Marble statutes once regarding as being of great beautiful standing in Rome have been neglected, ‘improved’, and now stand in a museum in Oxford in all their neglected glory.

‘The sculptor’s column, and the breathing bust, Stand here, deliver’d from oblivion’s dust’

From A Poem on the Pomfret Statues, written to commemorate the Countess Of Pomfret’s gift to the University of Oxford in 1755.

Athena, Minerva, Dionisysis – these Arundel Marbles are Roman in origin and date from 50BC when they were built to adorn buildings in Roman and were regarded as being of great beauty.  They are now on display at the Ashmolean Museum in Oxford having been gifted by the Countess Of Pomfret following the death of her husband the 2nd Earl of Arundel who had collected them during the early part of the 1700s.

Part of the collection were used to decorate a country house in Northamptonshire,  others were used to decorate a pleasure garden in Vauxhall, London known as Cupid’s Garden.

During the 1600s and 1700s many of the marbles were ‘improved’ with restorations in particular by Giovanni Guelti.  These ‘improvements’ were removed when they arrived at the Ashmolean, and the marbles are now displayed with limbs missing but are still beautiful almost 2,000 years later.

 

 

 

 

When photographing in a Museum or other busy public space it is really important to be aware of other members of the public and photograph not only considerately but also with great care and patience.  Do not walk backwards to frame a shot unless you have checked that the way is clear.  Always be aware of your surroundings and other people present.