It is the pleasing combination of scale and simplicity that makes the Regency mantel an ideal choice for modern and period rooms, with its restrained ornamentation and simple construction.
The Regency period saw a more austere approach to the use of classical ornament that had previously received such widespread and unfettered interpretation by Robert Adam and his followers during the 18th century. The proportions of the mantel also changed as the height became lower reflecting the replacement of the corniced shelf with a simpler rectilinear shelf enabling the “dandies” of the period to see themselves in mirrors placed over the mantels.