[111084] Kedleston Hall : Drawing Room

Kedleston Hall, Derbyshire, 1758-65.

The National Trust.

By Matthew Brettingham (1699-1769), James Paine (1717-1789) & Robert Adam (1728-1792).

Interiors complete by the 1780s.

For Nathaniel Curzon, 1st Baron Scarsdale (1726-1804).

Grade l listed.

The Drawing Room.

 

This is the only room in the house still to the original design of James Paine albeit with some variations by Robert Adam. The blue and pink colour scheme was chosen due to Adam’s watercolour and the room has a sea based them down to Sir Nathaniel Curzon’s love of collecting ships and so he had requested a maritime theme. The ceiling is decorated with sea monsters and merfolk – like every room in the house the ceiling is of the style you take note of due to the ornate plaster work.

 

The magnificent pair of giltwood sofas are by John Linnell, London (1729-1796) cabinet maker, upholsterer and carver. They were commissioned by Nathaniel Curzon, 1st Baron Scarsdale, and supplied, together with a second pair of sofas to Kedleston in 1765.

 

Kedleston Hall is an extravagant temple to the arts. Commissioned in the 1750s by Nathaniel Curzon whose ancestors had resided at Kedleston since the 12th century. The house is framed by historic parkland and boasts opulent interiors intended to impress.

 

Designed for lavish entertaining, Kedleston Hall displays an extensive collection of paintings, sculpture and original furnishings, reflecting both the tastes of its creators and their fascination with the classical world of the Roman Empire.

 

Inherited by George Nathaniel Curzon, Viceroy of India between 1899 and 1905, the hall also houses the many objects he amassed during his travels in South Asia and the Middle East, and in his role leading British rule in India.

 

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