Fireback thumbnail 1
On display
Image of Gallery in South Kensington

Fireback

1649 (made)
Artist/Maker
Unknown
Place of origin
England (made)

Cast iron fireback depicting a heraldic lion, thistle, rose and fleur-de-lys, of cusped arched rectangular shape; ovolo edging; stylised lion passant guardant; crowned rose with leaf and stem on left, crowned fleur de lys on right, thistle with leaves above centre; three right-facing scrolls at base; down-facing scroll, with staple, on right side; date split between bottom corners; initials below date, bottom right.

Object details

Categories
Metalwork
Ironwork
Object type
Fireback
Materials and techniques
Cast iron
Iron
Casting
Brief description
Fireback, cast iron, depicting a heraldic lion, thistle, rose and fleur-de-lys, made in England, dated 1649
Physical description
Cast iron fireback depicting a heraldic lion, thistle, rose and fleur-de-lys, of cusped arched rectangular shape; ovolo edging; stylised lion passant guardant; crowned rose with leaf and stem on left, crowned fleur de lys on right, thistle with leaves above centre; three right-facing scrolls at base; down-facing scroll, with staple, on right side; date split between bottom corners; initials below date, bottom right.
Dimensions
  • Height: 72cm
  • Width: 80cm
  • Depth: 2.5cm
Gallery label
(07/1994)
FIREBACK
Cast iron
England; dated 1649

With the Scottish lion and thistle supported by the English rose and French fleur-de-lys . These may refer to the Scottish origin of the Stuart dynasty. The date is that of the execution of King Charles I. The pattern must have been popular, since several examples exist.

Museum No. 492-1901
Object history
The fireback has royalist symbolism. The numeral style, initials, leaf depiction and the stapled scroll are typical features of firebacks made from patterns by the same maker. A later version of the same subject, but with a different shaped plate and without the fleur-de-lys, is also known. M. A. Lower writes of firebacks of this design of being cast at Waldron Furnace in Sussex (Lower, 1849, p.219). Copies of this fireback are known.
Historical context
The museum is grateful for images and information supplied by the researcher and author, Jeremy Hodgkinson FSA, 30 March 2022
Subjects depicted
Fire
Lions (Animals)
Thistles (Plants)
Roses (Flowers)
Fleur-De-Lis
Associated object
REPRO.1902-142 (Reproduction)
Bibliographic references
  • Gloag, John and Derek Bridgwater. A history of cast iron in architecture. London : G. Allen and Unwin. 1948. 395p., ill. Fig.28, p.27
  • Lindsay, J. Seymour. Iron and Brass Implements of the English House. London, 1964. Fig.23, p.10.
  • Lloyd, N. Domestic Ironwork. I. Firebacks. Archaeological Review. LVIII, 1925. pp.58-67. Fig.7(b).
  • Roberts & Co. Trade Catalogue. Period Grates and Fireplace Accessories. 1925. Section IV, p.25, R.20.
  • Hodgkinson, Jeremy. British Cast-Iron Firebacks of the 16th to Mid-18th Centuries. Crawley: HodgersBooks. 2010 fig. 258, pp. 178, 257
Collection
Metalwork Collection
Accession number
492-1901

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Record createdJune 24, 2009
Record URL
https://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O324687/fireback-unknown/
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