An account of the paintings at Houghton Hall in Norfolk, the seat of the right honble Sr Robt .Walpole, 1749 / by the Revd Mr Morgan Powell MA. SGSS.

1 v. (4 leaves) ; 32 cm.

English

Purchased from Spurs and Swift, October 1931.

This material is available for research.

The Rev. Morgan Powell was clerk of Houghton, Norfolk and a member of the Gentleman's Society at Spalding.

Manuscript, in a single hand, of Powell's modified version of Horace Walpole's work, which lists and describes the works of art at Houghton Hall during Sir Robert Walpole's tenure there. The manuscript is arranged in the manner of a guided tour, beginning with "the common approach to the house," and listing the works of art by their position in the house as one moves through it, including over the chimney; over one door; the passage to the gallery; and the upper end of the coffee room. Occasionally the paintings are annotated, primarily biographical details which accompany portraits of Walpole family members and other personages. The manuscript also occasionally describes the furnishings of the room, as in the little bedchamber, which the author mentions is wainscoted with mahogany, while the bed is of painted taffeta; and the gallery, which Powell declares was first intended to be a greenhouse till Sir Robert Walpole's resignation from the ministry in 1742.

June 17, 2008

Morgan Powell, An Account of the Paintings at Houghton Hall in Norfolk. The Lewis Walpole Library, Yale University.

Morgan Powell, An Account of the Paintings at Houghton Hall in Norfolk. The Lewis Walpole Library, Yale University.