JUNE 2007

PEARLS BEFORE WINE? THE HISTORY OF A ROYAL NECKLACE

After the AGM of the Farnham Decorative and Fine Arts Society Frances Ashworth, the Chairman, announced that bookings were being taken for the visit to Ham House and Kew Palace in September and that collages created by pupils at Farnham DFAS Young Arts sessions were available for viewing at the Watts Gallery until 29 June and during the school holidays.  Members were given notice of next year’s tour to Romania from 31 May to 8 June.

Freelance Lecturer in Fine Arts, Jane Kelsall, gave our June lecture on ‘Pearls before Swine?  The History of a Royal Necklace’ providing a brief background on pearls generally and tracing the history of one of the most famous collections, The Hanover Pearls (or The Medici Pearls). 

Natural pearls were found in oriental waters, mostly salt water. They were used as ornaments during pre-historic times, and a slide was shown of a 14th Century painting depicting pearl fishing.  In 1893, a Japanese man succeeded in culturing pearls, and since 1918 most pearls are cultured. 

The Hanover Pearls as the collection became known were purchased in 1523 by Pope Clement VII and comprised six long ropes, 80 larger pearls, 7 pearls as large as cherries and 25 pear-shaped ones.  Over the centuries, parts of the collection were lost, and a much-reduced collection resides with our Royal Family today.  Pope Clement gave the pearls to his niece, Catherine de Medici, on her marriage to the second son of the French king.  Some of the collection made its way to these shores with Mary Queen of Scots, who married the Dauphin of France.  Elizabeth I acquired the pearls from Mary and the pearls can be seen in the famous Armada Portrait of Elizabeth. 

The pearls passed to James I, who gave some to his wife, Anne, but some were lost to his boyfriends.  Anne’s pearls passed to their daughter, Elizabeth, who married Prince Fredrick, the Elector of Palantine.  She returned to England following the death of her husband, and her youngest daughter, Sophie, who married the First Elector of Hanover, inherited the pearls.  Sophie’s son, George I, became King of England and the pearls passed in succession to the wives of the Georges II, III and IV, Caroline, Charlotte and Adelaide.  Charlotte had the jewellery boxes containing the pearls engraved ‘Property of the House of Hanover’.  When Queen Victoria, the niece of Adelaide, inherited the pearls, the King of Hanover, demanded that the pearls be returned to Hanover.  The collection was divided equally between Victoria and Hanover.  The pearls passed through the family until they were eventually presented to Princess Elizabeth on the occasion of her marriage to Prince Philip in 1947, and she can often be seen wearing the pearls today.

The whereabouts of the Hanover half of the collection remains a mystery, but it is thought that perhaps it was purchased by George VI after the Second World War. 

The lecture ended with the intriguing question of where the pearls will pass to next.

 

VISIT TO COMPTON VERNEY

At 8 o’clock on Thursday the 14th June 30 members joined a coach for a two hour trip to Compton Verney – an amazing art gallery – the brainchild of Sir Peter Moore.

After leaving the coach we strolled through the Capability Brown designed garden towards the house itself where the group enjoyed some much needed coffee and delicious shortbread biscuits still warm from the oven.

Then, into the Robert Adam designed Great Hall for a short talk on the history of the house and its previous incumbents and the background to the Art Gallery itself.

We quickly learned that the magnificent plasterwork ceiling we had all been admiring had been on the floor and in pieces when Sir  Peter bought the property in 1993 and set in motion the rescue of the magnificent, if derelict, old house that Compton Verney had become.

Sir Peter’s vision was simple.  To create a Gallery  that was both welcoming and accessible to everyone – and he certainly succeeded.

Following the talk, some of us hightailed it to the top and mezzanine floors which house the biggest collection of British Folk Art in Britain - the result of Sir Peter’s bold decision to buy all the work collected by gallerist A. Kalman for his own enjoyment. This enormous and eclectic collection was further bolstered by the collections of two textile designers, Marx and Lambert who were particularly productive in the 1940’s and 50’s. And what a joy both collections are. Funny, sad, beautifully worked or crudely done, sometimes patriotic, sometimes lampooning, in china, glass, pottery, embroidery, collage or paint and pen. Added to which were chairs simple and grand, incredible tools , shop signs and much else besides.  All exquisitely displayed and often touchable – something Sir Peter insisted upon.

And so down the stairs to a gallery devoted to Neapolitan art, including a couple of Canaletto’s and awe-inspiring depictions of Vesuvius erupting and then on to another with an amazing collection of ancient Chinese bronzes breath-taking in their workmanship and displayed on simple pale wooden plinths. In the Tudor gallery there is a charming portrait of the rather portly five-year old |Prince Edward who seemingly had the rather chevron-shaped upper lip of his father Henry V111 as portrayed in a portrait of the King in later life. In the German gallery religious art particularly from the Nurnberg area was dominant and included some delightful wood carvings including a life-sized model of a very gentle looking Madonna and child.

All too soon it was time for a quick cuppa, a whiz around the well-stocked shop and a stroll back to the coach – just in time to miss an enormous downpour. Altogether, and with thanks to organiser Robert Burder and assistant Jeanne Stowe, it really was ‘a grand day out’.