Luxury Antiques Weekend at Stapleford Park, UK The Antiques Dealers Fair Limited’s newest event is the Luxury Antiques Weekend at Stapleford Park, opening at the impressive Stapleford Park Country House Hotel near Melton Mowbray in Leicestershire
the World. Combine this with the high standard of elegance and sophistication of the boutique-style fair and the event becomes a truly memorable experience. Visitors can either indulge in a weekend stay and enjoy the comfort of one of their individually designed bedrooms and visit the fair at their leisure or just come for the day.
The fair is a one-stop-shop for private buyers and interior decorators seeking unusual and quirky furnishings and accessories for the home. 20 professional antiques dealers from around the UK are showcasing their best pieces including town and country furniture, jewellery, oriental rugs, oils and watercolour paintings, sculpture, original book illustrations, fine porcelain, glass and objets d’art.
Highlights include a Regency mahogany extending Imperial dining table seating up to 16 people which will be perfect for those grand or large family occasions. Almost certainly made by Gillow of Lancashire, with four original leaves and clips, circa 1825, it is priced at £35,000 from Freshfords Fine Art of Bath. From Manchester M&N Oriental Rugs has a fine Persian Tabriz carpet which took 2 master weavers 5 years weave in wool and silk, selling for £15,000.
English porcelain can be found from Cumbrian Valerie Main Ltd exhibiting with Barling Fine Porcelain, and also from John Newton from East Yorkshire, selling continental porcelain too. Sculpture comes from both Garret & Hurst Sculpture, specialists in 19th century signed bronzes and Books Illustrated, selling contemporary bronzes and original book illustrations. On Books Illustrated stand is a watercolour of ’The Tyger Voyage’ by the award winning book illustrator Nicola Bayley (b. 1949), selling for £1,750. Richard Adams of Watership Down fame wrote ‘The Tyger Voyage’ specially for her.
Exhibitors from the East Midlands area include Walter Moores & Son, dealers in quality Georgian and Regency furniture for over 80 years; and furniture and antique jewellery specialists Vaughan Antiques; both first time exhibitors at an Antiques Dealers Fair Limited event. Leicestershire based Walter Moores & Son have a late 19th century teak campaign chest, still retaining all the original brassware and screw-in feet, constructed in two parts for ease of transport. The top right hand drawer is fitted as a secretaire and veneered with birds-eye maple the shallow drawer in the base possibly being used for maps and charts, priced at £4,500.
The fair’s charity is Rainbows Hospice for Children and Young People (www.rainbows.co.uk). Launched in 1994 and based in Loughborough, Rainbows has helped hundreds of children and families and is moving forward to continue apace for the future.
Stapleford Park Country House Hotel & Sporting Estate sits within 500 acres of gardens, parkland and woods. The hotel boasts a host of activities including its own School of Falconry, archery, tennis, health spa and fitness centre, game and clay pigeon shooting and has an 18 hole championship golf course. For those in need of refreshments there is the renowned 2AA Rosette Grinling Gibbons restaurant, more casual food in The Pavilion Restaurant or light refreshments within the fair itself.
