LONDON DAY 2, MORNING - VISITING THE WALLACE COLLECTION

Hello again, my dear readers

In my previous post I started sharing with you the details of our overseas trip to Scandinavia with a short stopover in London.  Our first day was rather uneventful as we spent most of it on the plane.  You can catch up here.

On the day 2 we woke up feeling much better, the jetlag was almost gone and we were ready for some action.

The first item on our agenda was a visit to The Wallace Collection.  I came across this art museum in my research about London and was very keen to see the masterpieces of paintings, furniture, sculpture, armory and other forms of art housed in this historical museum.

It was built over the 18th and 19th centuries by the Marquess of Herford and Sir Richard Wallace and is one of the finest and most celebrated collections in the world and is displayed at Hertford House in Manchester Square, their former principal London residence.  

The Collection was given to the British nation in 1897 by Lady Wallace, so it could be kept together and enjoyed by generations of visitors.  It was one of the greatest gifts of artwork ever to be transferred to public ownership.  The Collection was opened to the public in 1900.  I am not sure how it was organised back then but these days it is a free admission affair.

You would never guess that this elegant building is housing one of the most exquisite collections I have ever seen.  The last time I saw so much opulence gathered under the same roof was during our trip to St Petersburg visiting the Hermitage Museum.  

Every room was bursting with absolute treasures.  The rays of light were sparkling in crystal chandeliers hung from the high ceilings. The gilded display cabinets were heaving under the treasures artfully displayed on their shelves while their tops were decorated with the bronze clocks depicting some historical moment, a famous person or biblical scene.  The cabinets were richly covered with gilt-bronze mounts used as decorative and protective overlay.  

Most of the furniture and decorative arts were made in the 17-19 c France in Baroque or Rococo styles.  And yet every room looks different from the next.  That was achieved by choosing different colour schemes.

The the silk curtains framed tall windows, their rich intence colours of green, black, turquoise or red matching the wall-paper or silk wall and furniture coverings.

Out of all colours that dominated the rooms, this lushness green was my favourite.

We spent a fair amount of time walking up and down the stairs, wandering from room to room until we couldn't take in any more and decided to leave.

We walked back to Oxford Street to catch a bus home but not before popping into Selfridges.  Unfortunately, our Australian dollar was so much cheaper then British £ that whatever I was thinking of buying, would cost us three times more here than at home.  So we decided not to waste any more time and went back to our hotel to have some rest and change our clothes before going out again in the evening for our dinner at Sketch.

But this is for another post 😀

Until then

Anna

xoxoxo