Albert, Prince Consort
Bust
1841 (made)
1841 (made)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
Object Type
This portrait bust of Prince Albert (1819-1861) was commissioned in 1840 by Queen Victoria, whom he had recently married. In 1841 the sculptor Edward Hodges Baily (1788-1867) showed a bust of Prince Albert ('unfinished') at the Royal Academy, London, presumably this piece. In 1848 it was bought by the collector Joseph Neeld (1789-1856), whose collection of Victorian sculpture was later dispersed. The bust was acquired by the Museum in 1964 from a London dealer.
People
Edward Hodges Baily was born in Bristol in south-west England and began his career modelling wax portraits. He later trained under the sculptor John Flaxman (1755-1826) and enrolled at the Royal Academy Schools, London, in 1808. His public sculpture in London included reliefs on the Marble Arch and perhaps most famously the figure of Horatio Nelson, Viscount Nelson (1758-1805), for the column in Trafalgar Square. He also executed a large number of portrait busts.
Places
Joseph Neeld amassed an important collection of British works of art, including Baily's bust of Prince Albert, after he inherited œ900,000 from his maternal grandfather. He bought Grittleton House in Wiltshire, where his collection was housed. James Thomson (1800-1883) designed this house in a revived Romanesque style; numerous paintings hung in the great Staircase Hall there. As well as the bust of Prince Albert, Neeld owned a figure of Eve Listening to the Voice by Baily.
This portrait bust of Prince Albert (1819-1861) was commissioned in 1840 by Queen Victoria, whom he had recently married. In 1841 the sculptor Edward Hodges Baily (1788-1867) showed a bust of Prince Albert ('unfinished') at the Royal Academy, London, presumably this piece. In 1848 it was bought by the collector Joseph Neeld (1789-1856), whose collection of Victorian sculpture was later dispersed. The bust was acquired by the Museum in 1964 from a London dealer.
People
Edward Hodges Baily was born in Bristol in south-west England and began his career modelling wax portraits. He later trained under the sculptor John Flaxman (1755-1826) and enrolled at the Royal Academy Schools, London, in 1808. His public sculpture in London included reliefs on the Marble Arch and perhaps most famously the figure of Horatio Nelson, Viscount Nelson (1758-1805), for the column in Trafalgar Square. He also executed a large number of portrait busts.
Places
Joseph Neeld amassed an important collection of British works of art, including Baily's bust of Prince Albert, after he inherited œ900,000 from his maternal grandfather. He bought Grittleton House in Wiltshire, where his collection was housed. James Thomson (1800-1883) designed this house in a revived Romanesque style; numerous paintings hung in the great Staircase Hall there. As well as the bust of Prince Albert, Neeld owned a figure of Eve Listening to the Voice by Baily.
Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Title | Albert, Prince Consort (generic title) |
| Materials and techniques | Marble |
| Brief description | Bust, marble, of Albert Prince Consort, by Edward Hodges Baily R.A., England, 1841 |
| Physical description | Prince Albert is shown here ceremoniously dressed, wearing the chain of the Order of the Garter, with the medallion showing St George and the Dragon, the emblem of the Order. |
| Dimensions |
|
| Marks and inscriptions | Signed and dated 'E.H. BAILY R.A. Sculp. London 1841' |
| Gallery label | British Galleries:
This sculpture was made soon after the marriage of Queen Victoria (1819-1901) and Prince Albert (1819-1861). Later, in 1857, the Queen bestowed the title of Prince Consort on her husband. Here he wears the chain of the Order of the Garter. The bust was rejected by the Queen because she felt it made its subject look too old.(27/03/2003) |
| Credit line | Purchased with the bequest of Miss Ellen Barber |
| Object history | Commissioned from the artist by Queen Victoria and rejected; subsequently purchased by Joseph Neeld in 1848. Purchased from Mallett at Bourdon House, 2 Davies Street, London, together with V&A Mus. No. A.33-1964, for a total of £250, und the bequest of Miss Ellen Barber. Both belonged to the collection of mid-19th century sculpture in marble assembled by Joseph Neeld M.P. at Grittleton House near Castle Comb, Wiltshire. |
| Subjects depicted | |
| Summary | Object Type This portrait bust of Prince Albert (1819-1861) was commissioned in 1840 by Queen Victoria, whom he had recently married. In 1841 the sculptor Edward Hodges Baily (1788-1867) showed a bust of Prince Albert ('unfinished') at the Royal Academy, London, presumably this piece. In 1848 it was bought by the collector Joseph Neeld (1789-1856), whose collection of Victorian sculpture was later dispersed. The bust was acquired by the Museum in 1964 from a London dealer. People Edward Hodges Baily was born in Bristol in south-west England and began his career modelling wax portraits. He later trained under the sculptor John Flaxman (1755-1826) and enrolled at the Royal Academy Schools, London, in 1808. His public sculpture in London included reliefs on the Marble Arch and perhaps most famously the figure of Horatio Nelson, Viscount Nelson (1758-1805), for the column in Trafalgar Square. He also executed a large number of portrait busts. Places Joseph Neeld amassed an important collection of British works of art, including Baily's bust of Prince Albert, after he inherited œ900,000 from his maternal grandfather. He bought Grittleton House in Wiltshire, where his collection was housed. James Thomson (1800-1883) designed this house in a revived Romanesque style; numerous paintings hung in the great Staircase Hall there. As well as the bust of Prince Albert, Neeld owned a figure of Eve Listening to the Voice by Baily. |
| Bibliographic reference | Bilbey, Diane and Trusted, Marjorie. British Sculpture 1470-2000. A Concise Catalogue of the Collection at the Victoria and Albert Museum. London: Victoria and Albert Museum, 2002, p. 187, cat.no 265 |
| Collection | |
| Accession number | A.34-1964 |
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| Record created | December 15, 1999 |
| Record URL |
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