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Vetusta Monumenta: Ancient Monuments, a Digital Edition

Plate 2.17: Engraving of a Roman Bronze Lamp with Vase and Bells

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1. Plate 2.1: Engraving of Plans for Rebuilding London, 1666 (1 of 2) Plates 2.1-2.2 of Vetusta Monumenta reproduce three plans for rebuilding the city of London after the great fire of 1666. The plans were originally submitted to King Charles II in September of 1666 and February of 1668 by John Evelyn and Christopher Wren. Engravings by George Vertue after the original plans by Evelyn and Wren. 478 x 355 mm and 486 x 353 mm. Published by the Society of Antiquaries of London in 1747. Current location: Society of Antiquaries of London. Drawings: Volume 1 [196h], fols. 68-69.
2. Plate 2.2: Engraving of Plans for Rebuilding London, 1666 (2 of 2) Plates 2.1-2.2 of Vetusta Monumenta reproduce three plans for rebuilding the city of London after the great fire of 1666. The plans were originally submitted to King Charles II in September of 1666 and February of 1668 by John Evelyn and Christopher Wren. Engravings by George Vertue after the original plans by Evelyn and Wren. 478 x 355 mm and 486 x 353 mm. Published by the Society of Antiquaries of London in 1747. Current location: Society of Antiquaries of London. Drawings: Volume 1 [196h], fols. 68-69.
3. Plate 2.3: Engraving of a Portrait of George Holmes Plate 2.3 of Vetusta Monumenta reproduces a portrait (c. 1731-1733) of George Holmes, a founding member of the Society of Antiquaries and dedicated Deputy Keeper of the Tower of London. The engraving augments the original oil painting by depicting a more mature Holmes surrounded by objects symbolic of his intellectual and professional pursuits. Engraving by George Vertue after Richard van Bleeck. 332 x 215 mm. Published by the Society of Antiquaries of London in 1750. Current location: The original portrait now hangs in the Fellows Room of the Society of Antiquaries of London, London, UK.
4. Plate 2.5: Engraving of a View of the Savoy from the Thames Plate 2.5 of Vetusta Monumenta is the first of three depictions of the Savoy engraved for Volume II. This plate presents a picturesque view of the Savoy Hospital from across the river Thames and records the state of the site in 1736, before it was mostly destroyed by fire in 1776. The drawing was made at the same time as the drawings for Plates 2.12 and 2.14. Engraving by George Vertue after his own drawings. 463 x 314 mm. Published by the Society of Antiquaries of London in 1750. Current location: The only surviving building of the Savoy Hospital is the Hospital Chapel, now The Queen’s Chapel of the Savoy, London, UK.
5. Plate 2.7: Engraving of Greensted Church with Objects Commemorating St. Edmund Plate 2.7 of Vetusta Monumenta depicts objects of diverse media, provenance dates, and locations that find commonality in their association with St. Edmund the Martyr. The central image of the Church of St. Andrew, Greensted, Essex (c. 1100), is rendered along with the burial shrine of St. Edmund and a seal fragment from the Abbey of Bury St. Edmunds, both in Suffolk. Engraving by George Vertue after Smart Lethieullier and John Lydgate. 447 x 312 mm. Published by the Society of Antiquaries of London in 1752. Current location: the church still stands in Greensted, Essex, UK; the shrine of St. Edmund was destroyed during the Reformation and the abbey was suppressed, but its ruins may still be seen in Bury St. Edmunds, Suffolk, UK; the seal fragment is attached to Charter 17226 in the British Museum, London, UK.
6. Plate 2.9: Engraving of Roman Pavements Found at Winterton and Roxby Plate 2.9 of Vetusta Monumenta depicts three fourth-century CE Roman mosaic pavements discovered in North Lincolnshire in 1699 and 1747. Figures I-III depict two large nearly intact pavements, the Ceres and Orpheus Pavements, with a related fragment, all discovered at Winterton in 1747. Figure IV shows a fragment of a large geometric mosaic discovered nearby at Roxby in 1699. Engraving by George Vertue after Charles Mitley. 591 x 441mm (bifolium). Published by the Society of Antiquaries of London in 1752. Current locations: Some fragments of the Orpheus Pavement are in the North Lincolnshire Museum, Scunthorpe, Lincolnshire, UK; the Ceres Pavement has been reconstructed and is on display at University Campus North Lincolnshire, Scunthorpe, Lincolnshire, UK; and fragments of the Roxby pavement remain buried in situ at Roxby, Lincolnshire, UK.
7. Plate 2.12: Engraving of Savoy Hospital Plate 2.12 of Vetusta Monumenta depicts the prison and chapel buildings in the Savoy Hospital complex as they stood in 1736. The Hospital Chapel, depicted from two different sides in the lower half and the upper right portion of this plate, is the only Savoy building that survives today. The drawings were made at the same time as the drawings for Plates 2.5 and 2.14. Engraving by George Vertue after his own drawings. 459 x 334 mm. Published by the Society of Antiquaries of London in 1753. Current location: The Queen’s Chapel of the Savoy, London, UK.
8. Plate 2.14: Engraving of a Plan of the Savoy Plate 2.14 of Vetusta Monumenta reproduces an annotated ground plan of the various buildings comprising the Savoy Hospital as they stood in 1736. This plan concludes the sequence of views of these buildings presented in Plates 2.5 and 2.12. Engraving by George Vertue after his own drawings. 479 x 356 mm. Published by the Society of Antiquaries of London in 1754. Current location: The Queen’s Chapel of the Savoy, London, UK.
9. Plate 2.15: Engraving of Canterbury Cathedral and Priory with a Portrait of Eadwine (1 of 2) Plates 2.15-2.16 of Vetusta Monumenta reproduce two images from a twelfth-century manuscript, the Eadwine Psalter. The first is a plan of the monastery precinct at Christ Church, Canterbury, including Canterbury Cathedral as it stood prior to 1174. The second plate reproduces an author portrait of Eadwine of Canterbury, after whom the entire manuscript is named. Engravings by George Vertue after drawings of the manuscript made at Cambridge in 1753 by an unknown draftsman. 590 x 465 mm (bifolium) and 342 x 225 mm. Published by the Society of Antiquaries of London in 1755. Current location: The rebuilt cathedral and some architectural remains of Christ Church Priory are at Canterbury, Kent, UK; the Eadwine Psalter is at Trinity College (MS R.17.1), Cambridge University, UK.
10. Plate 2.16: Engraving of Canterbury Cathedral and Priory with a Portrait of Eadwine (2 of 2) Plates 2.15-2.16 of Vetusta Monumenta reproduce two images from a twelfth-century manuscript, the Eadwine Psalter. The first is a plan of the monastery precinct at Christ Church, Canterbury, including Canterbury Cathedral as it stood prior to 1174. The second plate reproduces an author portrait of Eadwine of Canterbury, after whom the entire manuscript is named. Engravings by George Vertue after drawings of the manuscript made at Cambridge in 1753 by an unknown draftsman. 590 x 465 mm (bifolium) and 342 x 225 mm. Published by the Society of Antiquaries of London in 1755. Current location: The rebuilt cathedral and some architectural remains of Christ Church Priory are at Canterbury, Kent, UK; the Eadwine Psalter is at Trinity College (MS R.17.1), Cambridge University, UK.
12. Plate 2.18: Engraving of Two Roman Bronzes (Silenus and a Lamp)
13. Plate 2.20: Engraving of Bronze Age Horns with Medieval Brooch, Arm-Rings, and Shield Plate 2.20 of Vetusta Monumenta depicts two silver arm rings and three bronze horns from Ireland, a fifteenth-century buckler from Wales, and a Viking Age brooch from the Western Isles of Scotland. This engraving documents a conscious effort by the Society of Antiquaries to systematize graphic practices in antiquarian illustration. Engraving by James Basire Sr. after his own drawings. 459 x 330 mm. Published by the Society of Antiquaries of London in 1763. Current locations: The arm rings, buckler, and brooch (Canmore ID 10515) are untraced, as is the first horn. The two remaining horns (Figs. IV-V) are in the collection at Mount Edgcumbe House, Cornwall, UK.

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Plate 2.17: Roman Bronze Lamp with Vase and Bells Plate:

Engraving by George Vertue (1684-1756) after his own drawings depicting four separate objects. The top of the page offers a Roman lamp cast to resemble a grotesque head, which is precariously balanced on two dog-like legs. Two views of the lamp are depicted side by side, in profile at left and a three-quarter angle at right; the profile view shows that the top is hinged to accommodate lamp oil. In the center of the plate appears a bronze amphora-style vase featuring three neck handles and four evenly spaced plastic Satyric faces. Below are two elaborately decorated hand bells dated 1547 and 1366. A drawing of the lamp was ordered after it was exhibited by Charles Chauncey on 7 February 1754. The vase must have been exhibited at the same time, for the next week “a motion was made . . . that the Lamp and Vase shewed to the Society in the Possession of Dr. Chauncey being of Curious Workmanship and Antiquity be ordered to be Ballotted for to be Engraved together with the Bell presented to the Society by Dr. Rawlinson” (SAL Minutes VII.104r.). Vertue's preparatory drawings of this bell , the Cheyne bell, the vase, and the lamp are all included in the online Catalogue of Drawings. The print is dated 25 February 1756, and the minutes show that Vertue presented the proof the next day and was ordered to print off 650 copies (VII.250r.).

Object:

Oil lamp, vase, and two bells, all of bronze. The lamp is confirmed to be of Roman age in the entry for Vertue’s preparatory drawing in the Catalogue of Drawings, but the entry for the vase drawing notes that “the vase has a look more of the Italian Renaissance or Baroque than Roman” (SAL 2005). The entry for the right-hand bell inserts “[1566 misread]” following the date, suggesting that the two bells are more nearly contemporary than Vertue believed, but no evidence is given. If the later date is correct, however, the bell cannot have belonged to a “nunnery” as the caption indicates. The “late Earl of Oxford” who owned this bell, according to the caption, is most likely the second earl, Edward Harley (1689-1741), since Vertue documented numerous objects from his collection (though the third earl may also be meant). This bell is now untraced, as are the lamp and the vase from the collection of Charles Chauncey. The bell on the left, however, is still in the collection of the Society of Antiquaries of London (LDSAL 133). The Society’s catalogue of 1847 describes it as “a small bronze hand-bell, ornamented with medallions and garlands, in relief, and inscribed with the founder’s name . . . and the Flemish motto” (Way 1847, 27). The entry references this engraving and states that the bell was “presented to the Society by Dr. Richard Rawlinson on May 10, 1753.“ Rawlinson was vice president at the time and donated many objects to the Society (SAL Minutes VII.61v).

Transcription:

Top Caption: Two Views of an ANTIQVE BRASS LAMP, purchased out of the collection of Baron Wassenaer at the Hague, ann. 1750, and now in the possession of Charles Chauncy, M.D.

Center Caption: A BRASS ANTIQVE VASE, purchased out of the same collection, and now in the possession of the Gentleman above mentioned.

Fine Bell: LOF GOD VAN AL. LAVD GOD OF ALL. / IOHANNES A FINE A.^O 1547 ME FECIT.

Lower Left Caption: An ANTIENT BELL, now in the possession of the Society of Antiquaries of London.

Cheyne Bell: O MATER DEI MEMENTO MEI. / PETRVS CHEYNEVS ME FECIT 1366.

Lower Right Caption: An ANTIENT BELL, formerly belonging to a Nunnery in Essex, and since to the late Earl of Oxford.

Bottom: The several draughts are about the size of their respective originals. / G. Vertue delin. et sculp. Published according to Act of Parliament 25 Feb. 1756. Sumptibus Societ. Ant. Lond. 1756.

Translation:

Fine Bell: [The Flemish legend “Lof God Van Al” is translated on the plate as “Laud God of All.”] / John A. Fine made me in the year 1547.

Cheyne Bell: O mother of God, remember me. / Peter Cheyne made me in 1366.

Bottom: Drawn and engraved by George Vertue. Published by the Society of Antiquaries of London

Commentary by Thora Brylowe:

George Vertue’s last engraving for Vetusta Monumenta—his eighty-seventh in the series all told—initiates a period of transition and uncertainty marked by the search for a new engraver and a new direction for the series. The next print in the series, similar in composition and in subject matter, seems to echo this one, possibly to signal continuity in the series. The two engravings are therefore discussed together in one commentary. For a full account of both, please see the commentary for Plate 2.18

Works Cited:

Society of Antiquaries of London. 2005. Society of Antiquaries of London Catalogue of Drawings and Museum Objects. York: Archaeology Data Service.

Way, Albert. 1847. Catalogue of Antiquities, Coins, Pictures, and Miscellaneous Curiosities, in the Possession of the Society of Antiquaries of London. London: John Bowyer Nichols.