A PRECIOUS painting has been painstakingly removed from the wall of a stately home and taken to a special exhibition.
One of the most distinctive paintings in the Tabley House Collection is now on loan to the Fitzwilliam Museum in Cambridge until January 2024.
The portrait of John, 1st Lord Byron by William Dobson, normally has pride of place in this Knutsford house, hanging over the fireplace in the drawing room.
READ > Parking fines issued for 'unnecessary obstruction' at Pickmere Lake
The painting is to be part of an exhibition entitled ‘Black Atlantic, Power, People and Resistance’.
It will be on display alongside other works coming from museums in Paris, Amsterdam and Stockholm, as well as other UK collections including from the University of Cambridge.
Clare Pye, chairman of Tabley House Collection Trust, said: “It is quite rare for Tabley to loan one of its paintings.
“We made sure it was very carefully and expertly taken down and packed up ready for its journey to Cambridge.
“Visitors to Tabley shouldn’t worry they are going to miss out though, we couldn’t just leave an empty space on the wall where the Dobson had been.
“Fortunately we have been able to negotiate a reciprocal loan from the Fitzwilliam Museum, a Van Dyck painting!”
The portrait of William Laud by Van Dyck was painted in the mid-1630s about 10 years before the Dobson, and will provide something new for visitors to see.
William Laud was appointed Archbishop of Canterbury in 1633, but became unpopular because he wanted to make changes to the way the Church of England was organised at the time.
When the English Civil War broke out in 1642, Parliamentarians imprisoned him in the Tower of London and executed him three years later.
Clare said: “Of the two men featured in the paintings, Lord Byron fared a little better. “During the English Civil War Lord Byron was the Royalist Commander in Cheshire and the Governor of Chester.
“When King Charles I was defeated in 1645, Byron escaped and lived in exile in Paris where he died in 1652 aged 53.”
Visitors can see the Van Dyck painting and the State Rooms on Thursday to Sunday, from 1pm to 5pm until the end of October.
Admission is £7 for adults and £3 for children or students with a card.
Tabley House is one of the finest 18th century Palladian style houses in Cheshire, built for the Leicester family by John Carr in 1767.
It is a Grade 1 listed building and houses a famous collection by Gillow, Chippendale and Bullock and paintings by JMW Turner, Lawrence, Dobson, Devis and others.
Tabley House Collection Trust manages the museum and gallery on behalf of the University of Manchester.
For those wishing to see the Dobson painting, it will be safely back in the drawing room at Tabley for the start of the 2024 season.
Tabley House is also available for wedding and civil partnership ceremonies and corporate hire.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here