Bidspirit auction | Small writing desk by Gillows

Small writing desk by Gillows of Lancaster 1822 - width 36.5” depth 22.5” height 30” . Ordered through Ferguson & Co by John Crichton-Stuart, the 2nd Marquess of Bute for Mount Stuart House on the Isle of Bute – it was made by Gillows of Lancaster in June 1822. . Fifty-five years later it survives a fire that destroyed Mount Stuart House and is saved by the crew of HMS Jackal who were nearby. After a short time in storage, it spends the next hundred or so years in arguably the most beautiful Gothic Revival house in the UK you have probably never heard of, before being sold at auction by Christies in 1996-2003. . The most recent 20 years of its life aren’t that well known but it ends up in the fabulous antique shop in Cawdor before proudly sitting in Gladstone House, Tain. . As well as being a significant member of London Society and a Scottish Landowner with links back to Bonnie Prince Charlie, John Crichton-Stuart, the 2nd Marquess of Bute, is widely recognized as the single individual responsible for transforming Cardiff from an insignificant town into a major city. He is referred to as the ”creator of modern Cardiff” as he completely altered its history by financing and building the infrastructure that drove the South Wales industrial boom. . The researching of a piece to establish what it is, who made it, why it was made, who it was made for and if you are really lucky, its ‘life’ since it was made, is one of the best bits of this job. It’s such a joy being able to help it tell its story and imagine what happened around it. . Will you be part of its next chapter?. . Huge thanks to the Archives department of City of Westminster whose research of the Gillows estimate books they have on file helped unlock the amazing story above.