Calke Hall, in Derbyshire, the Seat of Sir Henry Harpur, Bt
H. Palmer of Hanley
Category
Art / Drawings and watercolours
Date
1823
Materials
Gouache on paper
Measurements
640 x 830 mm
Order this imageCollection
Calke Abbey, Derbyshire
NT 290368
Caption
This drawing of Calke appears flat and two-dimensional. It shows the South Front of the house, known as Calke Abbey from 1808, with the steps that were built in 1728-9. The drawing is a copy of an earlier original and was made in 1823 by a relative of Sir Thomas Palmer who had married Jemima Harpur of Calke Abbey in 1735. The coat of arms painted onto the coach in front of the house is that of Jemima's brother, Sir Henry Harpur, 5th Bt who died in 1748.
Summary
Gouache on paper, Calke Hall, in Derbyshire, the seat of Sir Henry Harpur, Bt by the Reverend H Palmer of Calke Abbey, inscribed on label on reverse. The 18th century south front of Calke is shown, a flight of stone steps leading up to a central door with a broken curved pediment. There are pilasters either side of the steps and urns on the pillars of the step balusters. A coach drawn by six black horses drives around the turning circle and two ladies and two gentlemen stand at the foot of the steps. Tall hedges frame the house and two large square chimneys are on the roof (inventory card). An inscription on the back reads; 'Calke Hall in Derbyshire, the seat of Sir Henry Harpur, Bt. painted from the original in the possession of Sir John Hy. Palmer Bt. 1823.' Jemima, daughter of Sir John Harpur 4th Bt had married Sir Thomas Palmer of Carlton, Northamptonshire, in 1735. The picture shows the South Front with the steps built in 1728-9. The Arms on the coach are those of the 5th Bt. who died in 1748. The original painting, circa 1734, is now in the Yale Center for British Art, Newhaven, Connecticut. Marked on frame as CAL/Pf/190.
Marks and inscriptions
'Calke Hall in Derbyshire, the seat of Sir Henry Harpur, Bt. painted from the original in the possession of Sir John Hy. Palmer Bt. 1823.'
Makers and roles
H. Palmer of Hanley, publisher
References
Country Houses in Great Britain, Yale Center for British Art, New Haven, 1979, pp. 34-35,107, no. 14, pl.. 14, N6764 Y34 1979 (YCBA)