皇家收藏

　　英国王室的皇家收藏是世界上最大的私人艺术品收藏。 藏品在英国的13座历史悠久的皇家住宅中散布，由伊丽莎白二世所有，并由皇家收藏信托基金会监督。 女王拥有一些在王室权下的藏品，有些则作为私人拥有。 它由超过一百万个对象组成，包括绘画，以及大约450,000张照片，以及挂毯，家具，陶瓷，纺织品，马车，武器，盔甲，珠宝 ，时钟，乐器，餐具，植物，手稿，书籍和雕塑。它几乎涵盖了美术和装饰艺术的几乎所有方面。
　　皇家收藏信托（Royal Collection Trust）是皇室的一个部门，负责皇室收藏的照顾，并管理皇后公寓的公开开放。由入学和相关商业活动产生的收入直接捐助给皇家收藏信托基金，这是一家注册慈善机构。信托基金的目标是保护和保护皇家收藏品，并通过展览，出版物，贷款和教育计划促进获取和享受。皇家收藏信托的工作是在没有任何公共资助的情况下进行的。
　　Nautilus cup c. 1600 NIKOLAUS SCHMIDT (C. 1550/55-1609)
　　鹦鹉螺杯 c. 1600 尼古拉斯·施密特（C.1550 / 55-1609）
　　This spectacular Kunstkammer object is one of the finest examples of antiquarian plate acquired by George IV. On its arrival in 1823, it joined a growing collection of virtuoso sideboard cups of varying dates and nationalities.
　　Although once considered to be the work of Benvenuto Cellini, it bears the mark of Nikolaus Schmidt (master 1582), a Nuremberg goldsmith trained in the workshop of Wenzel Jamnitzer (1508-85). This is one of Schmidt＂s most celebrated pieces, although other important works by him survive in the treasuries in Vienna and Dresden. His work is notable for its superb quality, fine sculptural elements and frequent incorporation of natural rarities.
　　From the sixteenth century, nautilus shells from the western Pacific were highly prized by collectors and in consequence they were often very richly mounted. The outer layer of this shell has been stripped away to reveal the nacreous surface below and the heel has been elaborately carved. The marine origins of the nautilus are echoed in the supporting figures of Neptune, mermaids and hippocamps (seahorses). An anonymous drawing in Nuremberg (Germanisches National Museum) depicts the cup shortly after it was made. An inscription on the back, dated 1610, implies that the cup was a recent gift, presented to the writer by a relation, for his new house. It has been suggested that the cup may have belonged to the wealthy Peller family, whose Nuremberg house, built in 1610, had a gable decorated, like this cup, with a figure of Jupiter.
　　Nothing more is known of the history of the cup until it appeared in the celebrated 32-day sale at Wanstead House, Essex, in 1822. Wanstead＂s heiress Catherine Tylney Long (d. 1825) had married the Duke of Wellington＂s disreputable nephew William Pole Wellesley (1788-1857) in 1812. Within ten years his reckless extravagance had reduced the estate to ruin; Wanstead＂s fabulous treasures were sold and the house demolished.
　　Rim of cover struck with city mark of Nuremberg and maker＂s mark of Nikolaus Schmidt; foot struck twice with mark of Nuremberg and once with maker＂s mark.
　　Catalogue entry from Royal Treasures, A Golden Jubilee Celebration, London 2002
　　PAUL STORR (1771-1844)
　　Candelabra (part of the Grand Service) 1811-20
　　PAUL STORR (1771-1844)
　　A silver gilt five-light candelabrum with two pairs of lotus and acanthus scroll branches, on a baluster stem and fluted drum, flanked by two seated griffins and two athéniennes with spiralling serpents around the bases; on a shaped plinth with rounded ends and shell feet. The underside is engraved with the Royal coat of arms in reverse. This pair of candelabra have undergone a number of transformations. It seems that the pair began life in 1811 as a single object described in the inventory of Carlton House as ＂a superb Ornament piece of Plate to receive Dish or Basket for the Sideboard, or Centre of Table, composed of four Griffins winged on a richly chased Base with Lamp in Centre＂. The single piece was converted into a pair of candelabra in 1818. The base plates, engraved with the royal coat of arms in reverse and designed to be seen in a mirror plateau on the dining table, were added in 1820.
　　ATTRIBUTED TO NICHOLAS SPRIMONT (1716-71)
　　The Neptune centrepiece hallmark 1741/2
　　归于 尼古拉斯·斯普利蒙（1716-71）海王星核心标志1741/2
　　This object, which has been described as ＂the purest rococo creation in English silver’, was the centrepiece of a table service displaying the most advanced French taste of the period. The marine theme of the piece, with its Neptune finial, swags of shells and pieces of coral and detachable dishes in the form of abalone shells, suggests it was used to serve fish soups and seafood. The plateau on which the tureen sits, similarly decorated with shells, coral and small sea-creatures, resembles a beach from which the sea has retreated. Even the dolphins which entwine themselves around the supports for the tureen relate to the nautical theme, although these might also be a witty reference to the Prince of Wales, patron of the piece, as the English dauphin or ＂dolphin’.
　　Frederick’s household accounts record large quantities of fish consumed by the Prince, including turbot, sole, cod, salmon, trout, pike, carp, flounders, lobsters and shrimp. Oysters were one of the Prince’s favourites and were ordered by the barrel, either to be eaten alone or incorporated into other dishes. Traditionally the items of plate used to serve fish and soup were removed from the dining table after the service of the first course. However, this elaborate piece is likely to have remained throughout the meal – the nozzles modelled as sea-foam attached to the candle branches being removed in later courses to be replaced by candles for added illumination during the dessert course.
　　Although it has not been possible to trace the bill for the centrepiece in either the Duchy of Cornwall account books or the ledgers of George Wickes, goldsmith to the Prince, it was certainly in the Royal Collection by 1801, when it was recorded in the Warrant books undergoing repair. In the plate inventories of 1832 it appears under the heading ＂Frederick, Prince of Wales’ together with its accompanying sauceboats, stands and salts (RCIN 51271.1-4 and 51393.1-2).
　　Several theories as to the complicated history of the centrepiece have been posited. The object itself bears two contrasting hallmarks – one from Turin, dating from the 1720s, with the sponsor’s mark of Andrea Boucheron, the other from London, 1741/2, with the sponsor’s mark of the Huguenot goldsmith, Paul Crespin, who ran premises in Compton Street in Soho. The two marks make it clear that the work is an amalgam – a reusing of the Turinese silver incorporated into a later English work. This might explain the mismatched scale of the Neptune figure to the other decorative elements of the tureen. Based on stylistic similarities with other hallmarked works it has long been suspected, moreover, that a third hand was involved in the design and creation of this piece – that of the Liègeois goldsmith and founder of the Chelsea porcelain factory, Nicholas Sprimont. Sprimont appears to have arrived in London sometime in 1742 and did not enter an official mark at Goldsmiths’ Hall until 1743. He would not, therefore, have been able to sponsor the centrepiece, although his mark certainly appears on the other parts of the service to which it belongs (RCIN 51271.1-4 and 51393.1-2). It is possible that the two goldsmiths collaborated on the centrepiece, as fellow Huguenots, one simply sponsoring the work of the other, or dividing the work between them, or perhaps Sprimont working for his neighbour Crespin while anticipating his English hallmark.
　　It is possible that Charles Calvert, Lord Baltimore, was involved in the commission of the centrepiece and its accompanying wares. Baltimore’s taste for the rococo was more dramatic than Frederick’s – the interiors of his Surrey residence, Woodcote Park, displayed some of the most advanced French rococo taste of the day. Baltimore also worked on other artistic commissions for the Prince, supervising the creation of the Prince’s barge in 1732, for example, and his accounts reveal that he acquired works from both Crespin and Sprimont in 1743-4. In 1742, Baltimore was promoted to a Lordship of the Admiralty and it is possible that the marine service was a grateful gift to the Prince in return.
　　Text adapted fromThe First Georgians: Art and Monarchy 1714 - 1760, London, 2014
　　PAUL STORR (1771-1844)
　　Dessert stand (part of the Grand Service) hallmarks 1813-18
　　A set of four silver-gilt dessert stands, each comprising a pierced dish with palmette border, supported in a pineapple leaf bracket above six scroll branches with vine leaf dishes. The stem is cast in the form of an amphora, flat chased with angels and scrolling foliage, on a spirally fluted drum, surrounded by cast figures of Bacchus and two dancing maenads. On a circular base with scroll feet and acanthus leaves.
　　These stands were described in the Rundells＂ invoice of 1811 as ＂4 very superb and elegant Ornaments for the Desert consisting of Groups of figures to receive Pine apples＂, although at that date they were not completed. The various elements were probably assembled over the next few years - they were finally delivered to Carlton House in 1817, with the branches arriving two years later. It is likely that the figures were designed by Flaxman. The final bill for the dessert stands has not been traced but later inventories state that they cost ￡1538 11s 8d.
　　The Grand Service is the magnificent dining service of silver gilt commissioned by George IV, when Prince of Wales, from the Royal Goldsmiths Rundell, Bridge & Rundell. The initial commission was made in 1806 and the first delivery took place in 1811. Throughout the Regency (1811-20) and during George IV＂s reign (1820-30) he continued to add to the service with both dining plate and pieces for display on the buffet.
　　As a whole, the Grand Service comprises some 4,000 pieces and covers a vast range of objects and styles.The initial delivery included works in both white silver and silver gilt, but gradually the service was gilded throughout. This may have been a response to public comments that the silver plate seemed poor and cold by comparison with the gilded plate, but it was also in direct rivalry to the gilded collections of Napoleon I. Moreover, by gilding the entire service, it was provided with a homogeneity of appearance otherwise lacking in its variety of styles.
　　The Service is so large and so magnificent that it has never been replaced. It remains in use by the monarchy to this day, and is placed on the table for State Banquets at Windsor Castle and Buckingham Palace and for other ceremonial events.
　　R & S GARRARD The Alhambra table fountain 1852-53
　　R＆S加拉德 阿罕布拉桌上喷泉1852-53
　　A silver, parcel gilt and enamel table fountain in the form of a domed Moorish temple sheltering a fountain, with three Arab horses led by two Moors; on a rockwork hummock covered in vegetation and small palm trees, and with figures of dogs, birds and small lizards. The cistern of the fountain is contained in the dome of the temple, and the water drains into a series of pools, in the base. The water flow, which works purely by pressure, is regulated by turning the nozzle of the fountain.
　　This table fountain was commissioned by Queen Victoria and Prince Albert in 1851 and shown at the 1853 Dublin exhibition and again in 1855 in Paris, to universal praise. The idea for the piece appears to have come jointly from Queen Victoria and Prince Albert in January 1851, as the Queen records her first meeting with Edmund Cotterill in her Journal at that date. The architectural structure of the centrepiece, modelled by Edward Lorenzo Percy, is inspired by the Alhambra Palace in Granada, Spain with its distinctive ＂honeycomb＂ plasterwork. The horses were modelled by Cotterill from three of Queen Victoria＂s Arabs, which had been sent to her as gifts in the 1840s. The exotic plants around the base were closely modelled by William Spencer on botanical specimens at Kew Gardens.
　　The centrepiece was used throughout the reign of Queen Victoria, and may be seen on the table in a watercolour of the dinner held to celebrate her Golden Jubilee in June 1887. According to ＂one of Her Majesty＂s servants＂ who publised a book about life at Windsor Castle in 1897, the fountain was filled with eau-de-cologne rather than water.
　　Text adapted fromVictoria & Albert: Art & Love.
　　在哪里可以看到皇家收藏？
　　藏品收藏在英国的15处王室住所和旧住所中。 其中包括温莎城堡 （Windsor Castle），白金汉宫（Buckingham Palace），霍利路德宫（the Palace of Holyroodhouse），汉普顿宫（Hampton Court），伦敦塔（the Tower of London），奥斯本楼 （Osborne House）和布赖顿皇家亭子（the Royal Pavilion, Brighton）。公众可以在最初受委托的历史环境中观看艺术品 。
　　英国皇家收藏金银大部分是在1660年君主立宪制恢复之后的。早期收藏的在南北战争和统治时期被融化掉了。最早的一件事12世纪的一把银勺，收藏的银器种类十分丰富，上面我只是为了烘托皇家气氛有选择的展示银镀金有代表性作品。大部分收藏品都具有非常实用的目的，最为壮观的莫过于威尔士亲王弗雷德里克（Frederick）收藏的尼古拉斯·斯普里蒙特（Nicholas Sprimont）和保罗·克雷斯潘（Paul Crespin）壮观的海洋题材服务器皿，这是洛可可艺术表现的缩影。乔治三世收藏了托马斯·海明（Thomas Heming）的作品，乔治四世购买了盛大的教会题材作品，其中包括保罗·斯托尔和本杰明·史密斯的作品，这些作品来自弗拉克斯曼和斯托达德的设计。乔治四世还购买了许多16世纪和17世纪的欧式立式杯子供展示而不是使用。有些是镀金的，有些是用奇特的天然材料制成的，包括鸵鸟蛋，鹦鹉螺的贝壳和装在镀金的象牙。阿尔伯特亲王（Prince Albert）将银饰委托给他自己的设计，其中包括摆放着维多利亚女王最爱的狗模型的核心件。
　　George III Royal Dinner Service
　　乔治三世晚餐银器
　　Thank you very much for watching.
　　非常感谢您的收看。
　　华登（walden）