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RICHARD REDDING ANTIQUES |
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RICHARD REDDING ANTIQUES |
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A fine Victorian cast-iron three tiered fountain attributed to Andrew Handyside & Co of the Britannia Iron Works, composed of three bowls of graduating size, the top two with abundant cast leaves and an acanthus leaf stem, the lower and larger bowl again with foliage enclosing male masks above a circular pedestal around which is grouped crouching putti with interlocking arms on a stepped circular shaped based with acanthus leaf border Derby, circa 1870 Height 231 cm. Literature: John Davis, “Antique Garden Ornament, 300 Years of Creativity: Artist, Manufacturers and Materials”, 1991, pp. 253-7, illustrating two similar cast-iron fountains with putti and acanthus wrapped stems by Handyside of the Britannia Iron Works, one in the South Garden of Temple Newsam, Leeds of circa 1865 and the other in the Formal Garden at Chateau Impney, Droitwich of circa 1875. Andrew Handyside & Co of the Britannia Iron Works based in Derby and London was one of the leading Victorian foundries. The firm produced a range of garden ornaments, from cast-iron urns and vases to fountains. Fountains by this concern are often difficult to identify since they were rarely stamped with the foundry mark but instead bore a plaque attached, usually on the base, which often came detached over the years. However one can confidently attribute this magnificent fountain to Handyside based on the style and subject matter which compares to others by this firm. Similar examples include a fountain at Temple Newsam, Leeds and another more elaborate example at Chateau Impney, Droitwich which as here include crouching putti and acanthus wrapped stems but also have additional dolphins and a surmounting classical figure. Another example shown at the International Exhibition of London, 1862 featured a pair of cherubs surmounting the upper bowl. The firm tended, like other foundries, to duplicate various sections, which could then be made up according to the client’s wishes, thus one often finds a number of similarities between the various fountains. A number of the cast-iron pieces were bronzed or were sometimes painted and though we do not know the colours they were generally darker tones than here yet the present colouring has the effect of simulating stone or marble. The Britannia Iron Works on the banks of the river Derwent in Derby first began making its name for its engineering and architectural castings but also produced a range of ornamental wares. This side of the business was begun by Weatherhead & Glover, who had established a foundry in 1818 and is known to have supplied ornamental castings to Alton Towers. It was then run for a short while, from 1843-8, by Thomas Wright who was succeeded by a Scotsman named Andrew Handyside (1806-87). It was not long before Handyside showed his prowess for in 1850 a critic in The Art Journal praised his vases for their ‘classical purity of form and ornament’ and also illustrated one of his fountains which was described as ‘of graceful design, capable of much enlargement and enrichment of detail’. Handyside continued to achieve renown the following year at the Great Exhibition of London where he showed an array of other ornamental wares. In 1868 to celebrate fifty years of casting at the works, Andrew Handyside, who gave his address as both the Britannia Iron Works and 32 Walbrook London, published a small booklet. In it was a description of the vases and fountains that were being produced, which noted ‘The Britannia Iron Works have long been well known for the production of these articles, so useful and effective in garden decoration. The use of cast iron permits a delicacy of outline which is impossible in cheap stone or terra-cotta, and the fine moulding sand obtained at Derby allows a smoothness of surface otherwise unobtainable’. In 1873 the business became a limited company and in the following year published another catalogue, this time devoted to their ornamental wares in which they extolled the virtues of their cast-iron fountains. Handyside died in 1887 yet the business continued up until 1911 and is as much admired today as it was in its heyday. http://www.richardreddingantiques.com/collection/decorative/a-fine-victorian-cast-iron-three-tiered-fountain-attributed-to-andrew-handyside-co-of-the-britanni |
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