Silver wine cooler, from a set of four, by Aaron Lestourgeon, London, 1776. Accepted by HM Government in lieu of inheritance tax and allocated to the National Trust for display at Knole, 2012. ©National Trust Collections
Wine and milk don’t really mix. Nevertheless, the design of these silver wine coolers, from a set of four at Knole, was inspired by the appearance of milk pails. They were made by Aaron Lestourgeon in 1776, at a time when there was an increasing taste for idealised country life.
The Dairy at Uppark, West Sussex, c. 1800 or 1810. ©National Trust Images/Nadia Mackenzie
As Meredith Martin has described in here recent book Dairy Queens, this period saw the building of model farms and pleasure dairies, such as the Hameau de la Reine at Versailles and the Bergerie Royale at Rambouillet, where aristocratic ladies could channel their inner milkmaid.
One of a set of four silver wine coolers by Aaron Lestourgeon, London, 1776, with a gilt liner by Paul Storr, 1813. Accepted by HM Government in lieu of inheritance tax and allocated to the National Trust for display at Knole, 2012. ©National Trust Collections
There was a serious philosophical and moral undertone to this, as both milk and country life in general were praised as healthy, wholesome and socially regenerative.
The Dairy at Berrington Hall, Shropshire, by Henry Holland, 1780s. ©National Trust Images/Nadia Mackenzie
Perhaps it is an indication of the pervasiveness of that trend that even a relatively hedonistic object like a wine cooler was given ‘dairy’ styling.
The Dairy at Ham House, Surrey, c. 1800. ©National Trust Images/Andreas von Einsiedel.
This set of wine coolers, together with another set of four, was recently accepted by the Government in lieu of inheritance tax and allocated to the National Trust for display at Knole.
January 29, 2013 at 11:30 |
Milk + wine = syllabub if you go about it in the right way. I doubt if these pails are making that sort of connection though.
January 29, 2013 at 11:41 |
Susan, I stand corrected
Perhaps that strengthened the connection between pails and wine coolers in the eyes of late 18th century vinophiles?
January 30, 2013 at 01:15 |
May I say I have sworn to replicate that dairy table from the first day I saw it. It’s just perfect as are those fine wine buckets. What was the 18th c thing with dairies and farms and the rich –– the Marie Antoinette milkmaid syndrome?
January 30, 2013 at 12:48 |
Deana, great to hear you find that dairy table inspiring. Yes that style seemed to combine great frivolity with great seriousness – all ultimately Jean-Jacques Rousseau’s fault