CIRCA 1790

The statuary marble chimneypiece has its pilasters and frieze embellished with clustered reeds in the late l8th century 'Egyptian' fashion. Its central tablet is sculpted in bas-relief with cloud-borne Hebe attending Jupiter's eagle with life-giving water and evokes antiquity's banquet of the gods. Sacrifices at Love's altar in antiquity is recalled by its figurative pilasters. One veil-draped vestal attends the hearth while listening to the words read by her companion, and they are supported on triumphal palm-wreathed Bacchic-altar plinths that bear veil-draped ram heads and are raised on lion paws. This style of chimneypiece was popularised by G.B. Piranesi's Diverse maniere d'adornare i cammini that was published in Rome in 1769. The chimneypiece is likely to have been executed by the celebrated sculptor John Bacon, R.A. (d.1799), whose early training as a modeller for a porcelain manufacturer helped his ability to introduce the appearance of porcelain to his delicately sculpted marble.