: 3.1 cm
[Drawer] Height: 13.1 cm, Width: 40 cm, Length: 43 cm
[Drawer] Width: 40 cm, Length: 43 cm, Height: 13.0 cm
[Drawer] Width: 40 cm, Length: 43 cm, Height: 13.2 cm
[Drawer] Width: 40 cm, Length: 43 cm, Height: 13.0 cm
[Drawer] Height: 8.4 cm, Width: 17 cm, Length: 30 cm
[Drawer] Height: 8.4 cm, Width: 17 cm, Length: 30 cm
[Drawer] Height: 8.4 cm, Width: 17 cm, Length: 30 cm
[Drawer] Height: 8.4 cm, Width: 17 cm, Length: 30 cm
[Drawer] Height: 8.4 cm, Width: 17 cm, Length: 30 cm
[Drawer] Height: 8.4 cm, Width: 17 cm, Length: 30 cm
[Drawer] Height: 8.4 cm, Width: 16.8 cm, Length: 10.9 cm
[Drawer] Height: 8.4 cm, Width: 16.8 cm, Length: 10.9 cm
[Drawer] Height: 13.3 cm, Width: 17 cm, Length: 41.6 cm
[Drawer] Height: 13.3 cm, Width: 17 cm, Length: 41.6 cm
[Drawer] Height: 13.3 cm, Width: 35 cm, Length: 43 cm
[Drawer] Height: 13.2 cm, Width: 40 cm, Length: 43 cm
[Drawer] Height: 13.2 cm, Width: 40 cm, Length: 43 cm
[Drawer] Height: 13.2 cm, Width: 40 cm, Length: 43 cm
[Drawer] Height: 13.2 cm, Width: 40 cm, Length: 43 cm
[Drawer] Height: 13.2 cm, Width: 40 cm, Length: 43 cm
[Drawer] Height: 13.0 cm, Width: 40 cm, Length: 43 cm
[Drawer] Height: 13.3 cm, Width: 40 cm, Length: 43 cm
[Drawer] Height: 7 cm, Width: 18 cm, Length: 17.8 cm
[Drawer] Height: 7 cm, Width: 18 cm, Length: 17.8 cm
[Drawer] Height: 7 cm, Width: 18 cm, Length: 17.8 cm
[Drawer] Height: 7 cm, Width: 18 cm, Length: 17.8 cm
[Drawer] Height: 7 cm, Width: 18 cm, Length: 17.8 cm
[Lid] Height: 0.7 cm, Width: 39.3 cm, Length: 43 cm
[Lid] Height: 0.7 cm, Width: 18 cm, Height: 43 cm
[Drawer] Height: 3.2 cm, Width: 17 cm, Length: 26.5 cm
[Drawer] Height: 3.2 cm, Width: 17 cm, Length: 26.5 cm
[Drawer] Height: 3.2 cm, Width: 17 cm, Length: 26.5 cm
[Drawer] Height: 3.2 cm, Width: 17 cm, Length: 26.5 cm
[Drawer] Height: 15 cm, Width: 61.5 cm, Length: 50 cm
[Drawer] Height: 15 cm, Width: 61.5 cm, Length: 50 cm
[Drawer] Height: 17 cm, Width: 61.5 cm, Length: 50 cm
[Drawer] Height: 17 cm, Width: 61.5 cm, Length: 50 cm
[Drawer] Height: 20.25 cm, Width: 124.5 cm, Length: 50 cm
Object history note
The cabinet was made in about 1700 to commemorate the marriage of Margaret, daughter of Edward Trotter of Skelton Castle, to George Lawson, of Harlsey Castle, Yorkshire. It passed to Margaret Lawson's sister, Mrs. Catherine Bower, of Bridlington, who in turn left it to her son Henry in her will dated 21st April 1742 with the words: 'Item, I give to my son Henry Bower as a token of my Gratitude for his particular affection & care over me during my many and long illnesses, my Silver Tea Kettle and lamp and my large inlaid cabinet with china Jarrs thereto belonging which were my late sister Lawson's'.
The cabinet was passed down through the Bower family from generation to generation and given to the Museum in 1928.
Marquetry cabinet, donated by Watkins
Notes from R.P. 28/9673
The descent of this cabinet from its original owner to Watkins is well documented and all the relevant details have already been extracted to the notes in the Green Folder.
The aspect of the provenance not yet determined is the maker.
1/11/28 internal note, Ralph Edwards to Brackett
suggests that it and the similar (but less well preserved) cabinet in Streatlam Castle may both "be the work of Gerret Jensen (or Johnson), to whom payments are recorded in the Royal Accounts about 1700 for furniture inlaid with ciphers and crowns. They represent an extremely rare style of decoration, remarkable for naturalistic grace, delicacy of colour & lively drawing".
Historical significance: While English in overall form and style, the cabinet has elements in its decorative detailing which suggest an awareness of continental forms. The high pediments with their intricate mitring or 'pleating' of the cornice mouldings, suggest a German influence, while the marquetry of birds and flowers is reminiscent of Dutch craftsmanship. The crossed 'L's' on the door (for Lawson) may be a deliberate and flattering reference to the monogram of the French king Louis XIV, the leader of European fashions at this time. The sparseness of contemporary furnishings limited the possibilities for exhibiting porcelain, which was consequently often placed on cabinets, overdoors or mantelpieces. This cabinet represents the finest of late seventeenth-century marquetry, a technique which fell from favour in the early 18th century and was not revived until the 1750s.
Historical context note
The fashion for showing Chinese porcelain imported by the Dutch East India Company, at its height in the 1680s and 1690s was popularised by William and Mary and their court architect Daniel Marot (c.1663-1752) who brought the taste from Holland.
Descriptive line
Cabinet decorated with marquetry, possibly made by John Byfield, English (Yorkshire), ca. 1700.
Bibliographic References (Citation, Note/Abstract, NAL no)
Wilk, Christopher ed. Western Furniture: 1350 to the present day in the Victoria and Albert Museum, London. London, Philip Wilson Publishers in Association with the Victoria and Albert Museum, 1966, pp.80-81. ISBN: 1856674435
Labels and date
Made to commemorate the marriage of Margaret, daughter of Edward Trotter of Skelton Castle, with George Lawson (d. 1726/7) of Harlsey Castle, both in Yorkshire. A similar cabinet was formerly at Streatlam Castle, Co. Durham.
[John Hardy] [1976]
CABINET with marquetry of flowers, initials and family arms
About 1700
The marquetry on this cabinet may have been made by more than one craftsman. The simple flowers on the drawer fronts are cut differently from the elaborate scrolls, birds and flowers on the doors. Whoever designed it must have known of the complex floral and bird marquetry that was then fashionable in France and The Netherlands.
Marquetry of walnut, burr walnut, sycamore, other woods and ivory, with some staining, on a pine and oak carcase; brass fittings
Probably made in London
Signed in pencil on the inside of the carcase: 'John Byfield'
Made, probably for East Harlsey Castle, North Yorkshire, to commemorate the marriage, in about 1700, between Margaret Trotter (1670-1728) and George Lawson (died in 1726 or 1727).
The marquetry incorporates the monograms GL and ML, and the combined Lawson and Trotter arms inside.
Given by H.T.G. Watkins [27/03/2003]
Production Note
The pencil inscription 'John Byfield, Maker' has recently been found on the underside of a dustboard concealing a secret compartment at the base of the upper section, proper left. English marquetry cabinets on this scale are extremely rare. The only known similar cabinet (now in the Metropolitan Museum, New York: Museum number 31.86) was made to commemorate the marriage of William Bowes of Darlington, County Durham and his wife Elizabeth Blakiston in 1693 and is associated with Streatlam Castle. The geographical proximity of these patrons to the Lawson and Trotter families suggests that both cabinets were made by a local cabinet-maker. The continental influence of both the form and decoration of these cabinets suggest that the maker may have been of Dutch origin. But the quality of the carcase work suggests that his workshop was experienced in the higher quality English construction techniques prevalent at this date.
Materials
Walnut; Pine
Techniques
Veneering; Cabinet making; Marquetry
Subjects depicted
Flowers (plants); Acanthus; Coat of arms; Leaves (plant materials); Vases; Ribbons (materials)
Categories
Furniture; Woodwork; British Galleries
Collection code
FWK
