Mallett Antiques is an "

antiques An antique ( la, antiquus; 'old', 'ancient') is an item perceived as having value because of its aesthetic or historical significance, and often defined as at least 100 years old (or some other limit), although the term is often used loosely ...

" dealer with galleries in London and New York who regularly exhibit at the International Fine Art & Antique Fairs. Founded in 1865m, Mallett & Son Antiques is one of England's oldest dealers of fine antiquities. They specialize in English and Continental furniture and decor. In 2017 Mallett was officially out of business as stated by its last owner, Stanley Gibbons Ltd.

History

The company was founded in 1865 by John Mallett (a jeweller and Silversmith) at 36 Milsom Street, Bath, Somerset, England. His son, Walter Mallett, who had joined his father's business in the 1870s or early '80s, quickly assumed complete control, and today he is acknowledged by Mallett as the real founder of the firm. It was he who expanded the stock to include old silver and furniture and who arranged for the purchase of the lease of the Octagon Chapel. This building had originally, in 1767, been designed as a church by the architect Thomas Lightholder, whose specific brief was to produce a structure which would be warm, comfortable and well lit. The Octagon fulfilled all of these requirements, and it became quite the most fashionable church in Bath. Eminent and distinguished visitors made a point of engaging a pew for as long as they stayed in the city, hiring it at the same time as they hired their lodgings. The most expensive of these were like small rooms, each with its own fireplace and easy chairs. Between service and sermon, an interval was allowed during which footmen poked the fires and saw that their master and mistress were comfortable. The vault of this building were let out to a wine merchant, which gave rise to the verses by

Christopher Anstey Christopher Anstey (31 October 1724 – 3 August 1805) was an English poet who also wrote in Latin. After a period managing his family's estates, he moved permanently to Bath and died after a long public life there. His poem, ''The New Bath Gui ...

Spirits above and spirits below,
Spirits of Bliss and spirits of woe,
The spirits above are spirits Divine,
The spirits below are spirirts of wine.

Since the building was leasehold, it was never consecrated, so when it fell into disuse in the 1890s Mallett's take it over. New Showrooms were built on each side of the church, with workshops and storage in the basement. A gas engine was installed to drive the polishing lathes, work the lift, make the electric light and, by means of a fan, circulate air through every part of the building. With the improvement in communications, express trains serviced the

West Country The West Country (occasionally Westcountry) is a loosely defined area of South West England, usually taken to include all, some, or parts of the counties of Cornwall, Devon, Dorset, Somerset, Bristol, and, less commonly, Wiltshire, Glo ...

to and from London and facilitated attendance at the spa, bringing much added interest and business to Mallett's at the Octagon. In 1908 the

Franco-British Exhibition (1908) The Franco-British Exhibition was a large public fair held in London between 14 May and 31 October 1908. The exhibition attracted 8 million visitors and celebrated the Entente Cordiale signed in 1904 by the United Kingdom and France. The chief ar ...

was held at

Earls Court Earl's Court is a district of Kensington in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea in West London, bordering the rail tracks of the West London line and District line that separate it from the ancient borough of Fulham to the west, the ...

in London, and the firm took a stand there. This was such a successful venture that Walter Mallett decided to open a permanent shop in London, and he took a lease of premises at 40

New Bond Street Bond Street in the West End of London links Piccadilly in the south to Oxford Street in the north. Since the 18th century the street has housed many prestigious and upmarket fashion retailers. The southern section is Old Bond Street and the ...

, which contained showrooms on two floors displaying stock of furniture including mirrors, pictures and objects, each room arranged to re-create the atmosphere of a private house. On his death in 1930, the business passed to a consortium of six of his employees, who in 1937 decided to close the Octagon premises and move the whole business to London. Francis Mallett became chairman. On his death he left a large part of his collection to the Ashmolean museum at Oxford. After the Second World War, under the new chairmanship of Francis Egerton, Mallett's began to assume its present form. Mallett's have an association with museums and private collections all over the world including the

Victoria and Albert Museum The Victoria and Albert Museum (often abbreviated as the V&A) in London is the world's largest museum of applied arts, decorative arts and design, housing a permanent collection of over 2.27 million objects. It was founded in 1852 and nam ...

. In 1983 Francis Egerton retired and in 1987, under the new management, Mallett became a public company. Lanto Synge assumed the role of Chief Executive until 2009 when he retired. Lanto Synge has had a number of books published on antiques and on antique needlework, a particular specialty of his, including 'Art of Embroidery — A history of Style and Technique', produced in conjunction with the

Royal School of Needlework The Royal School of Needlework (RSN) is a hand embroidery school in the United Kingdom, founded in 1872 and based at Hampton Court Palace since 1987. History The RSN began as the School of Art Needlework in 1872, founded by Lady Victoria Welby ...

. In 1999 he published 'Mallett Millennium', which is illustrated throughout with photographs from the extensive Mallett archives. In 1991, the Bond Street business moved to new enlarged premises at 141 New Bond Street with twelve showrooms. In 2012 Mallett moved its premises to Ely House, 37 Dover Street. This classical townhouse, built as the London palace for the Bishop of Ely, remains in the centre of London's art market. It is, like Mallett's first gallery in Bath, a famous architectural masterpiece and a Grade I listed building, designed by the renowned neo-classical architect Robert Taylor in 1772 for Robert Keene, the Bishop of Ely. From 1894 until recently it was occupied by the Albemarle Club whose members included artists and authors such as Oscar Wilde.

Mallett at Bourdon House 1962 – 2007

Mallett's second business was established in 1962 at Bourdon House, in Mayfair, until 1953 the London House of the late 2nd

Duke of Westminster Duke of Westminster is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created by Queen Victoria in 1874 and bestowed upon Hugh Grosvenor, 3rd Marquess of Westminster. It is the most recent dukedom conferred on someone not related to the ...

. Built for William Burdon Esq in the years 1723–25, during the reign of

George I George I or 1 may refer to: People * Patriarch George I of Alexandria (fl. 621–631) * George I of Constantinople (d. 686) * George I of Antioch (d. 790) * George I of Abkhazia (ruled 872/3–878/9) * George I of Georgia (d. 1027) * Yuri Dolgor ...

, the house stood amidst fields and market gardens between the then emerging

Berkeley Berkeley most often refers to: *Berkeley, California, a city in the United States **University of California, Berkeley, a public university in Berkeley, California * George Berkeley (1685–1753), Anglo-Irish philosopher Berkeley may also refer ...

and Hanover Squares. Mallett sold Bourdon House in 2007.

Mallett Inc, New York

Since 2003 Mallett has also been operating from a New York Gallery at 929 Madison Avenue and

East 74th Street 74th Street is an east–west street carrying pedestrian traffic and eastbound automotive/bicycle traffic in the New York City borough of Manhattan. It runs through the Upper East Side neighborhood (in ZIP code 10021, where it is known as East ...

. Mallett completely renovated the New York Brownstone building and now offers stock from the London showrooms.

Furniture makers exhibited at Mallett

Robert Adam Robert Adam (3 July 17283 March 1792) was a British neoclassical architect, interior designer and furniture designer. He was the son of William Adam (1689–1748), Scotland's foremost architect of the time, and trained under him. With his ...

Matthew Boulton Matthew Boulton (; 3 September 172817 August 1809) was an English manufacturer and business partner of Scottish engineer James Watt. In the final quarter of the 18th century, the partnership installed hundreds of Boulton & Watt steam engin ...

, George Bullock,

Sir William Chambers __NOTOC__ Sir William Chambers (23 February 1723 – 10 March 1796) was a Swedish-Scottish architect, based in London. Among his best-known works are Somerset House, and the pagoda at Kew. Chambers was a founder member of the Royal Academy. Bio ...

, John Cheere,

Thomas Chippendale Thomas Chippendale (1718–1779) was a cabinet-maker in London, designing furniture in the mid-Georgian, English Rococo, and Neoclassical styles. In 1754 he published a book of his designs in a trade catalogue titled ''The Gentleman and Ca ...

, John Cobb, Gérard Dagly, Gillow, Christopher Fuhrlohg, Benjamin Goodison, John Gumley, Giles Grendey,

William Hallett William is a male given name of Germanic origin.Hanks, Hardcastle and Hodges, ''Oxford Dictionary of First Names'', Oxford University Press, 2nd edition, , p. 276. It became very popular in the English language after the Norman conquest of Engl ...

Gawen Hamilton Gawen Hamilton (1698 – 1737), easily confused with the later, more prominent artist Gavin Hamilton (artist), Gavin Hamilton, was a Scottish painter working in London, a member of the Rose and Crown Club. He was one of the first wave of British b ...

George Hepplewhite George Hepplewhite (1727? – 21 June 1786) was a cabinetmaker. He is regarded as having been one of the "big three" English furniture makers of the 18th century, along with Thomas Sheraton and Thomas Chippendale. There are no pieces of furnitu ...

, Henry Holland, Thomas Hope,

Ince and Mayhew Ince may refer to: *Ince, Cheshire, a village in Cheshire, UK *Ince-in-Makerfield in the Metropolitan Borough of Wigan, UK *Ince (UK Parliament constituency), a former constituency covering Ince-in-Makerfield *Ince (ward), an electoral ward covering ...

, Georges Jacob,

Jackson and Graham Jackson may refer to: People and fictional characters * Jackson (name), including a list of people and fictional characters with the surname or given name Places Australia * Jackson, Queensland, a town in the Maranoa Region * Jackson North, Qu ...

, Thomas Johnson,

Owen Jones Owen Jones (born 8 August 1984) is a British newspaper columnist, political commentator, journalist, author, and left-wing activist. He writes a column for ''The Guardian'' and contributes to the ''New Statesman'' and '' Tribune.'' He has two ...

William Kent William Kent (c. 1685 – 12 April 1748) was an English architect, landscape architect, painter and furniture designer of the early 18th century. He began his career as a painter, and became Principal Painter in Ordinary or court painter, bu ...

Paul de Lamerie Paul de Lamerie (9 April 1688 – 1 August 1751) was a London-based silversmith. The Victoria and Albert Museum describes him as the "greatest silversmith working in England in the 18th century". He was being referred to as the ‘King’s silv ...

, Pierre Langlois,

John Linnell John Sidney Linnell ( ; born June 12, 1959) is an American musician, known primarily as one half of the Brooklyn-based alternative rock band They Might Be Giants with John Flansburgh, which was formed in 1982. In addition to singing and songwri ...

Matthias Lock Matthias Lock was an English 18th century furniture designer and cabinet-maker. The dates of his birth and death are unknown; but he was a disciple of Thomas Chippendale, and subsequently of the Adams, and was possibly in partnership with Henry ...

John Makepeace John Makepeace OBE FCSD (born John Makepeace Smith; 6 July 1939) is a British furniture designer and maker. Makepeace was born in Solihull, Warwickshire Warwickshire (; abbreviated Warks) is a county in the West Midlands region of England. ...

John McLean John McLean (March 11, 1785 – April 4, 1861) was an American jurist and politician who served in the United States Congress, as U.S. Postmaster General, and as a justice of the Ohio and U.S. Supreme Courts. He was often discussed for t ...

Daniel Marot Daniel Marot or Daniel Marot the Elder (1661–1752) was a French-born Dutch architect, furniture designer and engraver at the forefront of the classicizing Late Baroque Louis XIV style. He worked for a long time in England and the Dutch Republic ...

, Meissen, Bernard Molitor, James Moore,

William Morris William Morris (24 March 1834 – 3 October 1896) was a British textile designer, poet, artist, novelist, architectural conservationist, printer, translator and socialist activist associated with the British Arts and Crafts Movement. He ...

, F & C Osler, Robert Osmond,

Daniel Quare Daniel Quare (1648 or 1649 – 21 March 1724) was an English clockmaker and instrument maker who invented a repeating watch movement in 1680 and a portable barometer in 1695. Early life Daniel Quare's origins are obscure. He was possibly a nati ...

, John Ravenscroft,

Jean Henri Riesener Jean-Henri Riesener (german: Johann Heinrich Riesener; 4 July 1734 – 6 January 1806) was a famous German ''ébéniste'' (cabinetmaker), working in Paris, whose work exemplified the early neoclassical "Louis XVI style". Life and career Riesene ...

David Roentgen David Roentgen (1743 in HerrnhaagFebruary 12, 1807), was a famous German cabinetmaker of the eighteenth century, famed throughout Europe for his marquetry and his secret drawers and poes and mechanical fittings. His work embraces the late Rococ ...

, John Singer Sargent, George Seddon,

Sèvres Sèvres (, ) is a commune in the southwestern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the centre of Paris, in the Hauts-de-Seine department, Île-de-France region. The commune, which had a population of 23,251 as of 2018, is known for ...

Thomas Sheraton Thomas Sheraton (1751 – 22 October 1806) was a furniture designer, one of the "big three" English furniture makers of the 18th century, along with Thomas Chippendale and George Hepplewhite. Sheraton gave his name to a style of furniture charac ...

, George Smith,

Sir John Soane Sir John Soane (; né Soan; 10 September 1753 – 20 January 1837) was an English architect who specialised in the Neoclassical architecture, Neo-Classical style. The son of a bricklayer, he rose to the top of his profession, becoming professo ...

Paul Storr Paul Storr (baptised 28 October 1770 in London – 18 March 1844 in London) was an English goldsmith and silversmith working in the Neoclassical style, Neoclassical and other styles during the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries. Hi ...

, James 'Athenian' Stuart,

Thomas Tompion Thomas Tompion, FRS (1639–1713) was an English clockmaker, watchmaker and mechanician who is still regarded to this day as the "Father of English Clockmaking". Tompion's work includes some of the most historic and important clocks and watc ...

John Vardy John Vardy (February 1718 – 17 May 1765) was an English architect attached to the Royal Office of Works from 1736. He was a close follower of the neo-Palladian architect William Kent. John Vardy was born to a simple working family in Durham. Hi ...

William Vile William Vile ( 1700 – September 1767) was an English cabinetmaker. Biography Vile was one of the best English cabinetmakers of the Early Georgian Period (1745 – 1780) only overshadowed by Thomas Chippendale of the Late Georgian Period (1750 ...

Josiah Wedgwood Josiah Wedgwood (12 July 1730 – 3 January 1795) was an English potter, entrepreneur and abolitionist. Founding the Wedgwood company in 1759, he developed improved pottery bodies by systematic experimentation, and was the leader in the indus ...

, Thomas Weeks. Since 2006, Mallett has quickly expanded and established three new and distinct companies, James Harvey British Art, Meta and Hatfields Restoration.

James Harvey British Art

Now operates from 15 Langton Street,

Chelsea Chelsea or Chelsey may refer to: Places Australia * Chelsea, Victoria Canada * Chelsea, Nova Scotia * Chelsea, Quebec United Kingdom * Chelsea, London, an area of London, bounded to the south by the River Thames ** Chelsea (UK Parliament consti ...

, SW10. The gallery is dedicated to promoting British Artists from the 17th century to the present day. With an emphasis on the less established names of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, the gallery will also promote traditional figurative contemporary art.

Hatfields Restoration

In 2007 Mallett merged with Hatfields and took over premises in London on

Clapham Clapham () is a suburb in south west London, England, lying mostly within the London Borough of Lambeth, but with some areas (most notably Clapham Common) extending into the neighbouring London Borough of Wandsworth. History Early history ...

High Street. Scholars House is a late 18th century building from which the company is developing a range of restoration services. Hatfields has a history which dates back to 1834 when the original Hatfield family established the firm. Initially founded to produce miniature frames, the company expanded to include furniture workshops, restoring and conserving furniture and works of art for Royalty, private and museum collections throughout the world. In the 1930s the company noted on its letterhead that it had warrants from

Queen Victoria Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until her death in 1901. Her reign of 63 years and 216 days was longer than that of any previo ...

, The Prince of Wales &

King Edward VII Edward VII (Albert Edward; 9 November 1841 – 6 May 1910) was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and Emperor of India, from 22 January 1901 until his death in 1910. The second child and eldest son of Queen Victoria a ...

References

Reference and press

Meta at Design Miami * http://www.iconeye.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=3582:meta-at-design-miami The Art Newspaper * http://www.theartnewspaper.com/articles/Mallett%20to%20offer%20contemporary%20design/8615 Telling Tales Exhibition at the Victoria & Albert Museum 2009 * http://www.vam.ac.uk/microsites/telling-tales/ V & A Magazine Magic Wardrobes and Scary Chairs, Gareth Williams, Summer 2009 * {{cite journal, last1=Williams, first1=Gareth, title=Magic Wardrobes and Scary Chairs, journal=V&A Magazine, date=Summer 2009, pages=51–54, url=http://www.madebymeta.com/media/item/973/84/Meta-V-A-Magazine-Summer-09.pdf, archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110714014616/http://www.madebymeta.com/media/item/973/84/Meta-V-A-Magazine-Summer-09.pdf, archive-date=14 July 2011 https://englishantiques.medium.com/the-death-of-mallett-67200e897fae Antiques Companies based in Bath, Somerset British Royal Warrant holders English furniture 1865 establishments in England Retail companies established in 1865