Augustus Welby Northmore Pugin (British, 1812-1852): A rare silvered and gilt plated brass and copper three light candelabrum

by John Hardman & Co., Birmingham, in the Gothic Revival style, circa 1840

Footnotes

Provenance
John Hardman Snr., made for John Hardman Jnr. (1812-1867), thence by descent.
Neil Phillips, John Hardman Studio, Lightwoods House, Birmingham.
With the Fine Art Society, 148 New Bond Street, London W1S 2JT - purchased by the present vendor, 21st February 2013 (INV 33052).

Literature
The Journal of Design and Manufactures, II, 1849, p. 52.
P. Atterbury & C. Wainwright (eds), Pugin - A Gothic Passion, Exhibition Catalogue, Victoria & Albert Museum 1994, pub. Yale University Press, p. 237, pl. 44.

Exhibited
Exhibition of Industrial Arts and Manufacturers, Birmingham, 3rd September to 15th December 1849.

Arguably one of the most talented and prolific designers of the 19th century, A.W.N. Pugin was an architect, draughtsftsman and designer, antiquary and collector, and artist and critic. Today he is recognised as the trailblazing pioneer of the revival of the Gothic style in Great Britain with a modus operandi derived less from a mere aesthetic but more from exacting religious and moral principles. As the architect of numerous high-profile public and domestic ecclesiastical and secular building commissions in England, Ireland, and Australia, he was also responsible for their interiors and furnishings, collaborating with several individually chosen manufacturers on the design and production of furniture, ceramics, books, textiles, wallpapers, and as with the present lot, metalware.

However, his defining commission for the interiors of the Palace of Westminster was ironically instigated via a competition for the commission made by the architect Sir Charles Barry who turned to Pugin for his assistance with the drawings for the proposal. Initially the young Pugin was paid £400 by Barry for assisting with preliminary drawings but as the construction of the Palace progressed, Barry began to rely more heavily on him for the design and execution of the interior furnishings and fittings which ranged from the wall panelling and colour schemes down to the metalwork including the lighting and the door furniture.

Pugin's earliest ventures into designing for the medium of metalwork were in the mid 1820's when he met the goldsmith John Gawler Bridge of Rundell, Bridge and Rundell. However, as the company were known for their revivalist historical styles including Rococo and 'Romanticised Gothic', their output was never particularly authentic and consequently few, if any, of Pugin's designs were probably ever realised, despite the existence of archival evidence of sketches showing his involvement with the company.

John Hardman & Co. and John Hardman Junior
In 1835, Pugin's conversion to Catholicism finally provided him with an opportunity to design and produce more purist metalwork pieces whilst undertaking a commission for the seminary of St Mary's College, Oscott. It was at the seminary that Pugin most likely met John Hardman Junior who was a member of a prominent Roman Catholic metalwork manufacturing family, John Hardman & Co. in Birmingham. Hardman Junior and Pugin became close friends sharing a commitment to the revival of their religion and practice. Their subsequent collaboration was responsible for bringing to fruition the majority of Pugin's important designs for precious and base metalwork pieces.

Although the pair concentrated on recreating archaeological metalware designs of cathedral and church furnishings, few resources existed documenting domestic metalware forms in the Medieval period. As Pugin had previously dismissed the random application of perceived period detail applied superficially as 'patterns of Brumagen gothic' he was not inclined to 'imagined' Medieval objects to fill a gap in the market. However, he and Hardman inventively produced vessels and lighting of a type that would naturally satisfy this gap.

Although it is estimated that as much as 95% of the church and other metalwork supplied by John Hardman & Co were in base metals, most of it being in brass in conjunction with copper, nickel or 'German silver ,' the quality of the gilding and silvering was so good it was often apparently extremely difficult for the firms' patrons to establish if the piece was made in a precious metal, in a base one or constructed in both materials.

As a result of increased orders, including those from Charles Barry for the Palace of Westminster (all in base metal) which continued throughout the 1840s, Hardman Junior, although a partner in his father's metalworking company subsequently set up his own firm to provide 'Ecclesiastical Ornaments' from 1838. Continued important commissions and the preparation for the Birmingham Exhibition in 1849 and 1851 Great Exhibition also kept the business at full capacity during this period.

In 1849 John Hardman & Co. worked alongside Crace and Co. and Herbert Minton, all of whom collaborated with Pugin at the Birmingham Exhibition of Manufacturers which was held in September of that year where the present lot was shown. An engraved plate with the inscription '(Altar Plate manufactured by Hardman & Co.; Silk Hanging by Crace and Son, London)' shows the candelabrum as the centrepiece of the display and was illustrated in the 'The Journal of Design and Manufacturers, II, 1849, p. 52.

Although apparently conceived as an altar candelabrum, its Hardman Family provenance combined with the inclusion of an engraved decorative device assumed to be the unrecorded coat of arms for the Hardmans, demonstrate that its use was almost certainly exclusively secular. The arms were most likely designed by Pugin, who had previously created similar undocumented devices more for aesthetic purposes than from any recognised principles governed by the College of Arms. Indeed this imagined heraldry can perhaps be viewed as a token of Pugin's gratitude and goodwill towards his patron John Hardman junior. A comparable secular candelabrum in gilt brass and cut crystal glass designed by Pugin for the House of Lords circa 1850 also by John Hardman & Co Birmingham was subsequently exhibited at the 1851 Great Exhibition.

However the 1849 Birmingham exhibition itself was a precursor of the 1851 Great Exhibition organised by Henry Cole and Prince Albert, both of whom had praised the work of Pugin and his manufacturers at the exhibition, causing Pugin to comment 'Our exposition at Birmingham was very creditable, has attracted a deal of attention, and done much good'.

However the 1851 London Exhibition, known as the ''Great Exhibition of the Works of Industry of All Nations,'' held in Joseph Paxton's prefabricated 'Crystal Palace' was problematic for Pugin who was commissioned to design a Medieval Court due to his differences with the designer of such a modern glass and iron structure. Nevertheless, he worked hard on his plans and many of the objects on display were designed by him. John Hardman & Co.'s display in Pugin's Medieval Court also won them the highest accolade, a Council Medal. However, the sheer amount of work involved with the exhibition caused Pugin to collapse from exhaustion and almost certainly as a result of this overwork he died the following year.