Early Mouseman Furniture Comes to Auction

Tennants Auctioneers’ Modern Living: Art & Design Sale on 2^nd March is set to include a strong offering of Robert ‘Mouseman’ Thompson furniture and furnishings from his Golden Age in the 1930s – a decade that saw the height of the Yorkshire craftsman’s creative ability and output.

Always a firm favourite at auction, Mouseman pieces from the 1930s command the best prices as eager bidders compete to win a prized lot. The offerings in Tennants’ March sale look set to cause excitement with some special pieces. The star lot is a bespoke double-sided bookcase desk, made for The Order of the Holy Paraclete in Whitby. Estimated at £5,000-7,000 (plus buyer’s premium), the impressive and unusual piece features integrated desks, cupboards and adjustable bookshelves, not forgetting the all-important carved mouse.

Also on offer is an early Monk’s Chair – one of Thompson’s most iconic designs. Initially designed for the monks at Ampleforth Abbey, Thompson often made personalised examples for clients such as the present lot. Dated 1936, the chair was made for William Fox who worked for Rowntree’s of York. Not only does the chair have his initials carved on the back panel, but each arm is carved with a fox’s head and the sides carved with Yorkshire roses. It is being offered with an estimate of £1,500-2,000 (plus buyer’s premium).

Both practical and beautiful are a 1930s oak chest of drawers (estimate: £3,000-5,000 plus buyer’s premium) and a 1930s panelled sideboard (estimate: £3,000-5,000 plus buyer’s premium), which are being sold alongside nearly 100 further lots of furniture and furnishings by Robert ‘Mouseman’ Thompson and the Yorkshire Critter carvers.

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