Lot 134

Commissioned by Thomas Henry Payne (1862–1932) for his house, 'Leura', Toorak, Melbourne, circa 1900
Presumably thence by descent to his son, T.E.N. Payne, remaining at 'Leura'
Presumably sold by the above at his sale, Decoration & Co., 'Leura': the Furnishings and Effects contained throughout this Mansion [at the property], 1–2 August, 1955
A private Melbourne institutional collection, to which donated in 1972

En suite with the following lot.

'Leura', one of the grandest houses in Toorak, was built in the early 1870s by the pastoralist Robert Simson (1819–1896) on an estate at the corner of Toorak and Orrong Roads.

Following Simson's death, the house was acquired in 1899 by the politician and pastoralist Thomas Henry Payne (1862–1932), who commissioned the present and following lot as part of a thorough renovation and refurnishing of the house. It appears this furnishing scheme remained largely intact for the next half-century, until its dispersal at auction in 1955 before demolition of the house.

The various reliefs to the hall-stand include as a tribute a portrait bust in profile of the famous steeplechase jockey Thomas 'Tommy' Corrigan (1851 or 1854–1894), who had ridden for T.H. Payne and died of injuries suffered when his mount Waiter fell in the 1894 Grand National Steeplechase at Caulfield.

S.P. Charteris, 'Art Cabinet Maker', was a highly regarded maker of fine furniture, operating from around 1880 to the 1930s, often working as a contractor maker in collaboration with Melbourne's leading furniture retailer and maker, W.H. Rocke & Co.