A Piece of the Past: The Allure of Antiques

Bidding is now open! Find out more on the Chiswick Auctions website. 

Just like old buildings, items of antique furniture are precious survivals from the past. A Georgian table embodies the craft skills of its era just as much as an elegant townhouse from the same period. 

And just like in old buildings, the quality of materials used in antique furniture is often far higher than the materials used in furniture today. Of course, there’s nothing wrong with something cheap and cheerful. But if you want something of exceptional quality, built to last, you can’t do better than an item that’s already lasted several hundred years.  

A Georgian mahogany open armchair, circa 1760; a French porcelain pen tray of neoclassical design, late 19th century.

Our online fundraising auction of 17th to 19th century furniture, textiles and porcelain contains dozens of such pieces, with suitably storied histories. The items are predominantly Georgian and include a Regency sideboard, a cabinet, several tables, a pair of Meissen candelabra and two Aubusson wall hangings. 

This is furniture fit for a National Trust property – which is where many of them were on show until recently. You may well have spotted some of the items up for grabs at Lyme Park in Cheshire, the Treasurer’s House in York, or Hatchlands Park in Surrey. The furniture was generously bequeathed to us back in 1939 by Evelyn Stannus, and spent many years on display. Now that the National Trust has returned them, and our HQ in Spital Square is sadly not capacious enough to store them, they are looking for a new home. Could it be yours? 

 A pair of Meissen candelabra, late 19th century; a pair of Aubusson tapestry panels.

This is your chance to acquire a beautiful antique while supporting our work giving old buildings a future. To take home something finely crafted, with the knowledge that by supporting the SPAB, you’re helping keep those same craft skills alive. 

Items are now on sale as part of an online auction, with bidding starting from £35. Bidding closes on Sunday 7 April. Find out more on the Chiswick Auctions website.

A French Baroque-style giltwood console, 19th century; an oval Worcester porcelain chestnut bowl, 1772.

All images: Chiswick Auctions