The Assemblage of a Distinct Glass Collection 1
Total Page：16
File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb
DOSSIER THE ASSEMBLAGE OF a DISTINCt GLASS COLLECTION 1 THE ASSEMBLAGE OF A DISTINCT GLASS COLLECTION THE CREATION AND DISPLAY OF THE GLASS AND STAINED-GLASS COLLECTION OF FERDINAND II OF PORTUGAL ALEXANDRA RODRIGUES VICARTE and Department of Conservation and Restoration, Faculdade de Ciências e Tecnologia/UNL, Lisbon BRUNO A MARTINHO Parques de Sintra — Monte da Lua, SA / National Palace of Pena, Sintra CHAM, Faculdade de Ciências Sociais e Humanas, Universidade Nova de Lisboa, Universidade dos Açores ABSTRACT RESUMO Ferdinand of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha (1816 Fernando de Saxe-Coburgo-Gota (1816 1885), 1885), king-consort of Portugal from 1836, Rei-Consorte de Portugal a partir de 1836, assembled a large collection of glass and reuniu uma grande coleção de vidro e vitrais stained glass in his two major residences: the nas suas duas residências principais: o Palácio Necessidades Palace, in Lisbon, and Pena das Necessidades, em Lisboa, e o Palácio Palace, in Sintra. The assemblage exposes the da Pena, em Sintra. A formação da referida primordial need to highlight the importance coleção expõe a necessidade primordial of remembering the past, hence revealing de destacar a importância de recordar o the collector’s integration in contemporary passado, revelando, portanto, a integração preservationist culture. Nonetheless, the do colecionador na cultura preservacionista choice of the objects that should be gathered sua contemporânea. Todavia, a escolha is also motivated by a certain common trend dos objetos recolhidos também é motivada and sensibility of his time. This paper focus por uma certa tendência comum e por on these two aspects of the collection, while uma sensibilidade da época. O tema deste exploring its formation and display and artigo foca estes dois aspetos da coleção, comparing it to other important 19th century ao explorar a sua formação e exibição, e glass collections. comparando-a com outras importantes coleções de vidro do século XIX. KEYWORDS FERDINAND OF SAXE-COBURG AND PALAVRAS-CHAVE GOTHA | 19TH CENTURY PRESERVATIONIST FERNANDO DE SAXE-COBURGO E CULTURE | GLASS OBJECTS | STAINED- GOTA | CULTURA PRESERVACIONISTA GLASS | COLLECTING PRACTICES. DO SÉCULO XIX | OBJECTOS DE VIDRO | VITRAL | PRÁTICAS COLECCIONISTAS 2 RHASÉRIE W03 Introduction cattered and forgotten for decades, the collection of stained-glass and glass Sobjects of Ferdinand of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha (1816-1885) has only recently been rescued from obscurity 1. It is however a remarkable testimony of 19th century collecting practices for this type of artistic works. By combining historical and contemporary objects, the assemblage exposes, on the one hand, the central need to highlight the importance of remembering the past. Hence it unveils the collector’s integration in contemporary preservationist culture, as it was being developed in Germany since the end of the previous century 2. Nonetheless, on the other hand, the collection is also shaped by a certain common trend that influences the decision over the choice of the objects that should be gathered. Ultimately, when looking at 19th century glass and stained-glass collections, one remarks that the collected objects tell more about the collector than of the context from where they had been extracted. The collection of Ferdinand is revealing of his Germanic background, his family and social relations, as well as his new social/political role in Portugal. Ferdinand collecting himself Ferdinand of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha (1816-1885) became King Ferdinand II of Portugal after marrying Queen Maria II (1819-1853) and fathering a male heir in 1837. Despite coming from a family who took leading governmental roles in 19th century Europe, his preparation for the post as well as his personal inclination towards political affairs have been questioned (Leitão 1940, 60-64; Lopes 2013, 78-79, 133-134). In contrast, his interest in collecting and supporting the arts has been widely acknowledged as his major contribution to Portuguese society (Teixeira 1986, 184-246, 253-301). Despite the validity of the discussion, Ferdinand did introduced in Portugal the preservationist ideas that were being developed in German contexts, not only by collecting historical objects, but also by stimulating the restoration of historical buildings, supporting the organization of exhibitions and sponsoring artistic and archaeological associations 3. The first glimpse of Ferdinand’s collecting practices can be seen in Pena National Palace. After buying the ruins of a 16th century monastery on the hills of Sintra in 1838, Ferdinand promptly decided to adapt and enlarge the existent architectonical structure for a summer residence. Contrary to other revival palaces built in the beginning of the century, such as Löwenburg, Stolzenfels or even Babelsberg, the architectonical references that were used for Pena do not lie solely on a national past. It is a collection of architectonical and ornamental elements which relate more to the collector’s biography than to the search of a historical ideal. There are, of course, multiple references to the past (both German and Portuguese), especially medieval imaginary, such as the Wall, the Drawbridge, the Royal Tower or the Knight’s Hall, but also Manueline elements, such as armillary spheres, or Moorish wall decoration. However, Pena Palace also integrates other references, namely at the Stalls, which derive from an Indian pavilion 4, and at the main entrance, referring to a type of entrance gate common in English architecture, such as the one of Hampton Court Palace. Ferdinand was then collecting references from places that were somehow related to him or to the post he then occupied: Germanic genealogy and upbringing, the head of State of the Portuguese empire and his family relations to the new royal house of England 5. Pena Palace reveals the collector’s identity and glass was to become an intrinsic part of this discourse. The stained-glass window commissioned by Ferdinand for the 16th century chapel of Pena Palace is probably the most rhetorical set of the entire collection [FIG. 1]. The panes, produced by the Nuremberg workshop of the Kellner around 1840-1841 (Martinho and Vilarigues 2011, 13; Teixeira 1986, 310-311) and intended to be placed where in the 16th century a stained-glass window once stood, depict key figures related to the memory of the place: Our Lady of Pena (whose worship at the site dates back to the Middle Ages), Saint George (one of the patrons of Portugal), King Manuel I (who commissioned the construction of the monastery) and Vasco da Gama (whose second DOSSIER THE ASSEMBLAGE OF a DISTINCt GLASS COLLECTION 3 return from India had motivated the construction of the monastery) alongside the coats of arms of Portugal, Saxony, the Cross of the military order of Christ and the armillary sphere (the latter two belonging to the iconography of the Portuguese sea voyages). The site-specific design of the window discloses significant features of the collecting practices of the King. First, it directly refers to the acquisition and restoration of the ruin by Ferdinand, therefore unveiling his preservationist attitude. Second, it uses a medium — stained-glass — with a feeble tradition in Portugal, but with an enduring existence in Central European contexts, therefore referring to the King’s background. And finally, it integrates references to the historical memory of the nation that he adopted through marriage. The depiction of Portuguese historical figures in his new residence enclosures Ferdinand within the ancestors of the Portuguese royal family. Stained-glass thus materializes the appropriation by the collector of both the ruin and its history. Projecting a room for Pena Palace Although never undertaken, the project for the Stag Room at Pena Palace reveals the central role that glass was to play in this building 6. Designed by Julius Eugen Rühl in ca.1855, the project for the Stag Room at Pena Palace consists of a Knight’s Hall (Rittersaal) combined with a Hunting Room (Hirschsaal), which were room types that were becoming essential in revival projects of the beginning of the 19th century in Germany [FIG. 2]. Löweburg, Stolzenfels, Erbach palaces as well as the Veste Coburg had their Ritter- and/or Hirschsaalen, but the combining of the two typologies in a single room is quite uncommon. Nonetheless, both converge towards chivalrous ideals. On the one hand, the Rittersaal with its display of armory and heraldry (both as flags and stained-glass) in a gothic revival structure report to the warrior function of medieval knights. On the other hand, the Hirschsaal with its heads of stags recall that hunting became one of the main attributes of nobility during the early modern age until the dawn of the 19th century 7, therefore replacing the previous bellicose activity. By combining these two aspects, the project reveals an awareness of an ideal of knighthood and nobility which is about to be lost and that must be preserved. Susan A. Crane, who has studied the connections between the development of a historical consciousness in early 19th century Germany and collecting practices, stated that the “the representation of communal or ethnic history through historical objects was […] taking the role of memorializing a collective consciousness of history that compensated for the sense of the loss of the past” (Crane 2000, 37). As we shall see, glass will play a central role within these revival projects, which may be explained by the willingness of the collector to materialize a collective consciousness of history. The project for the Stag Room is, in fact, indebted to German precedents, such as the examples presented above, of which two deserve a special reference. There are unavoidable similarities between Rühl’s project and the Rittersaal of the Erbach Castle 8. In both cases, openings with stained-glass alternate with groups of armors. Stained-glass was used as a reference to medieval architecture and to the importance of family coats of arms to feudal societies.