IMGR58

THE CENTRES OF PRODUCTION

mwncory of róoi cecords    piece* ofgu* leather hangings cwclvc fcee dccp' in a chan,-

bcr in Hardwidc Hal1. buc again no mencion is madę of chcir origin. Ac HardwKk, howcvcr. tbm we in che wardrobe 50 piece* of"wrought* gik Icachcr and 34 pŃcn of gik leather *ałvcrd buc noc fynished*. This makes ic elear chał aomeonc muce havc bera «vaibUc who oould pamc a cukablc design on che *unwrought' panek and coai chem wieb ebe »cquiuae yeOow wamish chac would impart a goldcn appcarancc co che «Ivct. Tbis indicaKs chat socne aort of 1 gilt-lcacbcr industry must havc exisced in England by MM.¹

de fioodaray. in a report 10 che Freneh Academy¹ on che dedine of che nr dwf mdu«ry, pubkshed in 1762* makes che surprising scacemcm chac English and VeBCSan gdded leather* we much superior co chose of France, but spccific eridence to mpport er iocerprtt this assation is larlcing, cspedally as no records have fet comc 10 bghc arbach bcar opon che sourae of most of che fine hangings stall to be scen in this country and ■duch baw coounonły bcen regarded as imporced from cither Spain or Holland. It migf-.i be dwugbc chat Bondaroy*» remark arose from knowledgc of che splcndid gile leathen pnmed wieb chinosscne designs which, ic has been esublished, wcrc madę in Loodon in dar oghceench cencury.* buc ic is elear chac hc was also familiar with English emboswd IcstbcK hangings when he says of che English leachcrworkcrs chac ‘nous pouvons dirc que la pcricction de leurs pJancbcs fmoulds] Bur en genćral Ic principal mćritc de kun coirs, H aooucr qu’d «’en (aut de beaucoup quc nous ne Tacceignions’.⁴

Ic i elear chat che tradc did noc suddcnly spring co life ac che beginning ofthe dghteenili ccnrury, as mighc appear from surviving tradc-cards, buc chac a smali alchough noc un-impoctanc group of leather gilders, working principally around Sc Paul s Cathedra! bcewcen 1710 and 1785 (sec Appcnduc A) wcrc che successors co ochers who, ccrtainly tbfoughout che sewnecench ccnrury and probably before, wcrc among the chief suppliers of gik. hand-wroughc. painted and evencually embossed leather hangings to many of Bnuin*s arńcocncic houses, and chac only some of chese ca mc fiom Spain. Flandecs or Holland. In Appendix A are given che na mes of known leather gilders which show chac che indusery Aounshed in (his country for some two hundred years. The auchor is awarc of dgfat London names conncctcd with gile leather prior co 1700 and alchough ic is noc cmaan chac afl ifaese ccpresenc actual makers, they indicace chac a leather gilding industry cansaed m London chroughouc che sewenccemh cencury. No refcrencc whacever has bccn (bund so a fraccmiry of leather gilders ac any period, nor is chere any indicacion chał chcy

' Tk «i(pul af the Hsfdwack Hal lotfuny as ac Ghatsworth boi copacs are to be sara at the Vic*oru

• T 8 n ih irr adfn |ei —~ ^A—^L — ^A f-^Ł~‘ fa ⁿ^    ^W4;- 170. XVII. pp. 1-1.

iHoch. H.. 'Engbah Clwnwerir Cdi Udar'. 7V Bmtk&m MtfuW. I9J7. LXXL p. aj.

« Bondtfoy, op. «*.. p. *9.

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