An important late 18th century English chimneypiece in statuary marble with engaged three quarter columns inlaid with flutes of Jasper terminating in ionic capitals beneath corner blocks carved with urns. The frieze panels inlaid with Jasper flutes above stiff leaf acanthus carving flanking a finely carved classical centre tablet. The chimneypiece has a corniced shelf incorporating tiers of dentil carving and pearl bead.
The Restoration Project
The English Chimneypiece were commissioned to restore this late Georgian surround back to its original condition. Marble calcification had made the piece extremely fragile and many of the components, including the Jasper flutes had broken and some were missing. The plinth blocks were badly chipped, much of the marble was cracked through ageing and the centre plaque required fine polishing to remove staining. Previous restoration attempts were of a poor quality and this added to the complexity of the restoration.
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