Pair of Large Salt Glazed Stoneware Recumbent Lions, Portuguese Circa 1830

A pair of large, salt-glazed stoneware recumbent lions, each sculpted in a relaxed posture with distinctive, textured manes and serene facial expressions. The lions rest on molded bases with slightly weathered surfaces, displaying a dark patina consistent with their age. These finely modeled lions would have served as decorative elements, either indoors or outdoors. Portugal, circa 1830.

*From the private collection of San Francisco interior designer and author John Wheatman. 1

height: 18 in. (46 cm.)
width: 33 in. (84 cm.)
depth: 13 in. (33 cm.)
Sold as a pair.
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John Wheatman is often recognized as the creator of SF Bay Area style in interior design. Named one of House Beautiful’s Top American Designers, Wheatman owned his firm and showroom at 1933 Union Street for nearly 35 years. He also taught interior design for over 40 years at Mills College, UC Berkeley in California, and the Inchbald School of Design in London.
John Wheatman’s practice had a practical approach to sustainability. He believed in bringing the outside in and keenly respected nature and its ability to bring joy, healing, and beauty into everyday life. He grew up in a family that told stories around the fireplace adorned by masses of flowers from the garden and freshly laid eggs piled in a handwoven basket on the kitchen counter. “I love that kind of attention to the smallest detail,” he often said. For him, celebrating the cycle of life meant reusing and re-envisioning, not throwing away.

Wheatman’s interiors were said to have transformed homes into true reflections of his clients, capturing their unique spirit, travels, and treasures—what he called the ‘soul factor’ of a home. His design philosophy led to something of a Wheatman mantra: A good house is never done. He wrote a popular book by that title and another called Meditations on Design: Reinventing Your Home with Style and Simplicity,” published in 2000.

“People bring a room to life. My role is to craft the setting, emphasizing simplicity to accentuate the most important part of a home—its inhabitants.”

Meditations on Design: Reinventing Your Home With Style and Simplicity by John Wheatman ©2000
A Good House is Never Done by Sarah Susanka, David Wakely, John Wheatman ©2002.
A matter of taste by Lynette Evans March 29, 2000, San Francisco Chronicle
John Wheatman, San Francisco Chronicle from Oct. 9 to Oct. 11, 2020, legacy.com