Pair of Corinthian Columns 

This pair of marble columns with stone Corinthian capitals and bases are reputed to have come from the Royal Chapel at Whitehall and formed part of the magnificent and complex altarpiece designed and produced by Grinling Gibbons and Arnold Quellin. In the aftermath of the Glorious Revolution and a fire at Whitehall Palace, the altarpiece was dismantled and removed to Westminster Abbey where the pieces were redisplayed. In the 19th century the various components were once again relocated, a few remaining at Westminster Abbey while many were transported to St Andrew’s Church at Burnham-on-Sea. It is likely that at this point the columns would have been relocated to Sledmere House, Yorkshire.

Quellin and Gibbons collaborated on a number of stone and marble commissions of which the altarpiece for Sir Christopher Wren’s designed Roman Catholic chapel at Whitehall would have been one of the most monumental. To meet the  tight production schedule, Gibbons and Quellin were required to take on a full workforce of 50 to ensure the altarpiece was completed in time. It was unveiled on Christmas Day, 1686, an event documented by the diarist John Evelyn.