Pair of Neo-Classical Library Bookcases

By repute, these sophisticated neo-classical bookcases were removed from Lambton Castle, one of the grandest country houses in the north of England, seat of the Earls of Durham.

Of a complex concave construction, they were probably supplied as part of the design for the castle by architect Ignatius Bonomi in the 1820s then simply remodelled to be flat-backed later in the 19th Century when the coal mines which created the Lambton fortune began to undermine the structure of the castle, requiring demolition and refurbishments.

These bookcases have been taken back through historic painted decoration to earlier layers and have the original brass grilles, with a few old repairs overall.

One bookcase has a secretaire drawer and the locks are stamped GR and Barron, The Strand, one of the finest locksmiths of the period, indicating that they were made in the reign of George IV.

The lower section backboards are early 20th Century replacements.