Robert Alexander Hillingford

Large scale 19th Century historical genre oil painting of a group of musicians

1883

Laslett John Pott RSA British, (1837-1898) Bess of Hardwick Receiving Visitors at the High Great Chamber, Hardwick Hall Oil on canvas, signed & dated 1872 Image size: 18.75 inches x 29.5 inches Size including frame: 25.25 inches x 36 inches Provenance: Frost & Reed no. 30819 A wonderful historical painting by Laslett John Pott of figures at a table in the High Great Chamber at Hardwick Hall, Derbyshire. Two men in Elizabethan costume can be seen standing up to toast a lady as she reclines in a chair holding a fan, whilst a dog watches on. Meanwhile, another woman looks across the table as her seated companion has his glass refilled by a man servant. To the left of the painting, a lute with sheets of music can be seen lying on the ground whilst on the opposite side sits a wine cistern with a bottle next to it. The fashionable dress and bearing of the woman seated on the right indicate a woman of wealth and standing, most likely Bess of Hardwick, Countess of Shrewsbury who built Hardwick Hall in 1590. She was lady in waiting to Queen Elizabeth I and one of the wealthiest women in England. She commissioned the architect Robert Smythson to design the house, which included the extraordinary High Great Chamber located on the second floor. Decorated with a plaster frieze depicting Diana the huntress, a large alabaster and marble chimney piece and Brussels tapestries on the lower walls, it was used by the countess to greet and entertain guests. After her death, the property passed to her son William Cavendish 1st Earl of Devonshire in 1608 and later to his great grandson, William who was made the 1st Duke of Devonshire in 1694. In 1959, the property was transferred to the National Trust and most of its original features, including the plaster friezes, chimney piece and tapestries depicted in this painting, can still be seen today. The painting bears an old label for Frost & Reed, no. 30819, with the title ‘Interior of Haddon Hall’ which was wrongly given to the painting at the time. Later research uncovered the correct location as being Hardwick Hall. Pott used Hardwick Hall as the backdrop for a number of his works including: Mary Queen of Scots Being Led to her Execution, His Highness in Disgrace, Waiting for the King’s Favourite and Wayland Smith Showing Amy Robsart her Wedding Dress. Laslett John Pott was a genre and historical painter born in Newark, Nottinghamshire in 1837, the son of John Manger Pott, and his wife Sophia Charlotte Moss. His father was a successful auctioneer and land valuer and his wealth enabled Pott to receive a good education. Although he showed an early talent for art, his father wanted him to become an architect and at the age of 16 he became an apprentice at a local firm. After his apprenticeship, he was able to persuade his father to let him change careers and enrol at the Bloomsbury Art...

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