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Portrait Medallion of Edward Bourne: C.165-2010

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Object information

Current Location: In storage

Titles

Portrait Medallion of Edward Bourne

Maker(s)

Factory: Wedgwood
Modeller: Hackwood, William

Entities

Categories

Description

Pale blue jasper plaque with applied moulded white jasper bust portrait in relief.

Pale blue jasper plaque with applied moulded white jasper bust portrait in relief. The sitter, Edward Bourne faces to viewer’s right. He has a balding brown, short curly hair, and wears a neckcloth, waistcoat and coat with three buttons. The truncation is signed faintly 'W H(ac)kwo(od)/1779'. The back of the plaque is inscribed (but difficult to see because of the glass in the frame) ‘Mr Byrne/Brick layer/Etruria/1779’The plaque is set into an oval ebonized wood frame with an oval unglazed aperture at the front, and a smaller oval glazed aperture at the back. Inserted into the top of the frame is a modern brass (?)loop with a ring for suspension.

Notes

History note: The owner's family

Place(s) associated

  • Etruria ⪼ Staffordshire ⪼ England

Acquisition and important dates

Method of acquisition: Bequeathed (2009) by Keynes, W. M., Dr.

Dating

18th Century, Late
George III
Production date: dated AD 1779 : The plaque does not bear the Wedgwood & Bentley mark and is therefore probably after 1780 when Thomas Bentley died.

Note

This is one of very few original medallions by the modeller William Hackwood. The sitter, Edward Bourne, a bricklayer at Wedgwood's factory at Etruria, was known as ‘Old Bourne’. Josiah Wedgwood referred to Hackwood’s model for this portrait in a letter written in November 1778 (Wedgwood MS E 188662-26-21 November 1778). Two moulds survive, one of which is signed ‘Wm Hackwood 1779’, the other unsigned, but inscribed ‘Mr Bourne Bricklayer by Hackwood 1779’. This plaque is presumably later, as it does not bear the Wedgwood & Bentley mark. Thomas Bentley, Wedgwood's partner, died in 1780.

School or Style

Neoclassical

People, subjects and objects depicted

Components of the work

Plaque composed of jasper ware ( blue)
Relief composed of jasper ware ( white)
Frame composed of wood Height 13.5 cm Width 11.3 cm
Inscription

Inscription or legends present

  • Text: WEDGWOOD
  • Location: On back of plaque
  • Method of creation: Impressed
  • Type: Factory mark

Inscription present: so faintly that the letters cannot be seen distinctly

  • Text: W. H(ac)kwo(od)/1779
  • Location: On truncation
  • Method of creation: Incised
  • Type: Signature
  • Text: Mr Byrne/Brick layer/Etruria/1779
  • Location: On back
  • Method of creation: Incised into plaque
  • Type: Inscription

References and bibliographic entries

Related exhibitions

Identification numbers

Accession number: C.165-2010
Primary reference Number: 178589
Entry form: 1039
Stable URI

Audit data

Created: Saturday 6 August 2011 Updated: Wednesday 15 July 2020 Last processed: Wednesday 13 December 2023

Associated departments & institutions

Owner or interested party: The Fitzwilliam Museum
Associated department: Applied Arts

Citation for print

This record can be cited in the Harvard Bibliographic style using the text below:

The Fitzwilliam Museum (2024) "Portrait Medallion of Edward Bourne" Web page available at: https://collection.beta.fitz.ms/id/object/178589 Accessed: 2024-03-29 15:56:02

Citation for Wikipedia

To cite this record on Wikipedia you can use this code snippet:

{{cite web|url=https://collection.beta.fitz.ms/id/object/178589 |title=Portrait Medallion of Edward Bourne |author=The Fitzwilliam Museum|accessdate=2024-03-29 15:56:02|publisher=The University of Cambridge}}

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