In his design of the first floor rooms of Spencer House, James Stuart took responsibility for every detail from fixtures to furniture. The winged lion settees formed an integral part of the design of the Painted Room, arguably the most important interior at Spencer House and among the earliest fully-developed neoclassical interiors in Europe. The lion forms at the side of the settees correspond to classical originals that Stuart must have seen on his visit to Rome, such as the Arundel marble throne featuring similar carved lion flanks, now in the Ashmolean Museum. The two larger settees (W.1 and 2-1977) were designed to fit either side of the window facing the fireplace, while the smaller settees (W.3 and 4-1977) had curved backs to fit the curve of the aspe and sat underneath mirrors between the windows. This arrangement ensured that visitors entering the room were presented with the impressive lion flanks of all four settees. In the 1772 publication Tour Through the Southern Counties, Arthur Young describes the Painted Room, noting that ‘the frames of the tables, sofas, stand etc. are all carved and gilt in the same taste as the other ornaments of the room, rich but elegant’ (p. 114). Purchased in 1977 from Earl Spencer [1976/2628]. On long-term loan to Spencer House since 1993.