Professor Hedgehog's Journal

Object of the Month: March 2017

Posted on 12/03/2017 by carolinemmurray

Would you give a home to one of these things (assuming always that you had the space)? I used to think that I wouldn’t – overblown, grotesque, quite unsuited (except in the most utilitarian terms, i.e. they have holes and hold water) to their purpose as flower vases. But I have to admit to a certain fascination for the skill of the makers and for the social history that these pieces embody. Continue reading →

Posted in Art, Cambridge, History, Museums and Galleries | Tagged Carel Fabritius, Delft pottery, Fitzwilliam Museum, Hampton Court Palace, Mary II, Mauritshuis, William III | 3 Comments

Pompeiana

Posted on 02/03/2017 by carolinemmurray

The first edition of Pompeiana by Sir William Gell and J.P. Gandy was published in parts between 1817 and 1819. As is remarked in the preface: ‘Pompeii was begun upon in 1748; and it may at first excite our surprise, that from this date to the present day, no work has appeared in the English language upon the subject of its domestic antiquities, except a few pages by Sir William Hamilton, in the Archaeologia.’
Continue reading →

Posted in Archaeology, Art, Classics, History, Museums and Galleries | Tagged Herculaneum, Pompeii, Roman architecture, Roman art, Roman history, Vesuvius | 1 Comment

Object of the Month: February 2017

Posted on 27/02/2017 by carolinemmurray

Back in my student days, I was much more interested in Greek history, culture and archaeology than I was in that of the Romans. As a consequence that I am almost too embarrassed to admit, although I now spend a fair amount of time in Italy, I have never been to Rome. Nor, until last week, had I ever been to Pompeii, but a decision was taken to rectify the latter situation before both of us were simply too ancient and creaky to manage the high kerbs of Pompeian pavements without mishap. Continue reading →

Posted in Archaeology, Art, Classics, History | Tagged frescos, Herculaneum, Pompeii, Roman art, Roman villas, Sorrento | 5 Comments

In Chancery

Posted on 20/02/2017 by carolinemmurray

Bleak House is my favourite Dickens novel. I don’t propose to defend the assertion now, but I mention it because recent rummagings in the library in which I spend my Friday mornings have brought to light a rather sad tale in which the benevolent intentions of one Benjamin Robertson, Esquire, of Surrey were overturned by the Lord Chancellor, Lord Eldon, sitting in state in the High Court of Chancery, even though the trustees who were trying to carry out the deceased’s wishes were represented in court by not only the Solicitor General (Spencer Perceval, later to acquire the gloomy distinction of being the only British Prime Minister to be assassinated) but also Mr (shortly to be Sir Samuel) Romilly. Continue reading →

Posted in Biography, Botany, Gardens, History, London, Natural history | Tagged Benjamin Robertson, botanic gardens, chancery, legacies, Lord Chancellor, Stockwell, wills | 2 Comments

Plant of the Month: February 2017

Posted on 17/02/2017 by carolinemmurray

I was thinking in terms of primroses, as mine (in a very sheltered position under a south-facing wall) are flowering bravely, but I haven’t seen any elsewhere yet, so I though I would go for winter aconites, which flower reliably from late January through February, more or less regardless of the weather and temperature. Continue reading →

Posted in Botany, Cambridge, Gardens, Natural history | Tagged aconite, Aconitum, Eranthis, poisonous plants, spring flowers | 1 Comment

The Last Medici

Posted on 07/02/2017 by carolinemmurray

A few days ago I attended a lecture by Professor Tim Blanning on the subject of the European context of Viscount Fitzwilliam’s stupendous bequest to the University of Cambridge in 1816. Bearing in mind Fitzwilliam’s continental travels and his long period as a resident of Paris, it seems very likely that he was interested in and influenced by the movement among Continental rulers to open up what had previously been their private art galleries, concert halls or opera houses to a wider public. Continue reading →

Posted in Art, Biography, History, Museums and Galleries | Tagged Anna Maria Luisa de' Medici, Cosimo III de' Medici, Florence, Italian art, Palatinate, Uffizi Gallery | 4 Comments

Professor Martyn Writes to Dr Pulteney

Posted on 30/01/2017 by carolinemmurray

One of my current voluntary activities consists in part of thumbing through an elderly card index, which reposes in an elderly and beautiful wooden card index case. In the course of this rummaging, I have noticed with alarm the increasing fumble-fistedness of my digits, which makes the whole process long-drawn-out and frustrating; but I have also lit upon several individual cards which have led to documents which make riveting reading and have demanded further investigation. Continue reading →

Posted in Biography, Botany, Cambridge, Gardens, History, Natural history, Printing and Publishing | Tagged Cory Library, CU Botanic Garden, John Martyn, Richard Pulteney, Thomas Martyn | 11 Comments

Westminster Bridge

Posted on 22/01/2017 by carolinemmurray

langley I tend to ignore the porcelain gallery at the Fitzwilliam Museum, since, as I have mentioned before, I really don’t like the coy, arch, simpering, figurative pieces that populate so many of the shelves. A quick genuflect towards the bookcase containing Handel’s manuscripts, and then a brisk trot through to the more congenial pottery in the Glaisher Gallery, including the eighteenth-century pew groups, the maiolica, and the legendary owl. Continue reading →

Posted in Art, Biography, Cambridge, History, London, Museums and Galleries, Venice | Tagged 'Architect Earl', 9th earl of Pembroke, Canaletto, Fitzwilliam Museum, Westminster Bridge | 2 Comments

Object of the Month: January 2017

Posted on 14/01/2017 by carolinemmurray

If ever I were to take up collecting as a serious pastime (as distinct from the random acquisition of books, plants and balls of wool), I think I would go for Italian maiolica pharmacy jars. (The sine qua non, of course, for this new venture, would be a major triumph in the lottery – perhaps I should improve the odds by buying a ticket occasionally.) It’s not that they are always very beautiful, or very well made (though many are): it’s the tangible (and almost smellable) connection with a fascinating aspect of the past. Continue reading →

Posted in Archaeology, Art, Botany, Cambridge, History, Museums and Galleries, Natural history, Venice | Tagged ceramics, Fitzwilliam Museum, Florence, maiolica, Metropolitan Museum of Art, pharmacy jars, Venice | 14 Comments

Plant of the Month: January 2017

Posted on 09/01/2017 by carolinemmurray

My mahonia is looking pretty cheerful at the moment: as good a reason as any to find out a bit more about it – including, I hope, the reason for its flowering in the coldest months of the year, when any self-respecting insect pollinator is either (a) dead; (b) in its larval stage; or (c) hibernating somewhere warm and cosy, such as the grooves in the frames of my sash windows. (Having said that, in fact on 8 January it was sufficiently warm that bees were buzzing all over my bush). Continue reading →

Posted in Botany, Cambridge, Exploration, Gardens, Natural history, Printing and Publishing | Tagged Bernard McMahon, botany, horticulture, mahonia, Thomas Jefferson, Thomas Nuttall | Leave a comment