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Lot Essay
The Warwick vase now in the Burrell collection, Glasgow was originally made for the Roman Emperor Hadrian, it was excavated in 1769/70 in numerous fragments from the site of Hadrians Villa at Tivoli, near Rome. The excavator was Scottish painter Gavin Hamilton, who had turned to dealing in antiquities to supplement his income as an artist.
Hamilton sold the fragments to his namesake, Sir William Hamilton, the British ambassador in Naples, who had it reconstructed at great expense to the designs of the celebrated engraver and architect Giovanni Battista Piranesi (the work took more than two years). The Warwick Vase named after the Earl of Warwick, who eventually bought it became one of the most coveted objects in Europe. Indeed, when Napoleon was planning his conquest of Britain, he declared that the first thing he wanted to get his hands on was the Warwick Vase.
Hamilton sold the fragments to his namesake, Sir William Hamilton, the British ambassador in Naples, who had it reconstructed at great expense to the designs of the celebrated engraver and architect Giovanni Battista Piranesi (the work took more than two years). The Warwick Vase named after the Earl of Warwick, who eventually bought it became one of the most coveted objects in Europe. Indeed, when Napoleon was planning his conquest of Britain, he declared that the first thing he wanted to get his hands on was the Warwick Vase.