England is ready to welcome back the amazing art collection of the First Prime Minister Sir Robert Walpole, which was sold to Catherine the Great when Sir Robert’s heir was in need of cash. Now most of what Catherine the Great bought is at the State Hermitage and being lent to the Houghton Hall in Norfolk, original home of the collection, to be re-assembled after 200 years for “Houghton Revisited: Masterpieces from the Hermitage”
Sir Robert Walpole became quite rich during his career as the King’s First Minister in the 18th century, and amassed a substantial collection that he installed in his four houses, including the Houghton Hall. According to the Art Newspaper, by 1736 he had about 400 paintings, which were all moved to Houghton when Sir Robert retired. The collection included works by Raphael, Veronese, van Dyck, Poussin, Rubens, Maratta, Rembrandt, Velazquez, and Murillo. Unfortunately after Sir Robert’s death, his overspending heir the Third Earl sold the collection. Catherine the Great bought 204 paintings for £40,555 in 1778-9, which equates to around £5.2million today. 126 paintings from this lot remain at the Hermitage today; others are in different Russian museums, were sold to US museums or are missing.
David and Rose Cholmondeley at Houghton Hall
As the collection is returning to Houghton Hall, imagine the excitement and anticipation of the current owner David Cholmondeley, 7th Marquess of Cholmondeley and descendant of Sir Robert Walpole. The exhibition marks the 250th anniversary of Catherine the Great’s accession, and the State Hermitage is lending 60 paintings back for display at Houghton Hall, where they will be shown as they were originally in the Grand Rooms. What a historical and rare opportunity! The exhibition opens on 17th of May and will be on view until the 29th of September.
