The Lead Equestrian Statue of Marcus Aurelius at Wilton House.

 The Lead Equestrian Statue of Marcus Aurelius at Wilton House.

Some very Rough Notes.

I am very grateful to the 18th Earl and Countess of Pembroke for allowing me to visit Wilton House with my camera and for giving me free access to the sculptures at the house outside visiting hours.

I am also very grateful to the staff at Wilton House, Charlotte Spender, Sandie Buxcie, and in particular the House Manager Nigel Bailey and all at Wilton who made me feel most welcome.

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Without documentary proof it is difficult to date the Equestrian statue but it has been at Wilton since before 1722 and could be Seventeenth Century.

I suspect it was cast by John van Nost I or a contemporary at Hyde Park Corner.

Detailed engravings had been available  since the mid 16th Century.

The Triumphal entrance arch and flanking lodges at Wilton House were was originally constructed as an eyecatcher on a hill south of the house c. 1758-62 by Sir William Chambers south of Wilton House, and moved to its present position in 1801 by James Wyatt who also added the two lodges. 

The triumphal arch was built to carry the equestrian lead statue of Marcus Aurelius and the 18th century Italian wrought-iron gates were bought in 1855 by Sidney Herbert.

The William Chambers Engraving.

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The Drawing of the Statue in 1722 by William Stukely

image courtesy Bodleian Library.

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The (not entirely accurate) engraving by Cary Creed.

The Marble Antiquities, The Right Honble. the Earl of Pembrokes, at Wilton are too many to be drawn by but several hands there being statues, bustos, bass-reliev's and miscellanies ...

Carey Creed (1708 - 71), 

1731.

https://archive.org/details/gri_33125008756591/page/n3/mode/2up?view=theater

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The statue is a direct copy of the bronze equestrian statue now in the in the exedra of the Palazzo dei Conservatori, Musei Capitolini, Rome (4.24 metres tall).

The Wilton version Life Size? no size available.

It might be instructive to compare the modelling of the  horse with that of Hubert le Sueur's bronze statue of CharlesI at Charing Cross and the carved wooden horses in the Line of Kings at the Tower of London.

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From Speculum Romanae Magnificentiae.

 Nicolas Beatrizet (French, Lunéville 1515–ca. 1566 Rome (?))

  1548.

Image Courtesy Metropolitan Museum New York.

https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/693776

For an overview of the Equestrian Sculpture in England, Ireland and Europe in the 17th and 18th Centuries see the series of posts on the subject.

 

 

https://bathartandarchitecture.blogspot.com/2016/08/giacomo-leoni-project-for-triumphal.html 

Project for a triumphal arch for George I.

https://bathartandarchitecture.blogspot.com/2016/08/equestrian-statue-of-prince-frederick.html 

John Cheere at Hartwell House.

https://bathartandarchitecture.blogspot.com/2017/10/george-i-marble-bust-by-michael.html 

George I at Stowe – lead by Cheere? Rysbrack?

http://english18thcenturyportraitsculpture.blogspot.com/2016/06/lord-chesterfield-etc-caricature.html  

Caricature with wooden horse.

http://english18thcenturyportraitsculpture.blogspot.com/2016/07/the-equestrian-statue-of-george-i-john.html  

Essex Bridge. Dublin, van Nost.

http://english18thcenturyportraitsculpture.blogspot.com/2016/07/equestrian-statue-of-william-iii-by.html 

Peter Scheemakers, Hull.

http://english18thcenturyportraitsculpture.blogspot.com/2016/07/equestrian-statue-of-george-i-by-van.html 

Now at the Barber Inst formerly Dublin

http://english18thcenturyportraitsculpture.blogspot.com/2016/07/equestrian-statue-of-charles-i-by_22.html 

Charing Cross, Bronze by Hubert le Sueur.

http://english18thcenturyportraitsculpture.blogspot.com/2016/07/two-equestrian-statues-of-charles-ii.html    

Windsor Castle and College Green Dublin, Grinling Gibbons.

http://english18thcenturyportraitsculpture.blogspot.com/2016/07/equestrian-statue-at-newby-hall.html  

Formerly at the Stocks Market London, Anon Italian sculptor.

http://english18thcenturyportraitsculpture.blogspot.com/2016/07/equestrian-statue-of-george-ii-formerly.html  

Bronze on St Stephens Green, John van Nost III.

http://english18thcenturyportraitsculpture.blogspot.com/2016/08/equestrian-statue-of-george-i-in.html 

Lead, John van Nost II, Grosvenor Square.

http://english18thcenturyportraitsculpture.blogspot.com/2016/08/equestrian-statue-of-george-i-at-stowe.html  

John van Nost II.

http://english18thcenturyportraitsculpture.blogspot.com/2016/08/equestrian-statue-of-george-i-formerly.html 

The Leicester Square van Nost II – originally from Canons House.

http://english18thcenturyportraitsculpture.blogspot.com/2016/08/equestrian-statue-of-george-i-hackwood.html 

George I, Hackwood Park. John van Nost II

http://english18thcenturyportraitsculpture.blogspot.com/2016/08/equestrian-statue-of-william-iii.html   

John Cheere, Lead,  William III, Petersfield

http://english18thcenturyportraitsculpture.blogspot.com/2016/08/equestrian-statue-of-prince-frederick.html 

John Cheere, Prince Frederick, Hartwell House

 http://english18thcenturyportraitsculpture.blogspot.com/2016/08/equestrian-statue-of-george-ii-by-john_3.html 

Lead. George II, Cork, John van Nost III.

http://english18thcenturyportraitsculpture.blogspot.com/2016/08/andrew-snape-equestrian-anatomy.html

http://english18thcenturyportraitsculpture.blogspot.com/2016/08/rysbrack-plaster-equestrian-statue-of.html 

Equestrian William III, Rysbrack Plaster Model, Bristol Museum.

http://english18thcenturyportraitsculpture.blogspot.com/2016/09/the-line-of-kings-tower-of-london.html

http://english18thcenturyportraitsculpture.blogspot.com/2016/09/equestrian-statue-of-james-ii.html and Irish Equestrian Statues. 

James II, by Larson.

 

http://english18thcenturyportraitsculpture.blogspot.com/2016/09/list-of-english-and-irish-equestrian.html

 

http://english18thcenturyportraitsculpture.blogspot.com/2016/09/two-equestrian-statues-by-joseph-wilton.html

..........

 

http://english18thcenturyportraitsculpture.blogspot.com/2016/07/regisole-pavia.html

http://english18thcenturyportraitsculpture.blogspot.com/2016/07/equestrian-statue-of-william-iii-after.html 

Miniature equestrian bronze William III, Rijksmuseum

http://english18thcenturyportraitsculpture.blogspot.com/2016/08/the-torrie-ecorche-bronze-equestrian.html

http://english18thcenturyportraitsculpture.blogspot.com/2016/09/horsemen-on-rearing-horses-survey_1.html

http://english18thcenturyportraitsculpture.blogspot.com/2016/09/small-bronze-equestrian-statue-of-louis.html

http://english18thcenturyportraitsculpture.blogspot.com/2016/09/the-equestrian-statue-of-louis-xiv-at.html

http://english18thcenturyportraitsculpture.blogspot.com/2016/09/the-equestrian-statue-of-bartolemeo.html        Verocchio, Venice.

http://english18thcenturyportraitsculpture.blogspot.com/2016/09/equestrian-statue-of-gattamalata.html

http://english18thcenturyportraitsculpture.blogspot.com/2016/09/equestrian-statue-of-heni-iv-on-pont.html

http://english18thcenturyportraitsculpture.blogspot.com/2016/09/equestrian-statues-of-marcus-nonius.html

http://english18thcenturyportraitsculpture.blogspot.com/2016/09/a-reduced-equestrian-statue-of-louis.html

http://english18thcenturyportraitsculpture.blogspot.com/2016/09/roman-marble-equestrian-statue-of.html                

Caligula, British Museum.

http://english18thcenturyportraitsculpture.blogspot.com/2016/09/reduced-model-of-equestrian-statue-of.html           

Le Hongre, Dijon.

http://english18thcenturyportraitsculpture.blogspot.com/2016/09/equestrian-statue-of-louis-xiv-by.html                     

Coysevox, Paris.

http://english18thcenturyportraitsculpture.blogspot.com/2016/09/how-to-cast-equestrian-statue-in-bronze.html

http://english18thcenturyportraitsculpture.blogspot.com/2016/09/jean-baltazar-keller-1638-1702.html

http://english18thcenturyportraitsculpture.blogspot.com/2016/10/equestrian-statue-of-louis-xv-by.html

http://english18thcenturyportraitsculpture.blogspot.com/2016/10/equestrian-statue-of-louis-xiv-by.html             

Martin Desjardin, Lyon.

http://english18thcenturyportraitsculpture.blogspot.com/2016/10/equestrian-statue-of-louis-xv-by_2.html      

Edme Bouchardon, Paris.

 http://english18thcenturyportraitsculpture.blogspot.com/2016/10/equestrian-statue-of-louis-xv-bordeaux.html

http://english18thcenturyportraitsculpture.blogspot.com/2016/10/miniature-lead-equestrian-statue-of_15.html 

Lead Miniature by van Nost, Dublin Castle.

http://english18thcenturyportraitsculpture.blogspot.com/2016/10/george-ii-st-stephens-green-dublin.html

http://english18thcenturyportraitsculpture.blogspot.com/2016/10/henri-iv-on-pont-neuf-paris-done.html

http://english18thcenturyportraitsculpture.blogspot.com/2016/10/equestrian-statuettes-of-louis-xiii-and.html

http://english18thcenturyportraitsculpture.blogspot.com/2016/11/larson-equestrian-statue-redux.html

http://english18thcenturyportraitsculpture.blogspot.com/2016/12/a-bronze-equestrian-statuette-of-gaspar.html

http://english18thcenturyportraitsculpture.blogspot.com/2016/12/engravings-of-charles-ii-equstrian-and.html

http://english18thcenturyportraitsculpture.blogspot.com/2016/12/a-general-on-horseback-hubert-le-sueur.html

http://english18thcenturyportraitsculpture.blogspot.com/2016/12/pierre-hubert-archeveque-stockholm.html

http://english18thcenturyportraitsculpture.blogspot.com/2016/12/saly-and-equestrian-statue-of-frederick.html

http://english18thcenturyportraitsculpture.blogspot.com/2016/12/small-iron-equestrian-statuette-at.html

http://english18thcenturyportraitsculpture.blogspot.com/2017/01/terracotta-equestrian-statuette-of.html

http://english18thcenturyportraitsculpture.blogspot.com/2017/05/how-to-make-equestrian-statue.html

http://english18thcenturyportraitsculpture.blogspot.com/2017/12/le-sueur-bronze-head-of-henri-de.html

http://english18thcenturyportraitsculpture.blogspot.com/2017/07/sir-john-hawkwood-niccolo-da-tolentino.html