The “Ne Plus Ultra” of “Life in London.” – Kate, Sue, Tom, Jerry and Logic; viewing the Throne Room, at Carlton Palace.
Description:
Corinthian Tom has taken Corinthian Kate, her companion Sue, and his friends Jerry Hawthorn and Bob Logic to tour Carlton House; this print depicts them with an attendant in the Throne Room. On the left, Tom stands with Kate on one arm and Sue on the other before the attendant, who is speaking and gesturing to them. Jerry stands in the center leaning against an elaborate gilt chair in an elegant contrapposto pose, staring into space as though “quite absorbed in thought by the grandeur with which he was surrounded.” He has taken his glove off of his right hand and holds it in his left, while he holds his top hat in his right. Logic stands on the right side, his hat and cane held in front of him, and leans back to stare up at the ceiling. Behind the figures is a large table draped with green baize cloth, surrounded by gilt chairs. At the back of the table is the throne, swaged behind with red velvet that bears royal insignia. The room is very elaborate, with Corinthian pilasters and other ornate paneling, gold candelabra, a massive crystal and gold chandelier over the table, and opulent draperies “of crimson velvet, ornamented with gold lace, fringe, &c.” To the left, a series of large windows look out onto the street. The floor is covered with a red, green, and gold carpet. In the book’s text, Logic speaks of “this very large handsome carpet,” remarking that it “is all in one piece. It weighs more than a ton, was originally an inch in thickness, and made in Spitalfields.” In response, “the attendant rather animatedly observes, ‘Sir, all the carpets throughout the Palace are of English manufacture. The King will not suffer any thing else to remain, except presents” (Egan 261).
Copyright:
Copyright 2009, Department of Special Collections, Memorial Library, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI
Location:
Accession Number:
CA 8931
Height (in centimeters):
14
Width (in centimeters):
23
Printing Context
This image served as one of George and Robert Cruikshank's illustrations for Pierce Egan's 1821 Life in London, as well as for subsequent editions; the illustration faces page 261.Associated Events
Genteel TourismAssociated Places
Carlton HouseSubject
This image depicts the characters of Egan's Life in London—Corinthian Tom, Corinthian Kate, Sue, Jerry Hawthorn, and Bob Logic—touring Carlton House. As evidenced by their distinct physical poses, each character reacts to the beauty of the throne room in a different way; however, all seem to experience the same wonder as would be felt in the presence of the sublime. Consequently, this piece serves to demonstrate the unique nature of genteel tourism as a pastime that simultaneously promoted both class distinction and individuality.Significance
This image is significant in that it represents how the practice of touring elaborate residences intersected with connoisseurship and aesthetic experience. Although the opportunities to view exhibitions devoted to the fine arts grew in number and variety during the Romantic period, this print reminds us that there was also a surviving tradition of viewing fine and decorative arts together in situ under the rubric of genteel tourism. Carlton House offers a “high treat” not only in its “numerous highly finished cabinet pictures, by the old masters” and “portraits of all the Royal Family,” but also in its “chandeliers; library; draperies; time-pieces; furniture; &c. &c.” (Egan 271-72). For Bob Logic and the attendant, touring Carlton House is an opportunity to display one’s expertise of the objects on view and to cast an examining comparative gaze over the space. For Corinthian Kate and Jerry Hawthorn, however, touring Carlton House provokes a more romantic reverie, so that Kate enthuses with delight: “There is such a superior something about these rooms, that they impressively remind one of the interesting fictions we read in the Arabian Nights’ Entertainments, and seem to partake more of the magical touch of the Talisman than beholding the reality of works." The effect of Carlton House is almost sublime in its overwhelmingness: “I feel much at a loss for adequate expressions to convey my opinion to you of the taste, elegance, dignity, grandeur, richness, beauty, originality, and interest, of this most imposing scene” (Egan 227). It is Carlton House’s ability to satisfy both those desiring unmediated aesthetic experience and “the most fastidious critic” that makes it the "Ne Plus Ultra of Life in London" (Egan 272).Bibliography
Andrews, Malcom. The Search for the Picturesque: Landscape Aesthetics and Tourism in Britain, 1760-1800. Stanford: Stanford UP, 1989. Print.Long Title
Egan, Pierce, 1772-1849. Life in London: or, The day and night scenes of Jerry Hawthorn, Esq., and his elegant friend Corinthian Tom: Accompanied by Bob Logic, the Oxonian, in their rambles and sprees through the metropolis / By Pierce Egan; Embellished with thirty-six scenes from real life . . . and . . . numerous original designs on wood. London: Printed for Sherwood, Jones, 1823. Special Collections (Memorial Library) CA 8931Featured in Exhibit:
Delineator:
Image Date:
1 March 1821
Publisher:
Neeley Sherwood