24-05-2025
From console tables to porcelain birds at Great Irish Interiors sale
A pair of Irish giltwood console tables, a Cork shipwreck paintedby Richard Peterson Atkinson, 19th-century porcelain birds, possibly Meissen, and a Donegal carpet attributed to CFA Voysey — trappings typical of a grand Irish country house — feature at the Great Irish Interiors sale at Sheppard's in Durrow on Tuesday and Wednesday (May 27-28).
More than 1,300 lots showcase the rich history of antiques, art and decorative objects rooted in the Grand Tour, the Enlightenment and trade links with China and the Middle East that once abounded in the houses of Ireland.
'City of New York aground on Daunt Rock, 1864', a watercolour by Richard Peterson Atkinson, at Sheppard's.
Lots like a large French tapestry, a Sevres-style mantel clock and a bronze sculpture of a Roman charioteer on a marble plinth attest to a past which focused both on collection from abroad and promotion of local skills. The latter resulted in lots on offer like an exceptional Killarney davenport, fine Irish silver and antique furniture made by skilled craftspeople in Ireland. The auction is on view in Durrow from today, and the catalogue is online.
