Piano

Designer Augustus Welby Northmore Pugin (British, 1812-1852)

Manufacturer(Instrument Fitters) Burns & Lambert

Manufacturer(Case maker) J. G. Crace

Place of OriginEngland, London

Date1851

DimensionsH: 65 1/2 in. (166.4 cm); W: 53 in. (134.6 cm); Depth: 29 3/4 in. (75.6 cm)

MediumCarved oak case, instrument fittings, brass candle arms

ClassificationFurniture

Credit LineMr. and Mrs. George M. Jones, Jr. Fund

Object number

1995.1

Not on View

Label TextThe Victorian architect and designer Augustus Welby Pugin is often referred to as the “father of the Gothic Revival.” He is best known for his collaboration with Charles Barry on the 1835 design of the Houses of Parliament in London, considered a masterpiece of Gothic Revival architecture. Pugin popularized an updated, romanticized version of medieval design, helping to establish it as the national style in Victorian Britain. This piano, with its carved oak Gothic motifs and tracery, is probably one of two Pugin-designed pianos displayed in the Medieval Court at London’s Crystal Palace Exhibition of 1851, the first World’s Fair. The pianos demonstrated that Gothic design could be successfully applied to modern forms of furniture.Published ReferencesMoore, Susan, "From Chippendale to Strawberry Hill," Art & Auction, vol. 19, no. 9, April 1997, p. 118, repr. (col) p. 119.Exhibition HistoryLondon, Grosvenor House Art and Antique Fair, June 1994.