Untitled
Baldassare Artima (fl. c.1670 - c.1686)
Category
Furniture
Date
1673 - 1735
Materials
Scagliola top, carved mahogany stand
Measurements
109 x 60 x 52 cm
Place of origin
Italy
Order this imageCollection
Ham House, Surrey
NT 1140072.1
Summary
A torchère, from a pair, the scagliola top attributed to Baldassare Artima, circa 1673, the later mahogany stand made by John Hele in 1735. The circular scagliola top or "tondo" depicting a bucolic scene with a donkey bearing the spoils of the chase, with a huntsman and a dog beside him, framed by hexagonally shaped inner borders imitating bianco e nero marble, within a black background. The carved mahogany stand with a fluted stem on tripod legs terminating in lion's paws. Baldassare Artima executed the Queen's Closet scagliola chimneypiece and the related scagliola hearth and window-sill slabs. He was paid £5 in June 1673 and later that year £13 (BPA 450). The roman artist was also most probably responsible for the two scagliola tondi. The present stands were commissioned by the 4th Earl of Dysart as replacements to the original listed in 1679. John Hele was employed by the 4th Earl, with Henry Heasman and George Nix. He supplied panelling and furniture for Ham House circa 1735.
Provenance
Listed in the 1679 Ham House inventory, in the Gallery: "table and stands of Inlaid marble wth Covers of purple & white sarsnet". Acquired in 1948 by HM Government when Sir Lyonel, 4th Bt (1854 – 1952) and Sir Cecil Tollemache, 5th Bt (1886 – 1969) presented Ham House to the National Trust, and entrusted to the care of the Victoria & Albert Museum, until 1990, when returned to the care of the National Trust, and to which ownership was transferred in 2002.
Marks and inscriptions
'Repaired by Tiller' - typed labels on the underside -
Makers and roles
Baldassare Artima (fl. c.1670 - c.1686), craftsman John Hele, cabinetmaker
References
Rowell 2013: Christopher Rowell (ed.), Ham House, 400 Years of Collecting and Patronage, Yale University Press, New Haven & London 2013, pp.206-208