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A 'lost masterpiece' which took 17 years to make has been awarded winner of the 2010 Country Life-LAPADA Object of the Year, it was announced today at the London International Fine Art Fair at Olympia. The Hausburg Cabinet is a remarkable ebony and marquetry miniature representation of the exterior of Rheims Cathedral, with doors opening to reveal an astonishing interior 'hall'. It took 17 years to make, and was submitted to the Object of the Year competition by Butchoff Antiques of Kensington Church Street. The Hausburg Cabinet, along with 11 other finalist objects, can be seen at LIFAF Olympia through Sunday 13 June. Ian Butchoff of Butchoff Antiques says the Hausburg Cabinet is "without doubt the most exceptional piece of furniture we have been lucky enough to own in 46 years of business". The cabinet was made by Friedrich Ludwig Hausburg (1817-1886), a naturalised British citizen whose papers were signed personally by Queen Victoria. An ebony exterior intricately details tracery, minute figures, rose windows, doors and roof in brass and silver wire and mother-of-pearl. The interior reveals marquetry work representative of the very finest ability and technique, and is accessed by doors minutely depicting scenes from the interiors of King's College Chapel, Cambridge, and Westminster Abbey. These open to disclose a central hall with a tesserated chessboard floor, barred by hinged ormolu gates. Internal marquetry faced drawers depict no less than 17 important buildings with royal connections, including Kew Palace, the entrance to the Old House of Lords, Brighton Pavilion, the castles of Windsor, Dover, Caernarvon and Kenilworth, Holyrood House, Westminster Abbey, St Paul's Cathedral, St James' Palace, the Tower of London, Hampton Court, the Palaces of Buckingham and Kensington, Virginia Water and Bushy Park. The cabinet is signed in marquetry inlay 'F.L. Hausberg Fecit Liverpool Begun 1840, Finished in 1857'. The winning object was unanimously selected by the judging committee, comprising furniture expert John Bly; Tim Knox, Director of Sir John Soane's Museum; Huon Mallalieu, arts correspondent of Country Life; the Earl Howe Chairman of LAPADA, and Judith Miller of Millers Antiques Guides. Huon Mallalieu, as chairman of the judges, stated: "With such a diverse range of objects it can be difficult to compare different disciplines. Clearly the winner should be something absolutely splendid of its kind, but in order to make our final choice, rarity and story become even more important: we had to ask ourselves, could there ever be another of similar greatness? In this case, we all felt the Hausburg Cabinet was unparalleled in all its facets." Some 52 objects were entered this year from members of LAPADA The Association of Art & Antiques Dealers, the UK's largest trade association for professional dealers. Second place was awarded to Peter Petrou for a beautiful carved wood and polychromed figure, made in Granada circa 1700. She is portrayed kneeling on a cushion with her hands held in prayer, her dress delicately painted to simulate silk damask brocaded with stylised carnations. Third place was awarded to De Parma for a group of six Buccheri vases made by Carlo Alberto Rossi to designs by Gio Ponti, presented at the IX Triennale Di Milano in 1940. The vases were made using the same techniques as the Etruscans in bucchero pottery, a method re-discovered by Rossi. The set was purchased directly from the Ponti family home and was part of Gio Ponti's private collection. "The Country Life-LAPADA Object of the Year was inaugurated in 2009 as a showcase for some of its members' finest objects and paintings," says Sarah Percy-Davis, Chief Executive of LAPADA. "This year's winner is an outstanding example of work and we are delighted it has been selected winner for 2010." The Country Life-LAPADA Object of the Year finalists can be viewed at the LAPADA stand at the London International Fine Art Fair, open now at Olympia through Sunday 13 June. For information about tickets to the fair visit www.lifaf.com. Click on to images below for full details of these pieces.
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