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Kensington Palace: The Cupola Room c.1817

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Date

c.1817

Description

A watercolour of the Cupola Room at Kensington Palace, prepared for one of the plates in William Henry Pyne's 'History of the Royal Residences' (1816-1819). The Cupola Room was most exuberant addition William Kent made to Kensington Palace in the reign of George I. Originally, Sir James Thornhill had been commissioned to decorate its fictive coffered dome, but his estimate was considered unreasonably high. Acting as decorative painter as well as architect, Kent decorated the walls with painted wooden pilasters and white marble niches housing gilt-lead statues of Roman deities.
Descriptive Medium: 'Pen and ink with watercolour and bodycolour, over pencil', 'pen and ink, watercolour, bodycolour (colour), pencil'