In this episode, we’ll be visiting Apollo and the Nine Muses from 1580 at The Victoria and Albert Museum, London. Welcome to Art, Culture & Books with me, Anthony King.
Created in the late sixteenth century, Apollo and the Nine Muses is an oak panel that blends French mid-16th-century carving styles. Despite its French influence, the piece is believed to have been crafted in England towards the close of the same century.
Depicting Apollo and the Nine Muses, the artwork symbolizes the Arts at large, making it suitable for an esteemed chamber in a grand residence. Commonly utilized as overmantels, these panels, in conjunction with the chimney-piece, constituted the focal point of the room. Courtiers appreciated such mythological adornments, indicative of their education and grasp of symbolism. The V&A showcases this piece in a dimly lit, atmospheric setting, enhancing its impact.
The theme of Apollo and the Nine Muses gained popularity in European art from the 1530s onward. This carving aligns with English craftsmanship of the 1580s, resembling the alabaster overmantel of Apollo and the Nine Muses in the library of Hardwick Hall, Derbyshire. The background’s rocky landscape and ruins draw parallels to prints inspired by engravings like Hieronymus Cock’s ‘Some outstanding monuments of Ancient Roman ruins,’ published in Antwerp, Flanders, in 1551 and widely accessible in England.
In grand houses, music held a significant role, with musicians often on the owner’s payroll, providing music for banquets, dances, and chapel services. Proficiency in the lute or spinet was esteemed as a mark of refinement. Apollo is portrayed playing the lyre, while the Nine Muses handle various instruments, including the recorder, lute, triangle, and, added later, the oboe, invented in 1650.
The museum notes that the panel once constituted part of the Temple of the Muses at the Grange, Hockliffe, Bedfordshire. Its origin is traced to the Manor House, Toddington, Bedfordshire, constructed in the 1570s and demolished in 1745.
By Anthony King (c)