Highlights From The Wallace Collection: The Back Stateroom

Ah, The Wallace Collection! Even as I contemplate only tackling the highlights, the vastness of this collection overwhelms me and I know that it is a practically impossible task.

Still, today I am in London and, after a long, long time, have returned to my favorite museum. Although I do love a good museum and have been fortunate enough to have browsed through many a fine collection, The Wallace Collection is firmly at the top of my list. So I am certainly not going to let a little thing like whittling the collection down to a select few get me down. And so, I begin.

The Back Stateroom

The Back Stateroom which is dedicated to rococo at the time of Louis XV and Madame de Pompadour. The furniture and decoration against the deep red background is striking as is the scale of the room which is much larger than the dining room and so, can absorb the effects of the color better.

Here another painting piques my interest as well as the imposing mantlepiece. Jan Weenix’s, Flowers on a Fountain with a Peacock (c.1700-1710 ), is a theatrical piece composed in the grand manner combining a detail of natural and architectural elements with dramatic lighting.

The chest of drawers dates from 1739 and was supplied for Louis XV’s new bedroom at Versailles. The rococo style was developed under Louis XV and characterized by curves, scrolls and asymmetry.

Good To Know

The Wallace Collection was established in 1897 from the private collection of the Marquesses of Hertford. Although he was illegitimate, Sir Richard Wallace, whom the collection was named for, inherited the collection and the house from his father the 4th Marquee. It was Sir Richard’s widow who bequeathed the collection to the British nation and a few years later the state purchased the house such that the collection remained on display here. The Wallace Collection opened to the public in 1900.

See some of the other rooms in the Collection or explore another of my favorite museums:

• The Dining Room
• European Armoury III
• East Gallery II
• The Front State Room
• Manolo Blahnik: An Enquiring Mind
• The Smoking Room
• National Museum of Beirut
• Museum of Islamic Art, Qatar
• National Gallery of Australia

Would I Return?

Yes. Absolutely and unequivocally yes.