Riches of the Earth
until 28 Oct 2018, Wed-Sun
12pm-4pm
HouseBaron Ferdinand de Rothschild’s collection was full of objects made of precious materials: hardstones, minerals, silver and gold. Many examples of these extraordinary objects are still to be found throughout Waddesdon. Discover them through this self-led trail of the Manor.
Waddesdon is full of works of art that celebrate, embody or express the wealth of the Earth. A trail around the house highlights some of these riches– earthenware and porcelain clays worked into vessels and sculptures, rocks mined from the earth and made into jewelry, caskets and chimney-pieces, minerals and plants transformed into dyes and pigments in tapestries and paintings and furniture of rare woods, resins, stones and metals
– as well as allegorical representations of the wealth of the earth. Some of the smaller objects and items from store are gathered together in the Exhibition Room so that visitors can closely examine materials, techniques and the different attitudes to these objects in the 18th century, when many of them were created, and the 19th century, when they entered Rothschild collections.