After taking in the park and external architecture we ventured inside, to be welcomed by the vast marble hall (actually made of Derbyshire alabaster)...
Above and Below: The amazing coffered ceiling.
The alabaster had dramatic red seams running through it which gave it a warmer atmosphere than a pure austere white marble would have. In the niches are plaster replicas of Greek statues.
Next is an assortment of photos of the statues from the statue gallery. This gallery boast having the most complete collection of authentic classical statues of any private house in Britain (many houses having sold off their originals when the fell on hard times, and replaced them with plaster copies). On the day we went there there was a display of dresses in the gallery, so one had to manoeuver oneself carefully to find shots without couture in them...
The gilded coffered apse at one end, with and without the chandelier...
Details from the marble fireplace in the statue gallery...
Other marble pieces from around the hall...
The North Dining Room...
I love the chair upholstery, being a very similar fabric to that which we have chosen for our dining room Chippendale styled chairs, and also the stunning savonnerie carpet.
The table is also amazing, using a very ingenious mechanism designed in 1830 by Robert Jupe, to enlarge or reduce the table top area as required...
and example of how the mechanism works can be seen in this video of a dining table on a yatch below:
Above: Panorama of the dining room...
The other clever feature of this room which I like is the apse, which when viewed from all but the most acute angles looks like a straightforward archway, but if you get the angle correct, you can see the hidden servants entrances on either side of the apse...
In previous centuries they would have lead down to an old kitchen like this...
Above: A collection of copper pans and fish broilers
Below: Juice jars, churns, butter patty makers and a marmalade slicer
Above: A large knife sharpener (as pointed out by Don of The Lothians)
Below: A large open over with mechanized spit roaster
Below: A close up of the cute marmalade slicer. One puts orange pieces in the forcer at the rear and then rocks the knife back and forwards as one forces the fruit up the chute...
One of these days, I'm going to visit Holkham Hall when it is actually opened. The last few trips to England were taken during the winter months so I was bitterly disappointed at discovering it was closed. Boo hoo!
ReplyDeleteI must try to source a marmalade slicer for my husband. I've never seen one before.
Thank you for giving me a glimpse into this wonderful country home.
We had that problem when visiting Waddesdon Manor. We went on the one day per week it was closed, and ended up driving across country to do something else, and then back again the next day to continue our tour where it was interrupted.
DeleteYou may be interested to know that your "Large butter churn" is an antique knife polisher, very necessary in the days before stainless steel. Have a search on Internet, lots there. BTW, will we be seeing a servant bell call board or servants bells in your country mansion? Mine is so much fun, I just had to wire it up round the house....
ReplyDeleteThanks for pointing that out. Now that I have gone back and looked at it again you can see where the knives would be placed.
DeleteYes, we will have a token set of about 5 servants bells, not wired to every room. It is difficult to find a way to blend the modern with the traditional. We are finding this at the moment when choosing light switches and power socket plates. Trying to find something which has modern functionality without conflicting with the traditional decor has been the most difficult part of designing the interiors.