Tag Archives: Fitzwilliam Museum

Admiral Russell’s Frame

Posted on 01/12/2016 by carolinemmurray

Am I alone in having only the vaguest possible understanding of European history in the ‘long’ eighteenth century (1688-1789)? It is said that children these days leap from the Tudors to the Nazis (a cynic would say same difference), but … Continue reading →

Posted in Art, History, Museums and Galleries | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

Object Of The Month: November

Posted on 24/11/2016 by carolinemmurray

In the Western Christian churches, Advent is the period of four weeks (or so) before Christmas Day, beginning on the Sunday closest to the feast of St Andrew on 30 November. This year it falls on 27 November, and may … Continue reading →

Posted in Art, Cambridge, History, Music, Printing and Publishing, Venice | Tagged , , , | 3 Comments

Bambini

Posted on 13/10/2016 by carolinemmurray

Anyone who spends any time mooching around art galleries cannot fail to be struck by the quite remarkable ugliness of many infant Jesuses. I’m not talking about the extreme stylisation – derived from the Byzantine tradition – of Virgin and … Continue reading →

Posted in Art, Cambridge, History, London, Museums and Galleries, Venice | Tagged , , , , , | 10 Comments

Object of the Month: August

Posted on 22/08/2016 by carolinemmurray

The apotheosis of Nelson was already well under way in 1836, when one George Gunning, of Frindsbury in Kent, presented a snuffbox to the Fitzwilliam Museum. Books, prints, portraits, medals and ceramics preserved the great naval hero in the public … Continue reading →

Posted in Art, Biography, Cambridge, History, Museums and Galleries, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , | 8 Comments

Object of the Month: July

Posted on 29/07/2016 by carolinemmurray

I was planning to follow up on some thoughts generated by a recent interesting talk at the Fitzwilliam Museum about portraits of men with their secretaries/assistants/friends, but I got diverted quite early on to a rather different topic. The Museum … Continue reading →

Posted in Art, Biography, Cambridge, History, Museums and Galleries | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

Object of the Month: June

Posted on 26/06/2016 by carolinemmurray

I don’t like, and have never liked, pottery and porcelain figures. I admire the superb craftsmanship that went into making them, but it seems to me a terrible waste of skill and effort to produce these coy and simpering results. … Continue reading →

Posted in Art, History, Museums and Galleries | Tagged , , , , , | 9 Comments

Layers of Paint

Posted on 09/06/2016 by carolinemmurray

The great moment has arrived: Sebastiano del Piombo’s ‘Adoration of the Shepherds’ has gone on display in the Flowers Room at the Fitzwilliam Museum, just outside the Italian Gallery where it may well finally hang.

Posted in Art, Cambridge, History, Museums and Galleries, Venice | Tagged , , , | 3 Comments

Object of the Month: May

Posted on 30/05/2016 by carolinemmurray

This month’s object (coming in just under the wire again – I blame (paradoxically) both my holiday and my new, blissful, part-time job!) may well look familiar. This is because it is one of the ‘Marlay Cuttings’ in the Fitzwilliam … Continue reading →

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Object of the Month: April

Posted on 21/04/2016 by carolinemmurray

This enormous jug was made at the Coalport factory in Coalbrookdale, Ironbridge Gorge, which is usually thought of as the cradle of the Industrial Revolution. It was acquired for the Fitzwilliam Museum by the Friends in 2014, at a sale … Continue reading →

Posted in Biography, Cambridge, History, Museums and Galleries, Natural history | Tagged , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

1816

Posted on 17/03/2016 by carolinemmurray

After the battle of Waterloo brought an end to the Napoleonic Wars and peace to Europe, everyone lived happily ever after (except Napoleon, obviously). The next thing to happen was the death of George III in 1820, after which the … Continue reading →

Posted in Art, Cambridge, History, Museums and Galleries, Natural history, Printing and Publishing | Tagged , , , , , , | 1 Comment