SOUTH KENSINGTON.- Christie’s is pleased to be offering the contents of Langford Hall, Nottinghamshire on Sunday 6 July at 11.30am. Both Patrick Radford and his wife Evelyn were fascinated by antiques and design and over the course of their lives together at Langford Hall, collected a variety of items that filled the Georgian house and family home. Patrick Radford trained as a cabinet maker for the family firm Stag Furniture, and his eye for quality craftsmanship and design is reflected in the broad range of furniture offered in the Collection. Estimates range from £200 to £20,000 and the sale includes beautiful examples of furniture, artworks, porcelain, pictures, silver, books and vintage fashion. The sale also offers an opportunity to acquire a fantastic addition to the home which has the added provenance of once belonging to a fine country house.
Highlights include a pair of magnificent George IV mahogany bergeres, (estimate £8,000-12,000) and side cabinets stamped Gillows (estimate £8,000– 12,000), as well as a Louis XV ormolu-mounted kingwood and pallisander commode by Leonard Boudin, circa 1765, (estimate £5,000-8000). These highlights feature alongside a variety of useful and decorative furniture including Italian white painted and parcel-gilt side chairs, estimate £400-600 and a North Country Oak Linen Press, late 18th century, estimate (£800-1200).
Pictures
The sale includes a small collection of portraits (estimates from £3,000) the highlight of which is an expansive full scale portrait of Thomas Dundas, 2nd Earl of Zetland depicted with his horse in a landscape. The painting was commissioned by the sitter from Sir Francis Grant, P.R.A. (1803-1878) (estimate £20,000-30,000) in 1841 and exhibited at the Royal Academy in 1849. The sale also features portraits by Michael Dahl, Jacob Huysmans and Jonathan Richardson. The Collection’s Nottinghamshire roots are expressed in a series of charcoal drawings of views of Victorian Nottingham by artist Thomas William Hammond and in a collection of volumes on the History of Nottinghamshire County, (estimate £300-500).
Colour & Shape
Evelyn Radford’s creative flair and sense of colour add an exciting dimension to the Collection. Passionate about greyhounds, which were the family pets, the sale features a number of bronze and porcelain examples (estimates range from £500) and a collection of vintage fashions and accessories from Evelyn Radford’s wardrobe including such illustrious names from the fashion world as Manolo Blahnik, Pucci, Lanvin, and Balenciaga. Highlights include an André Courrèges tabard dress and coordinating coat, estimate £300-400 and a Christian Lacroix prêt-a-porter three piece suit, estimate £200-250.
Langford Hall is a fine example of the domestic architecture of John Carr (1723-1807), the pre-eminent architect in Yorkshire and the North of England in the Georgian period. It dates to circa 1780 and was built for Charles Slingsby Duncombe, (1746-1803) whose son, Charles Duncombe (1764-1841) was created 1st Baron Feversham of Duncombe Park near Helmsley, North Yorkshire in 1826. It was most likely built as a hunting lodge for the Duncombe family and remained in their hands until 1832 when it was sold to Baron Middleton of Wollaton Park. Patrick Radford and his wife Evelyn Wilkinson acquired Langford 1968.
Patrick Vaughan Radford was born in Nottingham in 1920. Educated in Oundle, he joined the family firm Stag Furniture as a cabinet maker, before enlisting in the Royal Armoured Corps in 1941, eventually attending Sandhurst. After serving in World War II, he re-joined Stag Furniture as general manager and was made director in 1950. He served with the firm for 53 years and, as joint Managing Director, Chairman and finally President, oversaw its growth to become one of the largest cabinet makers in Europe.
