PAIR OF GILTWOOD WALL BRACKETS
19TH-20TH CENTURY
十九至二十世紀 朱金漆鏤雕花鳥紋壁架（一對）each carved with birds and flowering branches on gnarled tree trunk (2)
heights: 33cm and 32.2cm 
The Estate of Sir John and Lady Clare Keswick at Portrack House, Dumfriesshire.Sir John Henry Keswick, KCMG (1906–1982) was an influential Scottish businessman in China and Hong Kong. He was the tai-pan of Jardine, Matheson & Co., the leading British trading firm in the Far East, and had established friendships with many Chinese politicians, including Zhou Enlai, Premier of the People's Republic of China, and Madame Soong Ching-ling, wife of Sun Yat-sen during his stay in China. He was also a representative of the Special Operations Executive, a British intelligence service during the Second World War. Sir John spoke fluent Chinese. He was a Chinese art collector, particularly contemporary paintings.He married Clare Mary Alice Cynthia Catherine Celia Elwes (1905–1998) in 1940 and had a child Margaret Keswick (1941–1995) who founded Maggie's Centres for those suffering from cancer.