Your chance to own a little piece of Yorkshire aristocracy as Dales estate holds rare auction

By The Newsroom
Published 24th Aug 2024, 00:00 BST
It’s one of North Yorkshire’s most impressive estates, with a history stretching back to the 17th century.

And now some of the treasures of the Swinton estate are going under the hammer in a landmark auction next month.

The sale will include a selection of fine English and continental furniture, paintings, sculpture, Chinese works of art, silver and rare books, gleaned from the estate of the 2nd Earl and Countess of Swinton.

The 1st Earl was Conservative politician Philip Cunliffe-Lister, a friend of Winston Churchill. The title passed to his grandson who served as Captain of the Yeomen of the Guard and Deputy Chief Whip in the House of Lords under Margaret Thatcher from 1982 to 1986.

A Pair of French Gilt-Metal-Mounted Chinese Celadon-Glazed Porcelain Pot-Pourri Bowls and Covers, Qianlong mark and of the period with an estimate: £10,000-15,000 under the hammer in The Swinton Sale at Tennants Auctioneers in Leyburn, photographed by Tony Johnson for The Yorkshire Post. Contents of Dykes Hill House on the Swinton estate in the sale include a selection of fine English and Continental Furniture, Paintings, Sculpture, Chinese Works of Art, Silver, Meissen, Sèvres, Books and Objects d’Art from one of Yorkshire’s most important landed estates. 3 July 2024A Pair of French Gilt-Metal-Mounted Chinese Celadon-Glazed Porcelain Pot-Pourri Bowls and Covers, Qianlong mark and of the period with an estimate: £10,000-15,000 under the hammer in The Swinton Sale at Tennants Auctioneers in Leyburn, photographed by Tony Johnson for The Yorkshire Post. Contents of Dykes Hill House on the Swinton estate in the sale include a selection of fine English and Continental Furniture, Paintings, Sculpture, Chinese Works of Art, Silver, Meissen, Sèvres, Books and Objects d’Art from one of Yorkshire’s most important landed estates. 3 July 2024
A Pair of French Gilt-Metal-Mounted Chinese Celadon-Glazed Porcelain Pot-Pourri Bowls and Covers, Qianlong mark and of the period with an estimate: £10,000-15,000 under the hammer in The Swinton Sale at Tennants Auctioneers in Leyburn, photographed by Tony Johnson for The Yorkshire Post. Contents of Dykes Hill House on the Swinton estate in the sale include a selection of fine English and Continental Furniture, Paintings, Sculpture, Chinese Works of Art, Silver, Meissen, Sèvres, Books and Objects d’Art from one of Yorkshire’s most important landed estates. 3 July 2024

He and his wife lived at Dykes Hill House, near the castle at Swinton Park, which was specially built to accommodate the Countess, Susan Cunliffe-Lister, who was paralysed after a riding injury while she was in her 20s.

She went on to become a Paralympian and outspoken member of the House of Lords, campaigning on disability rights. She died in 2023.

The Cunliffe-Lister family still own the Swinton estate, which now incorporates a hotel, spa and holiday cottages, and have worked with Leyburn-based Tennants Auctioneers to put on the Swinton Sale on September 13.

Tennants describes the auction as offering “a rare glimpse of what epitomises the quintessential taste of the English aristocracy” with lots expected to fetch up to £12,000 apiece.

That estimate is for a pair of William IV silver candelabra by John Houle which once belonged to former Prime Minister Robert Peel.

Also included are finely mounted pieces of Chinese ormolu porcelain acquired by Samuel Cunliffe-Lister, 1st Baron Masham of Swinton, in around 1890 for Swinton Park.

Collectors of royal memorabilia will covet a George VI silver seal matrix of the Duchy of Lancaster and a George VI silver seal matrix of the County Palatine of Lancaster. Both belonging to Philip Cunliffe-Lister, the 1st Earl Swinton who held the position of Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, they were presented to him on the death of George VI.

Tennants director Jane Tennant said: “Whenever we’re dealing with an estate of such historic importance, there's always going to be a selection of items in there that are incredibly interesting, not necessarily from a value point of view, but from a historical context point of view.

“You’re not going to get any better provenance than this.

“There are lots of well-known Yorkshire makers represented, from Mouseman furniture to Rockingham porcelain and a series of books by the Brontë sisters.

“There could be some quite competitive bidding, which may see that a lot of the estimates are well exceeded.”