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Attributed to James Seymour – Sir Edward O’Brien in Hunting Costume of his Day. UPDATE: THIS WAS UNSOLD

Behind this portrait of a man on a horse – one of the leading lots at Adams Country House Collections at Townley Hall on October 13 and 14 – lies a partial history of sporting life in Ireland in the 18th century.  Attributed to James Seymour it is a painting of Sir Edward O’Brien of Dromoland in the hunting costume of his day estimated at €50,000-€80,000.

Renowned for his extravagance and passion for horse racing the 2nd baronet of Dromoland entered the Irish House of Commons in 1727 and represented Clare until his death nearly four decades later.  He epitomised a certain type of Irishman renowned in song and story in the 18th century.

This was in the century that witnessed the first steeplechase from Buttevant to Doneraile (resulting from a bet in 1752) and the Rakes of Mallow. The song written by Ned Lysaght around 1740 describes the rakes as the true begotten sons of Bacchus spending faster than it comes. Known for his heavy gambling and reckless managemen O’Brien knew the pleasures and perils of 18th century sporting culture.  On the plus side the walled garden, the stable block, the Temple of Mercury, the octagonal pond and the Dromoland turret were all constructed under his watch.  On the minus side his lifestyle prevented him from being chosen as heir to the vast Thomond estates.

A c1750 Irish bureau-writing cabinet UPDATE: THIS WAS UNSOLD

Now an annual auction fixture Adams Country House Collections at Townley Hall  showcases fine period furniture,  paintings, silver and decorative arts.  Highlights include the dress sword presented by the East India Company to Lt. Col. Barry Close (€300,000-€400,000), a painting from the circle of John Wootton (1682-1764) of a race on the Beacon Course at Newmarket with the Prince of Wales and others believed to include Sir Edward O’Brien in the foreground (€60,000-€80,000), a c1750 Irish George II mahogany bureau cabinet (€40,000-€60,000) and a portrait entitled Nellie by Sir George Clausen (€20,000-€30,000) once in the collection of the late Cork artist Marshall Hutson.

An American silver gilt dinner service (€30,000-€50,000), a pair of Limerick silver salvers by Joseph Johns (€15,000-€20,000) and a pair of silver sauce boats by Paul de Lamerie (€8,000-€12,000) feature among the leading lots.

A George III commode attributed to William Moore UPDATE: THIS WAS UNSOLD

A George III harewood and marquetry commode attributed to William Moore (€20,000-€30,000), a George III three pillar extending dining table (€15,000-€20,000), a c1850 Victorian carved oak extending dining table from Dunecht House in Scotland (€12,000-€18,000), a pair of c1770 carved giltwood console tables with yellow marble Siena tops (€12,000-€16,000), a pair of Irish stained pine side tables with green marble tops (€12,000-€15,000) and a 17th century Louis XIV boulle and red tortoiseshell desk (€10,000-€15,000) are feature antique furniture pieces.

As in any big sale there are plenty of pickings for those of us whose budget does not extend to an €80,000 portrait, no matter how colourful the gentleman depicted used to be.  With everything from Georgian knife boxes to a Cork silver basting spoon by Carden Terry to a 1729 book on The Procedure, Extent and Limits of Human Understanding by Dr. Peter Browne (1665-1735) theologian, Bishop of Cork and Ross and Provost of Trinity College, Dublin there is available a wide variety of lots at highly affordable estimates.

Viewing at Townley Hall, Drogheda is underway. An online only auction of the first 317 lots will begin to close from 2 pm on October 13. The live and online sale of lots 400-825  will get underway at Adams saleroom in Dublin on October 14.

A pair of c1760 Limerick silver salvers by Joseph Johns. UPDATE: THESE WERE UNSOLD

(See post on antiquesandartireland.com for October 4, 2025)