Mosaic flooring in the saloon of the old Conservative Club, St James's Street, London SW1. Sydney Smirke and George Basevi, 1843-45; mosaic by John Marriott Blashfield. Photograph and text by Jacqueline Banerjee.
John Marriott Blashfield was an important manufacturer of architectural ceramics, one of those who pioneered the making of encaustic tiles from the 1840s. He had an architectural terracotta works in London until 1859, when he moved to Stamford in Lincolnshire "to be nearer the clay beds" (Pearson). Blashfield supplied terracotta for the Frogmore Mausoleum at Windsor, the last resting place of both Prince Albert and Queen Victoria. Other examples of his work can be found at Dulwich College in London, and Castle Ashby in Northamptonshire, where alterations were carried out in the nineteenth century by Sir Digby Wyatt and then E. W. Godwin. During the restoration of the saloon at the Conservative Club (note its initials here) the damaged mosaic floor had to be "fully restored, off-site, with new tesserae made to match Blashfield's, following his own method" (Watkin).
Other Views
- The old Conservative Club, London
- Detail of frieze on the façade
- Entrance
- Interior of the saloon
- Decor of the saloon, showing roundel of Hogarth
- Corinthian columns and frieze by an interior door (detail)
- Looking up at the gallery or upper storey of the saloon
- Looking up towards the dome
- Drawing-room ceiling
Sources
Pearson, Lyn. "Lincolnshire" (an article about tile-makers). Viewed 9 October 2008.
Watkin, David. "Cultured Club." bd: The Architects' Website. Viewed 9 October 2008.
Last modified 9 October 2008