Nottingham Alabaster

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Nottingham Alabaster is a term used to refer to the English sculpture industry which flourished from the fourteenth century until the early sixteenth century.

Contents 1 History 2 Forms 3 Surviving examples 4 Sources

[edit] History

The alabaster used in the industry was quarried largely in the area around South Derbyshire near Tutbury and Chellaston. Alabaster carvers were at work in London, York, Burton-on-Trent but the largest concentration was in Nottingham and this has led to the industry acquiring the Nottingham Alabaster designation. These craftsmen were known by various names such as alabastermen, kervers, marblers, and image-makers.

Alabaster is softer and easier to work than marble and a good material for mass production. Alabaster, commonly called gypsum, is sulphate of lime which is soft, easily worked and hardens by exposure.

On 6 June 1371, payment was made to Peter Maceon of Nottingham, of the balance of 300 marks for a table (altar piece) of alabaster made by him and placed upon the High Altar within the free Chapel of St. George of Windsor. The execution of this order cost £200 and required 10 carts, 80 horses, and 20 men to transport it to its destination. The journey occupied seventeen days in the autumn of 1367, and the expenses of transport amounted to £30.

Alabster images in English churches may have survived the Dissolution of the Monasteries in the 1530s, but most did not survive the reign of King Edward VI following the Putting away of Books and Images Act 1549 ordering the destruction of all images. From the middle of the sixteenth century, workshops focused instead on sculpting alabaster tombs for noblemen and women.

[edit] Forms

The sculpture industry evolved to produce two main forms, panels and statues. Panels are typically 40cm by 25cm and were arranged in a series in a wooden framework for altar pieces, or for wealthy clients as devotional items in a triptych.

Most surviving examples have lost much of their paintwork, but the colouring of the carvings was an integral part of the production.

The subject matter of the sculptors was usually The Passion, Thomas à Becket, the Golden Legend, and the bleeding head of John the Baptist.

[edit] Surviving examples

The alabaster sculptors were so successful that it developed into an important export trade. Work is still to be found in churches and museums across Europe.

The Victoria and Albert Museum and Nottingham Castle Museum hold the two principal collections of Nottingham Alabaster in the United Kingdom.

[edit] Sources

• The Records of the Borough of Nottingham, Nottingham, Thomas Forman & Sons, 1914
• Medieval English Alabaster Carvings in the Castle Museum Nottingham, Francis Cheetham, City of Nottingham art Galleries and Museums Committee, 1973
• English Mediaeval Alabasters: With a catalogue of the collection in the Victoria and Albert Museum, Francis Cheetham, Phaidon Christie's, 1984, ISBN 0714880140 (978-0714880143)
• The Alabaster Men: Sacred Images From Medieval England, Francis Cheetham, Daniel Katz Ltd 2001
• The Alabaster Images of Medieval England (Museum of London Medieval Finds (1150 - 1450), Francis Cheetham, The Boydell Press, 2003, ISBN 1843830280 (978-1843830283)
• English Medieval Alabasters: With a Catalogue of the Collection in the Victoria and Albert Museum, Francis Cheetham, Second Edition, The Boydell Press 2005, ISBN 1843830094 (978-1843830092)