This is a revised and enlarged edition of the earlier standard work on the subject which should be essential reading for anyone with an interest in brass or the wider fields of metalwork and antiques. The book sets individual pieces in their historical background of design, manufacture and use.
An engaging, encyclopedic account of the material world of early modern Britain as told through a unique collection of dated objects The period from 1500 to 1800 in England was one of extraordinary social transformations, many having to do with the way time itself was understood, measured, and recorded. Through a focused exploration of an extensive private collection of fine and decorative artworks, this beautifully designed volume explores that theme and the variety of ways that individual notions of time and mortality shifted. The feature uniting these more than 450 varied objects is that each one bears a specific date, which marks a significant moment—for reasons personal or professional, religious or secular, private or public. From paintings to porringers, teapots to tape measures, the objects—and the stories they tell—offer a vivid sense of the lived experience of time, while providing a sweeping survey of the material world of early modern Britain.
The Familiar Past surveys material culture from 1500 to the present day. Fourteen case studies, grouped under related topics, include discussion of issues such as: * the origins of modernity in urban contexts * the historical anthropology of food * the social and spatial construction of country houses * the social history of a workhouse site * changes in memorial forms and inscriptions * the archaeological treatment of gardens. The Familiar Past has been structured as a teaching text and will be useful to students of history and archaeology.
In Lighting the Shakespearean Stage, 1567–1642,R. B. Graves examines the lighting of early modern English drama from both historical and aesthetic perspectives. He traces the contrasting traditions of sunlit amphitheaters and candlelit hall playhouses, describes the different lighting techniques, and estimates the effect of these techniques both indoors and outdoors. Graves discusses the importance of stage lighting in determining the dramatic effect, even in cases where the manipulation of light was not under the direct control of the theater artists. He devotes a chapter to the early modern lighting equipment available to English Renaissance actors and surveys theatrical lighting before the construction of permanent playhouses in London. Elizabethan stage lighting, he argues, drew on both classical and medieval precedents.
Interior Finishes & Fittings for Historic Building Conservation complements Materials & Skills for Historic Building Conservation, combining the history and application of each material with current knowledge of maintenance and conservation techniques. Of direct practical application in the field, it takes the reader through the process of conserving historic interior finishes, covering everything from decorative plasterwork, joinery and paint colour; to chimneypieces, lighting and fire safety management. The series is particularly aimed at construction professionals – architects, decorative arts historians and specifiers, surveyors, engineers – as well as postgraduate building conservation students and undergraduate architects and surveyors as specialist or optional course reading. The series is also of value to other professional groups such as commissioning client bodies, managers and advisors, and interested individuals involved in house refurbishment or setting up a building preservation trust. While there is a focus on UK practice, most of the content is of relevance overseas (just as UK conservation courses attract many overseas students, for example from India, China, Australia and the USA). The chapters are written by leading conservators, historians, architects, and related professionals, who together reflect the interdisciplinary nature of conservation work. This volume on the historic interior is the fourth of a series on Historic Building Conservation that combine conservation philosophy in the built environment with knowledge of traditional materials and structural and constructional conservation techniques and technology: Understanding Historic Building Conservation Structures & Construction in Historic Building Conservation Materials & Skills for Historic Building Conservation Interior Finishes & Fittings for Historic Building Conservation While substantial publications exist on each of the subject areas - some by the authors of the Historic Building Conservation series - few individuals and practices have ready access to all of these or the time to read them in detail. The aim of the series is to introduce each aspect of conservation and to provide concise, basic and up-to-date knowledge within four volumes, sufficient for the professional to appreciate the subject better and to know where to seek further help.
Tracing the emergence of the domestic kitchen from the 17th to the middle of the 19th century, Sara Pennell explores how the English kitchen became a space of specialised activity, sociability and strife. Drawing upon texts, images, surviving structures and objects, The Birth of the English Kitchen, 1600-1850 opens up the early modern English kitchen as an important historical site in the construction of domestic relations between husband and wife, masters, mistresses and servants and householders and outsiders; and as a crucial resource in contemporary heritage landscapes.
This fascinating, meticulously researched book is an affectionate account of an English country home, Higham Hall in Kent.When you live in a historic house, you are always conscious of your predecessors. 'Gunpowder, Apples and Cement' brings the previous occupants of one such house to life. Detailing a continuous thread of occupation from the mid-seventeenth century to today, tells the story of an English country home and the families who lived there. Full of engrossing details about the social and economic history of Kent, it provides an engaging history of middle-class English life over a period of 450 years. In the process, this captivating story looks at the links between intensely local history and national events - and reminds us that history is made up of individuals and their stories.