Thomas Mayhew (cabinetmaker)

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Thomas Mayhew was an English cabinetmaker of the 18th century, the less-distinguished partner of William Ince.

The chief source of information as to his work is supplied by his own drawings in the volume of designs, The universal system of household furniture, which he published in collaboration with his partner. The name of the firm appears to have been Mayhew and Ince, but on the title page of this book the names are reversed, perhaps as an indication that Ince was the more extensive contributor. In the main Mayhews designs are heavy and clumsy, and often downright extravagant, but he had a certain lightness of accomplishment in his applications of the bizarre Chinese style. Of original talent he possessed little, yet it is certain that much of his Chinese work has been attributed to Chippendale. It is indeed often only by reference to books of design that the respective work of the English cabinetmakers of the second half of the 18th century can be correctly attributed.

This article incorporates text from the Encyclopædia Britannica Eleventh Edition, a publication now in the public domain.