Lot Essay
This enamel serves as a good example to show the relationship between artsits, enamellists and their patrons of the day.
John Jackson as a leading portrait painter of the early 19th Century painted the portraits of Bone, Wollaston and Chantrey. They were exhibited at the R.A. 1814, 1829, and 1830 respectively. Bone made copies of the former and latter in enamelwhich were exhibited at the R.A. 1829 and 1831 respectively. Chantrey exhibited a bust of Bone at the R.A. in 1817, no. 1046. Jackson travelled to Italy with Chantrey in 1819 and found him "easy and accomodating to a fault as a companion".
Sir Frances Chantrey (1781-1841), sculptor, was celebrated for his portrait busts and monuments including a bust of the Rev. J. Wilkinson in Sheffield cathedral, Sir Walter Scott, James Watt and a group sculpture of the daughters of Mrs. Robinson in Lichfield Cathedral
Chantrey began work on his busts by making preparatory drawings of the sitter with the camera lucida which projected the image of the object to be drawn onto a plate from which a tracing could be made. This was patented by William Hyde Wollaston in 1807 and later led William Henry Fox talbot to his discoveries in photography.
Chantrey received many commissions from scientific socities and mixed with many leading scientists of the day. C.R. Leslie noted that "if proof were wanted of the superiority of Chantrey's mind, it would be in the fact that most of his intimate asssociates were such men as Davy (President of the Royal Society) and Wollaston; and that such men delighted in his conversation." (C.R.Leslie "Autobiographical Recollections, ed. T. Taylor, 1860, I, pp. 74-7)
The Chantrey Ledger (1809-1841, Rpyal Academy, p. 221) records an order of January 1829 for a bust "executed for F.C. and afterwards purchased by Mrs Seymour Bathurst 10 Oct 1830 to executing the same in Marble #200." The plaster model in the Ashmolean Museum (664-152) is incised:Died 22 Dec 1828 WILLIAM HYDE WOLLASTON M.D. V.P.R.S. FC. and the marble bust in the Royal Institution, presented by Lord Bathurst in 1879, is incised:WILLIAM HYDE WOLLASTON CHANTREY. SC 1830
In 1828 Wollaston transferred 1,000 consols to the Geological Society with instructions to expend the dividends, as nearly as possible annually. This is now the "Wollaston Fund" from which the Society awards annually the 'Wollaston Medal" together with the balance of interest. The profile of Chantrey's bust was used by W. Wyon for the medal, first awarded in 1831 to William Smith (1769-1839) (BHM 1543)
William Hyde Wollaston (1766-1828) was regarded as the most skilful chemist and mineralogist of his day and discovered palladium and rhodium. He also invented optical appartus: the camera lucida and in 1803 periscopic spectacles, 1809 the reflecting goniometer, and 1812 a periscopic camera obscura.
The National Portrait Galley, London has a preliminary sketch by Bone for this enamel - NPG Reference Collection (cv. Walker, 1985, ill. no. 231)
There appear to be versions of Jackson's work in the Tate Gallery, London no. 3672 and others formerly at Colerton (Sir George Beaumont) and at Drayton Manor (Sir Robert Peel). One version of this portrait was exhibited at the Royal Academy, London, 1814, no. 604
John Jackson as a leading portrait painter of the early 19th Century painted the portraits of Bone, Wollaston and Chantrey. They were exhibited at the R.A. 1814, 1829, and 1830 respectively. Bone made copies of the former and latter in enamelwhich were exhibited at the R.A. 1829 and 1831 respectively. Chantrey exhibited a bust of Bone at the R.A. in 1817, no. 1046. Jackson travelled to Italy with Chantrey in 1819 and found him "easy and accomodating to a fault as a companion".
Sir Frances Chantrey (1781-1841), sculptor, was celebrated for his portrait busts and monuments including a bust of the Rev. J. Wilkinson in Sheffield cathedral, Sir Walter Scott, James Watt and a group sculpture of the daughters of Mrs. Robinson in Lichfield Cathedral
Chantrey began work on his busts by making preparatory drawings of the sitter with the camera lucida which projected the image of the object to be drawn onto a plate from which a tracing could be made. This was patented by William Hyde Wollaston in 1807 and later led William Henry Fox talbot to his discoveries in photography.
Chantrey received many commissions from scientific socities and mixed with many leading scientists of the day. C.R. Leslie noted that "if proof were wanted of the superiority of Chantrey's mind, it would be in the fact that most of his intimate asssociates were such men as Davy (President of the Royal Society) and Wollaston; and that such men delighted in his conversation." (C.R.Leslie "Autobiographical Recollections, ed. T. Taylor, 1860, I, pp. 74-7)
The Chantrey Ledger (1809-1841, Rpyal Academy, p. 221) records an order of January 1829 for a bust "executed for F.C. and afterwards purchased by Mrs Seymour Bathurst 10 Oct 1830 to executing the same in Marble #200." The plaster model in the Ashmolean Museum (664-152) is incised:Died 22 Dec 1828 WILLIAM HYDE WOLLASTON M.D. V.P.R.S. FC. and the marble bust in the Royal Institution, presented by Lord Bathurst in 1879, is incised:WILLIAM HYDE WOLLASTON CHANTREY. SC 1830
In 1828 Wollaston transferred 1,000 consols to the Geological Society with instructions to expend the dividends, as nearly as possible annually. This is now the "Wollaston Fund" from which the Society awards annually the 'Wollaston Medal" together with the balance of interest. The profile of Chantrey's bust was used by W. Wyon for the medal, first awarded in 1831 to William Smith (1769-1839) (BHM 1543)
William Hyde Wollaston (1766-1828) was regarded as the most skilful chemist and mineralogist of his day and discovered palladium and rhodium. He also invented optical appartus: the camera lucida and in 1803 periscopic spectacles, 1809 the reflecting goniometer, and 1812 a periscopic camera obscura.
The National Portrait Galley, London has a preliminary sketch by Bone for this enamel - NPG Reference Collection (cv. Walker, 1985, ill. no. 231)
There appear to be versions of Jackson's work in the Tate Gallery, London no. 3672 and others formerly at Colerton (Sir George Beaumont) and at Drayton Manor (Sir Robert Peel). One version of this portrait was exhibited at the Royal Academy, London, 1814, no. 604