Expert Adviser's Statement Railings
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Reviewing Committee on the Export of Works of Art and Objects of Cultural Interest (RCEWA) Case 23 (2016-17): a set of English gilt bronze, painted, wrought and cast iron railings MEETS WAVERLEY CRITERIA TWO AND THREE EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 1 Brief description and recent history of items Two sets of railings, each of three sections, made of wrought and cast iron, painted black, with gilt iron and gilt bronze decoration. Each set comprises a central section with interlaced Cs encircled by the Garter Ribband suspended from a bearded gilt bronze mask, flanked by acanthus scrolls and floral swags; and two flanking sections of railing with gilt rosettes at mid-height between spiked-topped upright rods, and framed at each end by more ornate upright sections with gilt urns at the highest points above gilt bronze lion masks beneath. The railings were made in 1720s by Jean Montigny (1721-1725) and modified in 1740s. They were further modified and restored 1989-92 to good condition. Each section = 236cm high, 230cm wide and 45cm deep, including supporting plinths. See Figures 1a, 1b, 1c, and 2 2. Provenance (1) The railings were supplied by Jean Montigny for James Brydges, 1st Duke of Chandos (1673-1744) for Cannons, Edgware, in the 1720s; they were sold at Cannons House 16 June 1747 (following the Duke’s bankruptcy in 1744), when they were acquired by Isaac Ware, architect for Philip Stanhope, 4th Earl of Chesterfield (1694-1773) for Chesterfield House, London, for which they were modified in the late 1740s. (2) Railings acquired in situ with Chesterfield House by Charles Magniac (1827-1891) and on his death by Sir Michael Arthur Bass, 1st Baron Burton (1837-1909); thence by descent until sold in situ to Henry George Lascelles, 6th Earl of Harewood (1882- 1947) in 1922; moved to Harewood House, Yorkshire, by the 6th Earl upon the demolition of Chesterfield House in 1937; thence by descent with the Earls of Harewood until sold, Harewood House, Christie’s, 3rd October 1988, lot 104. (3) Acquired at Christie’s by Alan Rubin; modified, restored and submitted in two lots for sale at Sotheby’s, London, 6th July 2016. Lot 17 was sold at £185,000 (estimate £150- 200,000). Lot 18 was unsold and brought in (estimate £150,000-200,000) 3 Waverley Criteria 1 The railings are amongst the most lavish examples in Britain and are important for the study of the history of ironwork. They illustrate an integral aspect of British eighteenth-century architectural patronage and the role of ironwork in communicating social status. Designating the perimeter of the central residence, the Chesterfield House railings were intended to impress on arrival and to be viewed by the patron and his guests from within the front ground floor reception rooms (Figure 3). Their design and execution is of outstanding quality and of outstanding aesthetic significance. DETAILED CASE 1 The objects and their historical and artistic context Relatively little is known of the work of Jean Montigny, a French Catholic immigrant smith who specialised in wrought iron who is first recorded in London in 1705. He was a younger associate of Jean Tijou, the distinguished designer and gatesmith from St Germain, France, who is recorded in London by 1687 and worked for the royal palaces, courtier houses and new ecclesiastical buildings. Montigny was associated with Tijou from 1708, when they jointly supplied a gate for Felbrigg Hall, Norfolk. Like Tijou, Montigny was abreast of the latest French engraved designs for ornament and master of the most sophisticated metalworking techniques which set new standards. Montigny worked in association with architects James Gibbs and John Price for James Brydges, 1st Duke of Chandos (1673-1744) at Cannons, Edgware and received two payments from that patron between 1721 and 1726 totalling £540. ‘Fine Wrought Iron Gates’ were listed in the Cannons sale catalogue of 1747 when the great house was demolished after that Duke’s death. Besides the documented patronage of Lord Chandos and Lord Chesterfield, Montigny is credited with gates associated with Devonshire House, London, which were acquired second-hand from Lord Heathfield’s house in Turnham Green after it was demolished in 1837 (Figure 4). Now situated on the North side of Green Park, their bronze masks and swirling foliage provide a good comparison with the Chesterfield House railings, although the Devonshire coat-of-arms are a later addition. Jean Tijou, hitherto the most important designer and producer of ironwork in Britain, had raised the standard of production in London by 1700. He published his earlier designs in London as ‘A New Booke of Drawings’, 1693. Tijou’s ironwork at Chatsworth, Derbyshire (supplied with assistance from Montigny), and particularly Tijou’s celebrated external Thames-side screen of partially gilded ironwork panels at Hampton Court Palace, bear witness to his extraordinary skill. The Hampton Court screen panels, featuring central rose, harp and thistle emblems representing England, Ireland and Scotland, and distinctive mask heads, are technically comparable to the Chesterfield House railings, they are double sided; there are broad stylistic similarities. The Chesterfield House railings were strongly influenced by Tijou’s technique. They demonstrate the spectacular effect of ironwork highlighted with gilding and applied gilt-bronze decoration, and its role in enhancing the architectural impact of both exterior and interior of a great London or country house, royal palace, cathedral or parish church. 2 1.1 James Brydges, 1st Duke Chandos and Cannons House, Edgware In 1703 James Brydges, 1st Duke of Chandos secured an appointment as a commissioner to the Admiralty. In 1705, thanks to the influence of the John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough, Brydges was made paymaster of Queen Anne's forces, from which he made £600,000 profit when he resigned in 1713. This was a substantial sum even at a time when public office was regarded as a legitimate source of profit. In 1712, after the death of his first wife, Chandos purchased her family estate at Cannons. Here he built what came to be regarded as the best house of its day in England. Designed by leading architects the finest craftsmen were employed to create the magnificent marble staircase, library, picture gallery, and chapel decorated in Baroque style where a choir and orchestra under Dr Pepusch performed anthems specially composed by Handel. Ducal hospitality was liberal and Cannons was rarely without guests who enjoyed meals accompanied by music, and the well laid out grounds guarded by Chelsea pensioners. The poet Alexander Pope was one of the few people who remained unimpressed, condemning ‘Timon's Villa’ as the epitome of tastelessness and misspent wealth. 1.2 Lord Chesterfield and Chesterfield House, London Philip Stanhope, 4th Earl of Chesterfield spent his childhood at Bretby, Derbyshire but was educated in London by M. Jouneau, Huguenot minister in Soho. Chesterfield thrived on the stimulus of city life. In 1726 he was appointed British Ambassador to The Hague, and on his return served in opposition to Sir Robert Walpole. He was Viceroy of Ireland in 1745 and Secretary of State for the Northern Department but resigned from public office in 1749. In 1747 he wrote to Madame de Monconseil ‘congenial society is the greatest joy in life, and it can only be found in capitals. It is on this principle that I am at present in the process of ruining myself by building a fine house here, which will be finished in the French style with abundance of sculptures and gilding.’ Of all the great London mansions demolished in the 20th century, the loss of Chesterfield House in 1937, with its sophisticated French interiors, is most keenly felt, despite the modifications of later owner Charles Magniac who demolished the service wings and developed the grounds to the East as Chesterfield Gardens. Its destruction acted as a catalyst for the foundation of The Georgian Group which celebrates its 80th anniversary in 2017. The two full lengths of railings extended to either side of the entrance to the main house (Figure 3). Its architect Isaac Ware described the house in A Complete Body of Architecture, 1756, as ‘a town-house of the greatest elegance built for a nobleman of the most distinguished taste, and adorned at the greatest expense.’ In fact Chesterfield House was originally situated in open country north of the site of the annual May Fair and surrounded by fields stretching up towards Tyburn. The West facing house and its service wings; stables on the North and kitchens, larders, pantry, scullery and warehouse on the South were enclosed by a great court, 177 foot in length and 94 feet in breadth, with a high wall with great gates directly opposite the main entrance. These service wings were masked by colonnades (obtained from the Cannons sale) which Chesterfield 3 referred to as his ‘Canonical columns….so fine that to keep my house in countenance I am obliged to dress the windows of the front with stone, those of the middle floor too with Pediments and Balustrades’. Over the main entrance to the house an elaborate cartouche contained Chesterfield’s coat of arms. Chesterfield House was within sight of St George’s Hospital converted by Isaac Ware in 1732 from Viscount Lanesborough’s mansion at Hyde Park Corner. Inside Chesterfield House, the marble entrance hall boasted an arcade of Corinthian columns and a double flight marble staircase with wide marble treads. Chesterfield wrote ‘The staircase particularly will form such a scene as is not in England. The expense will ruin me but the enjoyment will please me’ (letter to Bristowe December 1747). His contemporary George Vertue noted that each step was made out of ‘an entire block of marble 20 feet in length.’ Although the marble for the staircase came from the demolished Cannons it is believed that the lavish staircase balustrade, originally painted blue and gilded, was created by Montigny for the new house; its design with its interlaced Cs relates closely to the exterior railings, to which the Ribband of the Order of the Garter flanked by palm fronds was added (Lord Chesterfield was made a Knight of the Garter in 1736).