Books > Arts & Architecture > Art forms, treatments & subjects > Decorative arts & crafts > Jewellery & jewellery-making
|
Buy Now
'A Marvel to Behold': Gold and Silver at the Court of Henry VIII (Hardcover)
Loot Price: R1,455
Discovery Miles 14 550
|
|
'A Marvel to Behold': Gold and Silver at the Court of Henry VIII (Hardcover)
Expected to ship within 12 - 17 working days
|
Bringing the existence and significance of the lost riches of Henry
VIII back to life, this book sheds new light on Henrician and Tudor
court culture. Henry VIII amassed the most spectacular collection
of gold and silver of any British monarch. Plate and jewels were
hugely prominent in medieval and Renaissance courts and played an
essential role in dynastic marriages and diplomacy as well as in
cementing the bonds between king and court. Ranging from plain
domestic wares to extraordinary bejewelled works of art, Henry's
collection embraced virtuoso continental objects as well as vast
quantities of plate commissioned from London goldsmiths or
inherited from his father. But nearly all of these holdings were
destroyed over the following century, and of the thousands that he
owned no more than a handful have survived to modern times. This
book makes use of the wealth of surviving documentation -
inventories, drawings, lists of payments, dispatches by foreign
ambassadors and other records - to explore this lost collection and
the light it sheds on the monarchy. Starting with an assessment of
the young king's inheritance from his father, the book considers
the role of plate at state banquets, in great church services and
in the regular exchange of gifts between courtiers and ambassadors;
the role of plate and jewels as a potent symbol of power; how the
king used confiscation as an instrument of humiliation of those who
fell from grace, including Cardinal Wolsey and Katherine of Aragon;
and how Henry's avaricious seizure of church plate towards the end
of his life throws light on his changing character. While the focus
is on plate and goldsmiths' work, the context ranges from court
ceremonial to rivalry between princes, the role of the church, the
vulnerability of persons and institutions with covetable assets,
and relations between the king and his own family. Bringing the
existence and significance of these lost riches back to life, the
book sheds new light on Henrician and Tudor court culture.
General
Is the information for this product incomplete, wrong or inappropriate?
Let us know about it.
Does this product have an incorrect or missing image?
Send us a new image.
Is this product missing categories?
Add more categories.
Review This Product
No reviews yet - be the first to create one!
|
You might also like..
|
Email address subscribed successfully.
A activation email has been sent to you.
Please click the link in that email to activate your subscription.