The Busts of Oliver Cromwell, Part 24. The V and A Wilton ? Terracotta.

The Busts of Oliver Cromwell, Part 24.

The Victoria and Albert Museum Terracotta Bust, 

by or after Joseph Wilton 1722 - 1803.

Height including base 71 cms.

Bequeathed to the museum by Rupert Gunnis in 1965.

Some notes and images:

White paint was removed by the Museum in 1965. 

Terence Hodgkinson stated in a letter to Rupert Gunnis in July 1965 "I can no reason not to suppose that it is not the original model. It is virtually identical to our marble version save that the eyes of the lions' mask are blank in the marble. In the terracotta, the irises are indicated".


This statement is peculiar  - It is obvious from the photographs below that the irises eyes of the lions masks are not blank but clearly delineated.

However Margaret Whinney later remarked "A comparison of the two however show that the terracotta is far more sensitive in the modelling and much has been lost in the marble.... in the terracotta the passages around the eyes and the vein in the left temple show exceptional liveliness and the ability that almost equals that of Roubiliac to create a portrait of a man long dead" Whinney 1971 page 102.

The V and A catalogue of British Sculpture of 2002 states that it is now thought the terracotta was cast from the marble...

I will need to make the comparison myself, as from the passages above it would seem that opinions differ, particularly those of Hodgkinson and Whinney.

The only way we will be able to truly tell is when we can take measurements of both of the  V and A busts without their socles.

If the terracotta is the same size as the marble then it follows that the marble will have been taken from the terracotta by means of pointing.

If the terracotta is smaller then it follows that it was cast from the marble by means of a piece mould - the terracotta losses about 10% in size during the firing.

The Terracotta bust of Oliver Cromwell
Joseph Wilton

Height with turned wooden base 71 cms.

Victoria and Albert Museum
I am extremely grateful to Alicia Robinson, Senior Curator, Sculpture, Metalwork, Ceramics and Glass of the V and A, who provided the three photographs above from the files at the V and A. These photographs of photographs were taken with her i phone, and also scans from the V and A Catalogue of  British Sculpture pub 2002.

As can be seen in the image below it is very close to the Wilton bust of Cromwell at the V and A.


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Top: The V and A terracotta - The Royal Academy Plaster.

Middle row. The V and A signed Marble - The Goverment Art Collection Marble.

Bottom Row: The Anglesey Abbey Marble - The Cromwell Museum, Huntingdon Marble.

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The Victoria and Albert Museum Bust of Oliver Cromwell

Height including socle 74.9 cms

Signed and dated on the back Opus./ Josephi Wilton 1762.

http://english18thcenturyportraitsculpture.blogspot.com/2019/02/oliver-cromwell-marble-bust-by-joseph.html

This bust was sold on the second day of the Lansdowne Sale - 6 March 1930. Lot 34.

It was purchased at the sale by dealers Spero and Kerin of Clifford Street. Messrs Spero and Kerin appear to have parted company at this time.

It was sold by Alfred Spero of 4 Lower Street, London to the museum later in 1930 for £70 - it had originally been purchased with a pedestal carved with dolphins and foliage and painted white which had prior to the acquisition by the museum been sold separately.

Several busts by Wilton are known (see my previous blog posts).

Two busts of Cromwell were exhibited by Wilton at the Society of Artists in 1761 described as "a bust in marble" and 1766 described as "a bust of Oliver Cromwell from the noted cast of his face preserved in the great Dukes Gallery in Florence" (now in the Bargello - below?). 

Intriguingly it appears that a bust of Cromwell by Wilton appeared in the Lansdown sale of 1810 - property of the Marquis of Lansdowne and removed from Lansdown House sold by Mr Christie Lot 26 May 1810 - described as "a very spirited bust of O Cromwell by Wilton, and mahogany term".

This suggests to me that the Lansdowne bust sold in 1930 was either bought in (not sold) at the 1810 sale or perhaps purchased by another member of the family.

As the V and A Lansdowne bust is dated 1762 I assume that it must be a later bust than the 1761 Society of Artists version which is possibly the GAC version.

The bust illustrated below in the Government Art Collection since 1947 is the most likely candidate for the bust exhibited in the Society of Artists in 1761.

Much of the information about the Wilton terracotta and marble busts of Cromwell at the V and A from British Sculpture 1470 to 2000: A Concise Catalogue of the Collection at the Victoria and Albert Museum by Marjorie Trusted, Diane Bilbey. pub. 2002.

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A head of Oliver Cromwell, now in the Bargello Museum at Florence, perhaps a contemporary replica of his wax funeral effigy.

Apart from the wart on the forehead it is hard to discern any resemblance to the Wilton Cromwells

Image above from

https://erenow.net/biographies/cromwellourchiefofmen/30.php

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Oliver Cromwell

Joseph Wilton

Signed but not dated.

No provenance currently known

Formerly with Montague Marcussen Limited of 98 Crawford Street, London.

From whom purchased by the Ministry of Works in April 1947.

 height: 75.00 cm, width: 58.00 cm

Inscription verso: I. Wilton F:t

Last known location Cabinet Office, 70 Whitehall, Westminster

This poor quality low resolution image lifted from the GAC Art Collection website

https://www.gac.culture.gov.uk/gacdb/search.php?mode=show&id=12805

Government Art Collection.

There are very minor differences with the V and A bust - there is no rivet beneath the strap across the chest which can also be seen on the terracotta but not the Royal Academy plaster.

Here suggested as the original marble bust exhibited by Wilton at the Society of Artists in 1761/

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Oliver Cromwell

Joseph Wilton (assumed).

This bust is not signed or dated but the quality of the carving, the closeness to the signed busts and the shape of the socle would indicate his workshop

Provenance: With Arcade Gallery; from whom purchased by the Ministry of Works in January 1949

       height: 61.50 cm, width: 52.00 cm, depth: 31.00 cm

Inscribed on base: OLIVER CROMWELL / ANGLIAE &C &C / PROTECTOR

 Purchased from the Arcade Gallery, January 1949.

Most recent known location : British Embassy (The Hague, Netherlands).

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Some further portrait busts by Joseph Wilton.

Francis Hastings (1729–1789), 10th Earl of Huntingdon, 

Joseph Wilton  (1722 -1803).

Another Wilton bust purchased by The GAC from Montague Marcusson in 1947.

As yet no known provenance.

Government Art Collection

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William Pitt (1708–1778), 1st Earl of Chatham

Joseph Wilton  (1722–1803).

National Portrait Gallery, London.

William Pitt the Elder
Joseph Wilton

NPG.


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Bust of General Wolf.

Joseph Wilton

Charlemont House, Dublin 

undated (perhaps mid 19th century) photograph from


https://www.hughlane.ie/phocadownload/charlemont%20house-a%20critical%20history.pdf

The busts above on the book case by Simon Vierpyl

The Rockingham Library, Charlemont House.

The bust of Lord Rockingham has substituted the Wilton bust of General Wolf

Mercury by Giambologna
Charlemont House.