The document summarizes an exhibit at Burghley House that showcased unusual objects collected by the Earls of Exeter over time. It describes several interesting pieces in the exhibit including a model steam engine, scientific instruments, and a silver door lock originally from another estate. The exhibit provided insight into the earls' interests in science and technology and how they acquired unique items that enriched the collection at Burghley House.

1. Page 44 ◆ Antiques Journal ◆ November 2014 www.antiquesjournal.com www.antiquesjournal.com November 2014 ◆ Antiques Journal ◆ Page 45
decoration, the ostrich has a silver
base, legs and feathers, with the
head and neck made out of Meissen
porcelain. The long-held myth that
ostriches can eat anything, including
stone and iron, is represented by
the horseshoe in its mouth.
In 1796 a prison was built
at Norman Cross, not far from
Burghley House, to house French
prisoners from the Napoleonic War.
The prisoners made small toys and
ornaments to sell, and the Cecil
family bought many interesting
examples. The prisoners used
readily available materials, such as
wood, bone, straw and thread.
Shown in the exhibit are a bone
set of playing cards and dominoes,
small wooden containers with
colored straw decorations, and a
detailed model of an 80-gun ship
made out of bone (illustrated in
Online Exclusive) similar to the
scrimshaw work of eighteenth-
century New England whale
fishermen.
The 10th
Earl, Henry, was a lover
of technology and enjoyed recent
discoveries in science. In 1799 he
commissioned the artist John Russell
to make a pastel portrait of his
children. Russell also happened to
be an astronomer who constructed
selenographs—mechanical moons
with engraved lunar surface maps.
The earl was so captivated by the
moon model that he bought one
of the few that Russell made. This
rare selenograph was found in a
storeroom at Burghley House in
1985, still packed undisturbed in
its original box tied with string,
so perhaps the earl had buyer’s
remorse!
Grand State Rooms
After delighting in the exhibit’s
selected treasures, I toured the
house, itself. The State Rooms were
indeed magnificent, with Italian
masters’ paintings on the walls,
elaborately decorated ceilings,
colorful tapestries,and fine examples
of seventeenth-century furniture.
Burghley House is a place that
gave me great insight into a grand
Elizabethan house. Its collectible-
seeking earls gave the house its
intriguing contents and ultimately
its grandeur.
For more information about
Burghley House, visit www.
burghley.co.uk. The surrounding
parkland and gardens, including a
12-acre sculpture garden, make for
a pleasurable visit.
Collectibles and Curiosities at Burghley House
Objects acquired by the Earls of Exeter
Patricia Hilton-Johnson
MUSEUM OF THE MONTH
Every time I tour a stately home or historic
house in the United Kingdom, I find I
want to know more about the objects that are
scattered around on tables, mantelpieces and in
bookcases. Room guides, either the human kind
or the written brochure, satisfy my curiosity with
answers to most questions. But what makes
me lean over the ropes into a room for a closer
look are the carefully placed Chinese vase, open
leather-bound book, exquisite wall painting or
scientific instrument on the desk. How did the
previous owners acquire the piece, and why?
This past July I saw an exhibit at Burghley
House in Stamford, Lincolnshire, called
Collectibles and Curiosities, where I was able to
examine such exotics up close. I found out their
interesting history in connection to the owners
who had collected them. Even more special was
that these items were not normally on display in
the house.
William Cecil’s house
Burghley House was built by William Cecil,
1st
Lord Burghley, who was Secretary, then Lord
Treasurer, to Queen Elizabeth I. The building
period spread over 32 years in the mid-to-late
1500s, with Cecil himself as the house’s main
architect. What resulted was one of the largest
and finest houses of the Tudor era, with more
than 100 rooms, including many impressive State
Rooms where royalty stayed.
In 1605 Cecil’s elder son, Thomas, became
the 1st
Earl of Exeter and his descendents have
lived in Burghley House ever since. Subsequent
earls made further modifications to the house
and filled it with paintings, sculpture, tapestries
and furniture bought on Grand Tours to France
and Italy.
Exhibit curios
The special exhibition space at Burghley
House is called the Treasury. Although not large,
the room holds several freestanding glass cases
and one wall of enclosed glass shelving. In this
way, the curators can show unusual pieces from
the house’s massive collection. Collectibles and
Curiosities is the ninth such exhibit to be shown
in the gallery. An eclectic mix is on display; many
objects are scientific or mechanical in nature:
A model of a stationary steam engine, a pulley
machine, a crank version of a planetarium, a
pantograph, a tidal clock. Some of the objects
are small enough to put on a table or desk,
suggesting that the items were acquired by the
earls to amuse themselves and their guests.
Although a silver door lock is not that unusual
in a house such as Burghley, the one on display
in the exhibit has an interesting provenance, as it
originated from another grand place, Chatsworth
House, home to the Cavendish family. The lock
was made around 1665 and was fitted into a
room door belonging to Elizabeth Cavendish,
3rd
Countess of Devonshire. When the countess
died, her daughter Anne, who had married
the 5th
Earl of Exeter in 1670 and was living at
Burghley, inherited everything in her mother’s
five apartment rooms within Chatsworth. The
rooms were completely stripped bare (even the
wallpaper) and all the contents were shipped 80
miles to Burghley House in several carts. You
can see the lock in Online Exclusive.
The ostrich model from Augsburg, Germany,
is made from an ostrich egg and dates from
the mid-eighteenth century. Probably collected
by Brownlow, the 9th
Earl, to use as a table
Burghley House: England’s greatest Elizabethan house.The
hard limestone used to build the house was quarried in
Northamptonshire; its durability shows by the masons’ identifying
marks that still remain on some of the blocks.
All photos courtesy
of Burghley House
This painting of William Cecil, Lord Burghley, is
attributed to Marcus Gheeraerts the Younger
(1561-1636), and hangs in the Pagoda Room, so
named because of the 18th
-century, mother-of-
pearl pagoda models displayed. Cecil holds his
staff of office and wears the Knight of the Garter
robes.
The artist John Russell (1745-
1806) drew this representation of
the moon’s visible surface after
many telescopic observations
and using a micrometer.The c.
1800 selenograph was lent to
a Houston museum exhibition
a few years ago; experts were
impressed by its accuracy.
Although named for the famous Tudor queen, Queen Elizabeth’s
bedroom never housed her.There was smallpox within the house at
the time of her proposed visit in 1566.The state bed and chairs date
from the 17th
century.
For to see more of
Burghley House, visit
Online Exclusive.
Ostriches were seen as exotic
creatures in the West, and their
form and feathers were used
in English heraldry as symbols
of faith and contemplation.

2. Page 78 ◆ Antiques Journal Online Exclusive ◆ May 2014 www.antiquesjournal.com www.antiquesjournal.com May 2014 ◆ Antiques Journal Online Exclusive ◆ Page 79
More Collectibles and Curiosities at Burghley House
Patricia Hilton-Johnson
All photos courtesy of Burghley House
This past July I saw an exhibit at Burghley House in
Stamford, Lincolnshire, called Collectibles and Curiosities,
where I was able to examine such exotics up close. I found
out their interesting history in connection to the owners
who had collected them. Even more special was that these
items were not normally on display in the house.
Burghley House: England’s greatest Elizabethan house.
Burghley House archives still have the inventory listing the
contents of Elizabeth Cavendish’s bequest to her daughter.
This silver lock is one of the items. Depicted on the lock is a
bearded man holding a spear between two peacocks.
The ship’s workmanship by a French POW
is incredibly intricate; the rigging is made of
braided thread.
One of the most ornate rooms in the house, the Heaven Room
has mythological scenes painted on the walls and ceilings by
the Italian artist Antonio Verrio (1639-1707). He spent 10
years at Burghley, decorating other rooms, as well. The 1710
silver wine cooler weighs more than 230 pounds!