THE drawing for the entrance gateway at Rathfarnham Castle. (Click on image to enlarge). UPDATE: THIS SOLD FOR A HAMMER PRICE OF 680 (the lot included two other drawings).
An original drawing for the Roman style triumphal arch entrance at Rathfarhham Castle in Dublin features at the Matthews auction at Oldcastle, Co. Meath on July 26 at 6.30 p.m. The castle was built around 1583 by Adam Loftus, a Yorkshire clergyman who came to Ireland as chaplain to the Lord Deputy and rose to become Archbishop of Dublin and Lord Chancellor of Ireland. He was closely involved in the establishment of Trinity College.
After more than a century of family ownership the property passed by marriage to Phillip Wharton, who lost his money in the South Sea Bubble. The castle was sold in 1723 and after several changes of ownership it was bought in 1767 by Nicholas Hume-Loftus, second Earl of Ely, a descendant of Adam Loftus. To celebrate regaining ownership the Loftus family made another entrance for the castle in the form of a Roman Triumphal Arch. This can still be viewed from nearby Dodder Park Road. Henry Loftus, Earl of Ely was responsible for much of the conversion of the medieval fortress into a Georgian mansion and employed renowned architects Sir William Chambers and James ‘Athenian’ Stuart to carry out these works. The castle is now in the care of Heritage Ireland and is open to the public as a castle undergoing conservation. The estimate for the drawing is 500-800.
UPDATE: THE drawing, with two others, sold for a hammer price of 680.