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Cast of the head of King Henry III from his monument in Westminster Abbey
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Cast of the head of King Henry III from his monument in Westminster Abbey
Plaster
Museum number: MP177
On display: Monk's Parlour
All spaces are in No. 13 Lincoln's Inn Fields unless identified as in No. 12, Soane's first house.
For tours https://www.soane.org/your-visit
Curatorial note
This head is a cast taken from from the superb gilt bronze effigy of King Henry III (1207-1272) on his tomb in St Edward's Chapel at Westminster Abbey.
Henry III succeeded his father King John in 1216, the year after the Magna Carta was signed. His was one of the longest reigns of any British monarch. During his reign he was responsible for the rebuilding of Westminster Abbey and the construction of its celebrated shrine to the King-Saint Edward the Confessor.
The king died at the royal Palace of Westminster on 16 November 1272 but it was not until 19 years later that his body was transferred to the elaborate tomb commissioned by his son for which the effigy, cast in one piece, was made by a London goldsmith, William Torel. It is hollowed out at the back to reduce the 1207weight. The metal plate on which the king lies, the pillows beneath his head and his shoes are decorated with the lions of England. The cast includes only the upper of the two pillows on which the King's head rests and the shallow decoration of royal lions on this diamond-shaped pillow has not been reproduced in the cast. The jewels once in the crown were long-gone by the time the cast was taken in the early decades of the 19th century, perhaps specially for Soane.
Henry III succeeded his father King John in 1216, the year after the Magna Carta was signed. His was one of the longest reigns of any British monarch. During his reign he was responsible for the rebuilding of Westminster Abbey and the construction of its celebrated shrine to the King-Saint Edward the Confessor.
The king died at the royal Palace of Westminster on 16 November 1272 but it was not until 19 years later that his body was transferred to the elaborate tomb commissioned by his son for which the effigy, cast in one piece, was made by a London goldsmith, William Torel. It is hollowed out at the back to reduce the 1207weight. The metal plate on which the king lies, the pillows beneath his head and his shoes are decorated with the lions of England. The cast includes only the upper of the two pillows on which the King's head rests and the shallow decoration of royal lions on this diamond-shaped pillow has not been reproduced in the cast. The jewels once in the crown were long-gone by the time the cast was taken in the early decades of the 19th century, perhaps specially for Soane.
Literature
https://www.westminster-abbey.org/abbey-commemorations/royals/henry-iii
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