One of a pair of griffins couchant
possibly British (English) School
Category
Art / Sculpture
Date
Unknown
Materials
Limestone
Measurements
1640 x 1140 x 500 mm
Order this imageCollection
Anglesey Abbey, Cambridgeshire
NT 516620.1
Summary
Stone, one of a pair of guardian griffins, probably Italian, 18th century. A pair of guardian griffins, recumbent, with the heads and wings of eagles, the hind quarters of lions, scaled forelegs, and taloned paws resting on volutes. The breasts and backs decorated with ornate acanthus plates. A pair of guardian griffins, probably intended as finial sculptures for a portal or porch. Mounted on rectangular stone pedestals. See medieval pink limestone pair from Emilia, Italy, in the Cleveland Museum of Art, inv.no. 1928.861.
Provenance
Brought to Anglesey Abbey from Park Close, Englefield Green, the home of Cara Leland Rogers Broughton, Lady Fairhaven (1867-1939); bequeathed to the National Trust by Huttleston Rogers Broughton, 1st Lord Fairhaven (1896-1966) with the house and the rest of the contents.
Credit line
Anglesey Abbey, The Fairhaven Collection (The National Trust)
Makers and roles
possibly British (English) School, sculptor possibly German School, sculptor
References
Christie, Manson & Woods 1971: The National Trust, Anglesey Abbey, Cambridge. Inventory: Furniture, Textiles, Porcelain, Bronzes, Sculpture and Garden Ornaments’, 1971, p. 161. Anglesey Abbey Garden, Cambridgeshire, The National Trust, London 1997, p. 14. Roper 1964: Lanning Roper, The Gardens of Anglesey Abbey, Cambridgeshire. The Home of Lord Fairhaven, London 1964, pp. 66-7, pl. 49b.