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A FINE IRISH MAHOGANY GEORGE III HALL TABLE, C.1740
the moulded top above an apron carved with a mask and flanked by foliate scrollwork on a pounced ground, raised on carved cabriole legs and paw...
A FINE IRISH MAHOGANY GEORGE III HALL TABLE, C.1740
the moulded top above an apron carved with a mask and flanked by foliate scrollwork on a pounced ground, raised on carved cabriole legs and paw feet. 119cm wide, 58cm deep, 77cm high
The great Ballynagarde table from Limerick incorporates similar profiles of the present ‘Green Man’ mask and the similar exaggerated carving of the acanthus scrolls could suggest a similar source for this table. In folklore the representation of a ‘Green Man’ comes from the Gothic styles of architecture but dates back to much earlier Mediterranean culture. Symbolising rebirth, there is a 13th century example in St. Canices Cathedral, Kilkenny. The carver of the present lot must have been aware of these foliage, usually acanthus, framed masks from medieval monasteries or from printed and manuscript sources. Also from Gothic mythology comes the ‘Wild Man of the Forest’, a pagan deity, and later on ‘Wild Man’ or ‘Green Man’ became conflated and this may account for the alarming set of serrated teeth we see on this idiosyncratic table.
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