ADAM'S Country House Collections Day II - 28th April 2026

37 463 A FINE PAIR OF GEORGE III D-SHAPED HARDWOOD AND ROSEWOOD INLAID COMMODES, IN THE MANNER OF WILLIAM MOORE OF DUBLIN, each crossbanded top centred by a half paterae with radiating swagged fan inlay, the rims with dentil banding, the friezes with simple inlaid ribbon tied swags, above quartered bowed panels centred by roundel filled with laurel wreaths, the centre one forming a door, each on four short square tapering legs, bearing the trade label of John Dooley & Sons, Dawson St., Dublin, 142.5cm wide x 70.5cm deep x 87cm high. Provenance: The collection of Colonel Edge, Marlay Grange, Rathfarnham, Dublin; by descent to his daughter Mrs Patricia Hanson, Gerrardstown House, Co. Meath, sale, Hamilton Osborne King, 22 September 1997, lot 284 €15,000 - 20,000 William Moore (fl.1768-1814) was a prominent Dublin cabinetmaker. He attended the School of Landscape and Ornament Drawing at the Dublin Society in 1768 and in 1778 was considered for a silver medal by the Society. Moore is credited with fostering the passion for Neo-Classical designs which first popularised in England by Robert Adam, and which flourished throughout the great homes of Ireland during the late 18th century. He established his first business on Abbey Street (1785–90) and subsequently moved to Capel Street in 1791. He was elected Master of the Joiners’ Guild from 1809 to 1810. In the late 1760s or early 1770s he worked for Mayhew and Ince in London, an influence reflected in stylistic parallels. Specialising in satinwood items and utilising other exotic woods, Moore’s design exhibits a true mastery of marquetry that he incorporated into his pieces. His work is characterised by radiating fan motifs and finely executed decorative designs such as intertwined vines, ribbon-tied swags, bellflower pendants and shamrocks. No documented furniture by Moore survives, the only reference to his work is in the Clonbrook archives. Nevertheless, a small group of furniture has been attributed to him on the basis of a single commode made for the third Duke of Portland, Lord Lieutenant of Ireland in 1782, which bears an ivory plaque naming Moore as its maker. Other similar pieces attributed to Moore are held in major museum collections, including The Victoria & Albert Muse- um; The Metropolitan Museum of Art; The Cooper-Hewitt Museum, New York City; and The National Museum of Ireland, Dublin.