FORTUNES SPENT IN FURNISHING.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 7422, 7 June 1902, Page 2

FORTUNES SPENT IN FURNISHING.

Chairs and Tables Worth Tfceir Weight in Gold. The modern Crcestia thinks nothing of ' spending a fortune upon a single piece of furniture, but for luxurious fittings Knola Park, the Kentish residence of Lord Sackville, -would be hard to beat. One bed alone cost £8000, being of scarlet silk embroidered with gold, and was originally mode for James I. In the same mansion I may also be seen a large square table of solid silver, the face of which if covered with, sovereigns would not represent its value, while £1800 was given for a. candelabrum. Five thousand pounds is the estimated value of the famous "black" bed in the Otway family. It is of solid ebony, carved in the shape of negroes' heads, and all the hangings, sheets and quilts are of the finest black silk. This sum is eclipsed, however, by the magnificent mahogany bedstead to be found in the collection, of furniture owned by the French Government. It is over three hundred years old, and so. exquisite is the carving that the Government only recently refused an offer of £14,000 for it. Millionaires have sighed in vain for the Higham collection of Chippendale and Sheraton furniture owned by the family of that name^ which has resided in Higham for centuries. The actual value of the collection of about fifty pieces is placed at £50,000, but Henry Grant, the railway king, made an offer of £80,000 for it not long ago, which was refused. Some of the chairs cost £1000 each, and 1 date from tne twelfth century. Although, the Hjtghams •worl^for their living as farmers, they have as yet stontiy declined any one of the tempting offers which have been made for their treasures from time to time. Chairs sometimes prove expensive, and one in the King's collection at Windsor, which was once used at the Coronation of the Venetian Doges, and is dated 167Q, cost 250 guineas : while two small Louis XIV. tables sold by the Duke of Leeds in 1900 realised £15,000. Pianos, top, although at all times costly, seldom fetch' the prices which some millionaires are content to pay for them. Mr Cornelius Vanderbilt gave £3500 for one some time agp, and the Marquis of Breadlalbane has one which cost only £500 less. If money is any guarantee, then the piano owned by Mr Murand, a New York financier, must indeed be a sweet-toned instrument, for it cost £10,000. The value, perhaps, lies more in the priceless paintings that adorn it and the patterns let into the wood-work in precious stones. Monarohs invariably spend fortunes in furnishing, and a decade ago the Sultan, of Turkey decided to fib up a luxurious bedroom for Ms own use. The bed is of ivory and silver, the posts being encrusted with gems to represent the Imperial arms. Ths silk of which the hangings are made cost £80 a yaftl, and the tapestry on the walls is woven with gold thread and ablaze with diamond*, while even the ceiling is inlaid with gold. This piece of extravagance post the Oriental potentate £120,000. But probably the most expensive suite of furniture in existence is 7 that owned by a certain Indian Maharajah. It consists of four arm-chairs, three small tables and -a sofa, all of solid ivory/ and the suite is the more valuable because it was given to Warren Hastings by Tippoo Sahib. Five years ago an offer of £100,000, made by Mr Jchn Ashibury, the Oalifornian millionaire, for the eight pieces of furniture, as they stood, was refused.