A George III Irish giltwood mirror by William Partridge, the original oval plate in a rope-twist frame connecting branches and vines issuing leaves and berries tied with a ribbon, surmounted by c-scroll-carved fronding beneath crossed-vine branches carved with leaves and berries.

Retaining William Partridge’s maker’s label on the reverse, reading: ‘WILL.M PARTRIDGE / Carver Gilder & Glafs-Seller / Parliament Street / DUBLIN’.

This is a charming mirror, in wonderful, original condition. Carved abundantly with leaves and berries with real fluency, the design captures the playful, naturalistic nature of the Rococo. Of particular note is the delightfully detailed treatment of the surface of the leaves. 

This charming and intricately carved mirror was made by William Partridge between 1774 and 1782, the period during which Partridge was established at his premises in Parliament Street, Dublin. Its design was undoubtedly inspired by the profoundly influential work of Thomas Johnson (d. 1778), the master carver and one of the most influential designers of the eighteenth century.

Alongside Chippendale, Johnson formed and popularised the Rococo in England and Ireland, in addition to his unique rustic style, the present mirror showing the influence of both. The C-scrolls and fronds are characteristic of the Rococo, whilst the naturalistic branches or vines, ending in twigs, which are vigorously naturalistic, are a pure expression of Johnson’s rustic fantasy. Indeed, Johnson’s One Hundred & Fifty New Designs (1761) includes a very similar oval frame mirror with branch and foliate decoration (plate 33).

During his early career, between 1753 and 1755, Johnson worked in Dublin for ‘Mr. Partridge’, almost certainly the present William Partridge, whom Johnson describes in his autobiography, Life of the Author, as ‘a principal carver’ supplying frames to looking-glass shops. Established at this time at Blind Quay (1755-73), according to Johnson, ‘He promised me as much work as would serve myself, my three apprentices, and four journeymen, provided I would work for him only. To this I agreed’. 

Amongst the work done by Johnson for Partridge was a commission for Lady Arabella Denny that included a Gothic chimneypiece. It is fascinating to consider the influence that William Partridge may have had on the young Johnson during his formative years and the contribution he may have made to the development of this future master of English carvers’ pieces. 

Two pairs of mirrors bearing Partridge’s paper maker’s label survive, one at Leixlip Castle, Co. Kildare and another sold from Newtown Park, Co. Dublin, Christie’s, 20 September 1976, lot 12 (illus. Glin, Furniture History (1985), fig. 32 & Glin & Peill, Irish Furniture (2007), p. 266), in addition to a large single giltwood pier glass (illus. Glin & Peill, Irish Furniture (2007), p. 170).

The mirror is also closely comparable to the work of two of Partridge’s Dublin contemporaries. A mirror bearing the trade label of ‘JOHN BOOKER AT NO 6. Efsex Bridge, Dublin’ in a private collection, illus. Glin & Peill, Irish Furniture (2007), p. 147, fig. 201, is a nearly identical model, as is the set of three oval giltwood pier glasses supplied for the dining room at Castletown, Co. Kildare, almost certainly by Richard Cranfield, in 1768, illus. Glin & Peill, Irish Furniture (2007), p. 126, fig. 171.

NOTE

The mirror retains the original plate and almost all the original gilding