Cheffins is delighted to be offering 104 lots of paintings, antiques and collectibles from Wood Hall, a fine brick-built manor situated just outside of the village of Hilgay in Norfolk. Built by Henry Hawe in 1579 on land granted to him by Henry VIII following the Dissolution in 1539 the house and estate passed through generations of the extended family before being sold in the early 19th century to William Lowton Jones. Following damage from a fire the house was in part rebuilt and the park re-modelled by Humphry Repton in 1807. The estate was bought by the Stocks family of Upper Shibden Hall in Yorkshire in 1879 and has remained in the same family until recently, the last incumbents being the Charlesworths, who inherited the house and land from Major Eric Stocks in 1974.
Wood Hall, Hilgay, Norfolk
Following the subsequent sale of the house, the Charlesworth family instructed Cheffins to sell part of the contents, which have been collected over the past 140 years by many generations of the Stocks, Ellison and Charlesworth families. The selection for sale includes typical country house antiques and furniture, including ancestral portraiture and 19th century paintings, as well as militaria and various other collectibles.
One of the premier lots from Wood Hall is a 19th century bronze statue of Mercury, after the Renaissance sculptor, Giambologna. Standing at over 2.7 metres high on its base it made for a striking feature in the hall and carries an estimate of £8,000 - £12,000.
Mercury, after Giambologna in the hallway at Wood Hall
Another impressive item from the collection is a large Venetian view by the British artist, Jane Vivian (1869 – 1888). The picture shows San Giorgio Maggiore from the Bacino di San Marco with barges and gondoliers plying their trade in the foreground and estimated at £4,000 - £6,000.
Lot 269, available at The Fine Sale on 22nd and 23rd June
As to family portraiture, also found in the hall not far from the statue of Mercury is a painting of Mrs Jane Mary Stocks by the Anglo-German portraitist Rudolf Wilhelm August Lehmann (1819 – 1905). Jane Mary Stocks, née McEchran was the wife of Michael Stocks, who bought Wood Hall in 1878 and is seen here elegantly dressed in black with an adornment of flowers, holding a fan made of peacock feathers. The artist Lehmann was a popular portrait painter of the day having studied at the École des Beaux-arts in Paris, before settling in London in 1866. The painting carries an estimate of £1,500 - £2,500.
Lot 310, available at The Fine Sale on 22nd and 23rd June
For enthusiasts of militaria, Wood Hall proved to be a treasure trove of fascinating items from the Crimean War. Included is a diary written by Major Michael Stocks of the Royal Dragoons recording the events he participated in, and action seen at the battles of Sebastopol, Inkermann and Balaklava, together with medals awarded to him for his part in those battles, the lot is estimated at £1,000-2,000. The diary records an emotive first-hand account of the fateful 25th October 1855 and events surrounding the Charge of the Light Brigade. In addition, there is further group of Crimean medals awarded to Colonel Sir Richard George Ellison together with a forage cap complete with bullet hole obtained during his involvement at the Battle of Inkermann. This group with other items is estimated at £3,000-5,000.
To view the catalogue for the sale, please click here.