Lithodipyra or
Coade stone, was
ceramicA ceramic is an inorganic, nonmetallic solid prepared by the action of heat and subsequent cooling. Ceramic materials may have a crystalline or partly crystalline structure, or may be amorphous...
stonewareStoneware is a vitreous or semi-vitreous ceramic ware with a fine texture. Stoneware is made from clay that is then fired in a kiln, whether by an artisan to make homeware, or in an industrial kiln for mass-produced or specialty products...
that was often described as an
artificial stoneArtificial stone is a name for various kinds of synthetic stone products used from the 18th century onward. They have been used in building construction, civil engineering work, and industrial uses such as grindstones....
in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. It was used for moulding
NeoclassicalNeoclassical architecture was an architectural style produced by the neoclassical movement that began in the mid-18th century, manifested both in its details as a reaction against the Rococo style of naturalistic ornament, and in its architectural formulas as an outgrowth of some classicizing...
statues, architectural decorations and garden ornaments that were both of the highest quality and remain virtually weatherproof today. Produced by appointment to
George IIIGeorge III was King of Great Britain and King of Ireland from 25 October 1760 until the union of these two countries on 1 January 1801, after which he was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland until his death...
and the
Prince RegentGeorge IV was the King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and also of Hanover from the death of his father, George III, on 29 January 1820 until his own death ten years later...
, it features on St George’s Chapel, Windsor;
The Royal Pavillion, BrightonThe Royal Pavilion is a former royal residence located in Brighton, England. It was built in three campaigns, beginning in 1787, as a seaside retreat for George, Prince of Wales, from 1811 Prince Regent. It is often referred to as the Brighton Pavilion...
; Carlton House, London; the Royal Naval College, Greenwich, and a large quantity was used in the refurbishment of
Buckingham PalaceBuckingham Palace, in London, is the principal residence and office of the British monarch. Located in the City of Westminster, the palace is a setting for state occasions and royal hospitality...
in the 1820s.
Lithodipyra was first created around 1770 by Mrs
Eleanor CoadeEleanor Coade was a devout Baptist and remained unmarried until her death on 16 November 1821 in Camberwell Grove, Camberwell, London. Her obituary notice was published in The Gentleman's Magazine which declared her ‘the sole inventor and proprietor of an art which deserves considerable notice’...
who ran
Coade's Artificial Stone Manufactory,
Coade and Sealy, and
Coade in Lambeth, London, from 1769 until her death in 1821.
[There is some modern confusion between Eleanor and her mother (Eleanor, Elinore), as to which one ran the factory. This is primarily due to Miss Eleanor Coade's customary use of the title Mrs because this was a commonplace 'courtesy title' for any unmarried woman in business. However, analysis of the bills shows that Eleanor Coade (daughter) was fully in charge from 1771. (Alison Kelly, Oxford National Dictionary of Biography (ONDB))]
[Alison Kelly states on page 23 of Mrs Coade's Stone - "Since mother and daughter had the same name, confusion has reigned over the contribution of each of them to the manufactory. The widow Coade was of course Mrs, and it has been assumed that any mention of Mrs Coade must refer to her. Rupert Gunnis]Rupert Forbes Gunnis was an English collector and historian of British sculpture. He is best known for his Dictionary of British Sculptors 1660-1851, which "revolutionized the study of British sculpture, providing the foundation for all later studies on the subject".-Life:Born in Cadogan Square,...
, for instance, believed that the widow ran the factory until her death, in her late eighties, in 1796. What is not generally realised is that women in business, in Georgian times, had the courtesy title of Mrs, So Mrs in the Coade records, normally refers to Miss Coade. Bills were usually headed Eleanor Coade, but two, as early as 1771, for Hatfield PrioryHatfield Peverel Priory was a Benedictine priory in Essex, England, founded as a secular college before 1087 and converted into priory as a cell of St Albans by William Peverel ante 1100...
, Essex, and 1773, for work at Burton upon TrentBurton upon Trent, also known as Burton-on-Trent or simply Burton, is a town straddling the River Trent in the east of Staffordshire, England. Its associated adjective is "Burtonian"....
Town Hall, were made out to Miss Coade, showing that from the early days she was in charge. The only references which specifically concern the mother are the first two entries for the factory in the Lambeth Poor rateIn England and Wales, under the 1601 Elizabethan Poor Law the poor rate was a tax on property levied on the parish which was used to provide poor relief to the parish poor. The tax was collected by local magistrates or Overseers of the Poor, and later by Local Authorities....
books, when the rate was paid by Widow Coade."
[It appears that the modern identity confItusion dates from 1951 (or earlier) when Sir Howard Roberts and Walter H. Godfrey published the Survey of London: volume 23 - Lambeth: South Bank and Vauxhall, where inadequate research about the Coade family genealogy lead to both gaps and false conclusions. Typically this state of knowledge was then reiterated by Rupert Gunnis in his 1953 Dictionary of British Sculptors, 1660-1851. More recently the 'British History Online' website has given credence to the otherwise excellent Roberts and Godfrey Survey of London on their prestigious website (British History.ac.uk) and some other internet sites have repeated the claims.]
After which
Lithodipyra continued to be manufactured by her last business partner William Croggon until 1833.
History
In 1769 Mrs Coade bought Daniel Pincot’s struggling artificial stone business at Kings Arms Stairs, Narrow Wall,
LambethLambeth is a district of south London, England, and part of the London Borough of Lambeth. It is situated southeast of Charing Cross.-Toponymy:...
, a site now under the
Royal Festival HallThe Royal Festival Hall is a 2,900-seat concert, dance and talks venue within Southbank Centre in London. It is situated on the South Bank of the River Thames, not far from Hungerford Bridge. It is a Grade I listed building - the first post-war building to become so protected...
. This business developed into
Coade's Artificial Stone Manufactory with Eleanor in charge, such that within two years (1771) she sacked Pincot for 'representing himself as the chief proprietor'.
Mrs Coade did not invent 'artificial stone', various inferior quality precursors having been both patented and manufactured over the previous forty (or sixty) years, but she was probably responsible for perfecting both the clay recipe and the firing process. It is possible that Pincot's business was a continuation of that run nearby by Richard Holt, who had taken out two patents in 1722 for a kind of liquid metal or stone and another for making china without the use of clay, but there were many start-up 'artificial stone' businesses in the early 18th century of which only Mrs Coade's succeeded.
The company did well, and boasted an illustrious list of customers such as George III and members of the
EnglishThe English are a nation and ethnic group native to England, who speak English. The English identity is of early mediaeval origin, when they were known in Old English as the Anglecynn. England is now a country of the United Kingdom, and the majority of English people in England are British Citizens...
nobilityNobility is a social class which possesses more acknowledged privileges or eminence than members of most other classes in a society, membership therein typically being hereditary. The privileges associated with nobility may constitute substantial advantages over or relative to non-nobles, or may be...
. In 1799 Mrs Coade appointed her cousin John Sealy, already working as a modeller, as a partner in her business, (Her mother’s sister Mary’s son), which then traded as 'Coade and Sealy' until his death in 1813 when it reverted to just 'Coade'.
In 1799 she opened a show room
Coade’s Gallery on
Pedlar's Acre at the Surrey end of
Westminster Bridge RoadWestminster Bridge Road is a short, but busy, road in London, England. It runs on an east-west axis and passes through the boroughs of Lambeth and Southwark....
to display her products. (
Image of the entrance to Coade and Sealy's Gallery of Sculpture, Westminster Bridge, 1802)
In 1813 Mrs Coade took on William Croggan from Grampound in Cornwall, a sculptor and distant relative by marriage (second cousin once removed). He managed the factory until her death eight years later in 1821 whereby he bought the factory from the executors for ca. £4000. Croggan supplied a lot of Coade stone for
Buckingham PalaceBuckingham Palace, in London, is the principal residence and office of the British monarch. Located in the City of Westminster, the palace is a setting for state occasions and royal hospitality...
, however, he went bankrupt in 1833 and died two years later. Trade declined, and production came to an end in the early 1840s.
The material
Coade stone is a type of
stonewareStoneware is a vitreous or semi-vitreous ceramic ware with a fine texture. Stoneware is made from clay that is then fired in a kiln, whether by an artisan to make homeware, or in an industrial kiln for mass-produced or specialty products...
. Mrs Coade's own name for her products was
Lithodipyra, a name constructed from ancient Greek words meaning "stone-twice-fire" (
λίθος/
δίς/
πυρά), or "twice fired stone". Its colours varied from light grey to light yellow (or even
beigeBeige may be described as an off tan color or an extremely pale brown color.The term originates from beige cloth, a cotton fabric left undyed in its natural color...
) and its surface is best described as having a matte finish.
The ease with which the product could be moulded into complex shapes made it ideal for large
statueA statue is a sculpture in the round representing a person or persons, an animal, an idea or an event, normally full-length, as opposed to a bust, and at least close to life-size, or larger...
s,
sculptureSculpture is three-dimensional artwork created by shaping or combining hard materials—typically stone such as marble—or metal, glass, or wood. Softer materials can also be used, such as clay, textiles, plastics, polymers and softer metals...
s and sculptural façades. Moulds were often kept for many years, for repeated use. One-offs were clearly much more expensive to produce, as they had to carry the entire cost of creating the mould.
One of the more striking features of Coade stone is its incredible resistance to weathering, often faring better than most types of stone in London's harsh environment. Examples of Coade stonework have survived very well; prominent examples are listed below, having survived without apparent wear and tear for 150 years.
As a material, Coade stone was replaced by
Portland cementPortland cement is the most common type of cement in general use around the world because it is a basic ingredient of concrete, mortar, stucco and most non-specialty grout...
as a form of artificial stone and it appears to have been largely phased out by the 1840s.
Quality controversy
Although Coade stone's reputation for both weather resistance and manufacturing quality is virtually untarnished, there are three offline sources that describe
Rossi's-Life:John Charles Felix Rossi was born at Nottingham on 8 March 1762. His father, an Italian from Siena, was a quack doctor at Nottingham, and afterwards at Mountsorrell, Leicestershire. Rossi was sent to the studio of Giovanni Battista Locatelli, an Italian sculptor working in London...
statue of George IV erected in the
Royal Crescent, BrightonRoyal Crescent is a crescent-shaped terrace of houses on the seafront in Brighton, part of the English city of Brighton and Hove. Built in the late 18th and early 19th century as a speculative development on cliffs east of Brighton by a wealthy merchant, the 14 lodging houses formed the town's...
as
unable to withstand the weatheringWeathering is the breaking down of rocks, soils and minerals as well as artificial materials through contact with the Earth's atmosphere, biota and waters...
effects of sea-spray and strong wind: such that, by 1807 the fingers on the sculpture's left hand had been destroyed, and soon afterwards the whole right arm dropped off.
By contrast however
Fashionable Brighton, 1820-1860 by Antony Dale (online) describes similar damage as 'wore badly' but does not attribute 'broken fingers, nose, mantle and arm on an unloved statue' to weathering or poor quality Coade stone. In 1819, after considerable complaints, the relic was removed and its present state is undocumented.
The formula
Contrary to popular belief the
recipe for Coade stone still exists, and can be produced. Rather than being based on
cementIn the most general sense of the word, a cement is a binder, a substance that sets and hardens independently, and can bind other materials together. The word "cement" traces to the Romans, who used the term opus caementicium to describe masonry resembling modern concrete that was made from crushed...
(as
concreteConcrete is a composite construction material, composed of cement and other cementitious materials such as fly ash and slag cement, aggregate , water and chemical admixtures.The word concrete comes from the Latin word...
articles are), it is a
ceramicA ceramic is an inorganic, nonmetallic solid prepared by the action of heat and subsequent cooling. Ceramic materials may have a crystalline or partly crystalline structure, or may be amorphous...
material.
Its manufacture required special skills: extremely careful control and skill in kiln firing, over a period of days. This skill is even more remarkable when the potential variability of kiln temperatures at that time is considered. Mrs Coade's factory was the only really successful manufacturer.
The formula used was:
- 10% of grog
Grog, also known as firesand and chamotte, is a ceramic raw material. It has high percentage of silica and alumina. It can be produced by firing selected fire clays to high temperature before grinding and screening to specific particle sizes. It can also be produced from pitchers...
- 5-10% of crushed flint
- 5-10% fine quartz
Quartz is the second-most-abundant mineral in the Earth's continental crust, after feldspar. It is made up of a continuous framework of SiO4 silicon–oxygen tetrahedra, with each oxygen being shared between two tetrahedra, giving an overall formula SiO2. There are many different varieties of quartz,...
- 10% crushed soda lime glass.
- 60-70% Ball clay
Ball clays are kaolinitic sedimentary clays, that commonly consist of 20-80% kaolinite, 10-25% mica, 6-65% quartz. Localized seams in the same deposit have variations in composition, including the quantity of the major minerals, accessory minerals and carbonaceous materials such as lignite...
from DorsetDorset , is a county in South West England on the English Channel coast. The county town is Dorchester which is situated in the south. The Hampshire towns of Bournemouth and Christchurch joined the county with the reorganisation of local government in 1974...
and DevonDevon is a large county in southwestern England. The county is sometimes referred to as Devonshire, although the term is rarely used inside the county itself as the county has never been officially "shired", it often indicates a traditional or historical context.The county shares borders with...
.
This mixture was also referred to as "fortified clay" which was then inserted after kneading into a kiln which would fire the material at a temperature of 1,100°C for over four days.
Examples
- Mrs Coade's country home, Belmont House in Lyme Regis
Lyme Regis is a coastal town in West Dorset, England, situated 25 miles west of Dorchester and east of Exeter. The town lies in Lyme Bay, on the English Channel coast at the Dorset-Devon border...
, DorsetDorset , is a county in South West England on the English Channel coast. The county town is Dorchester which is situated in the south. The Hampshire towns of Bournemouth and Christchurch joined the county with the reorganisation of local government in 1974...
, displays examples of Coade stone on its façade.
- The pavement outside the Philpot Museum, Lyme Regis, decorated with the shapes of Ammonite
Ammonite, as a zoological or paleontological term, refers to any member of the Ammonoidea an extinct subclass within the Molluscan class Cephalopoda which are more closely related to living coleoids Ammonite, as a zoological or paleontological term, refers to any member of the Ammonoidea an extinct...
s set in its surface. The paving has proved durable enough to survive the wear of myriad footfalls over the years.
- The Lion at the south end of Westminster Bridge
Westminster Bridge is a road and foot traffic bridge over the River Thames between Westminster on the north side and Lambeth on the south side, in London, England....
in central London originally stood atop the old Red Lion Brewery, on the LambethLambeth is a district of south London, England, and part of the London Borough of Lambeth. It is situated southeast of Charing Cross.-Toponymy:...
bank of the River ThamesThe River Thames flows through southern England. It is the longest river entirely in England and the second longest in the United Kingdom. While it is best known because its lower reaches flow through central London, the river flows alongside several other towns and cities, including Oxford,...
. When the brewery was demolished in 1950, to make way for the South Bank Site of the 1951 Festival of BritainThe Festival of Britain was a national exhibition in Britain in the summer of 1951. It was organised by the government to give Britons a feeling of recovery in the aftermath of war and to promote good quality design in the rebuilding of British towns and cities. The Festival's centrepiece was in...
, the Lion was taken down and put on display at street level. When removed, the initials of the sculptor William F. Woodington and the date, 24 May 1837, were discovered under one of its paws. The fine details still remain clear after 170 years of London's corrosive atmosphere, caused by heavy use of coal throughout the 19th and first half of the 20th centuries. The red paint was removed to reveal the fine Coade stone surface to view. In 1966, the statue was moved from outside Waterloo station to its current location.
- Duff House Mausoleum, Wrack Woods, Banff, Aberdeenshire, Scotland. The second Earl of Fife built this mausoleum for his family tombs in 1791, possibly on the site of a Carmelite friary. Built before the Gothic Revival, this is an example of "Gothick" architecture. Typically of the Georgians the carvings, including the monument to the first Earl, are in ceramic Coade stone.
- Nelson's Memorial at Burnham Thorpe
Burnham Thorpe is a small village and civil parish on the River Burn and near the coast of Norfolk in the United Kingdom. It is famous for being the birthplace of Vice Admiral Horatio Nelson, victor at the Battle of Trafalgar and one of Britain's greatest heroes...
- Britannia Monument
The Britannia Monument is a commemorative column or tower built in memorial to Admiral Horatio Nelson, situated on the Denes, Great Yarmouth in the county of Norfolk, England....
in Great YarmouthGreat Yarmouth, often known to locals as Yarmouth, is a coastal town in Norfolk, England. It is at the mouth of the River Yare, east of Norwich.It has been a seaside resort since 1760, and is the gateway from the Norfolk Broads to the sea...
- Nelson's Pediment
A pediment is a classical architectural element consisting of the triangular section found above the horizontal structure , typically supported by columns. The gable end of the pediment is surrounded by the cornice moulding...
on the Old Royal Naval College, Greenwich, regarded by the Coade workers as the finest of all their work.
- Twinings
Twinings is a marketer of tea based in Andover, Hampshire, England.- History :The founder of Twinings, Thomas Twining, opened the first known tea room, at 216 Strand, London, in 1706, which is still operating today. The firm's logo, created in 1787, is one of the world's oldest in continuous use...
' first ever (and still operating) shop's frontispiece, in the Strand, LondonStrand is a street in the City of Westminster, London, England. The street is just over three-quarters of a mile long. It currently starts at Trafalgar Square and runs east to join Fleet Street at Temple Bar, which marks the boundary of the City of London at this point, though its historical length...
opposite the Royal Courts of JusticeThe Royal Courts of Justice, commonly called the Law Courts, is the building in London which houses the Court of Appeal of England and Wales and the High Court of Justice of England and Wales...
, rediscovered under soot after a century.
- Schomberg House
Schomberg House is a mansion on the south side of Pall Mall in central London which has a colourful history. Only the street facade survives today. It was built for Meinhardt Schomberg, 3rd Duke of Schomberg, a Huguenot general in the service of the British crown...
on Pall Mall, LondonPall Mall is a street in the City of Westminster, London, and parallel to The Mall, from St. James's Street across Waterloo Place to the Haymarket; while Pall Mall East continues into Trafalgar Square. The street is a major thoroughfare in the St James's area of London, and a section of the...
- Captain Bligh's tomb (in the churchyard of St Mary's Lambeth)
- Lord Hill's Column
Lord Hill's Column, outside the Shirehall , is one of the most notable landmarks of the town of Shrewsbury, Shropshire, England. The tallest Doric column in England, standing at 133 feet 6 inches , it commemorates Rowland Hill, 1st Viscount Hill, with a standing on the top of the column...
, ShrewsburyShrewsbury is the county town of Shropshire, in the West Midlands region of England. Lying on the River Severn, it is a civil parish home to some 70,000 inhabitants, and is the primary settlement and headquarters of Shropshire Council...
, ShropshireShropshire is a county in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes, the county is a NUTS 3 region and is one of four counties or unitary districts that comprise the "Shropshire and Staffordshire" NUTS 2 region. It borders Wales to the west...
- Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro , commonly referred to simply as Rio, is the capital city of the State of Rio de Janeiro, the second largest city of Brazil, and the third largest metropolitan area and agglomeration in South America, boasting approximately 6.3 million people within the city proper, making it the 6th...
's zoo entrance
- St Mary's Church gate, Tremadog
Tremadog is a village on the outskirts of Porthmadog, in Gwynedd, north west Wales. It was a planned settlement, founded by William Madocks, who bought the land in 1798...
, Gwynedd, Wales.
- Richmond upon Thames
Richmond is a town in southwest London, England and is part of the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames. It is located west-southwest of Charing Cross....
. Two examples of the River GodRiver God is a novel by author Wilbur Smith. It tells the story of the talented eunuch slave Taita, his life in Egypt, the flight of Taita along with the Egyptian populace from the Hyksos invasion, and their eventual return. The novel can be grouped together with Wilbur Smith's other books on...
, one outside Ham House, the other in Terrace Gardens.
- Buckingham Palace
Buckingham Palace, in London, is the principal residence and office of the British monarch. Located in the City of Westminster, the palace is a setting for state occasions and royal hospitality...
(in a section not open to the public)
- Castle Howard
Castle Howard is a stately home in North Yorkshire, England, north of York. One of the grandest private residences in Britain, most of it was built between 1699 and 1712 for the 3rd Earl of Carlisle, to a design by Sir John Vanbrugh...
- A couple of large ornate urns in the Italian Garden at Chiswick House
Chiswick House is a Palladian villa in Burlington Lane, Chiswick, in the London Borough of Hounslow in England. Set in , the house was completed in 1729 during the reign of George II and designed by Lord Burlington. William Kent , who took a leading role in designing the gardens, created one of the...
, London
- Royal Pavilion
The Royal Pavilion is a former royal residence located in Brighton, England. It was built in three campaigns, beginning in 1787, as a seaside retreat for George, Prince of Wales, from 1811 Prince Regent. It is often referred to as the Brighton Pavilion...
in Brighton
- Imperial War Museum
Imperial War Museum is a British national museum organisation with branches at five locations in England, three of which are in London. The museum was founded during the First World War in 1917 and intended as a record of the war effort and sacrifice of Britain and her Empire...
(sculptural reliefs above the entrance)
- The Buttermarket in Chichester
Chichester is a cathedral city in West Sussex, within the historic County of Sussex, South-East England. It has a long history as a settlement; its Roman past and its subsequent importance in Anglo-Saxon times are only its beginnings...
, which was designed by John NashJohn Nash was a British architect responsible for much of the layout of Regency London.-Biography:Born in Lambeth, London, the son of a Welsh millwright, Nash trained with the architect Sir Robert Taylor. He established his own practice in 1777, but his career was initially unsuccessful and...
(coat of arms engraved with "Coade & Sealey 1808")
According to
BBCThe British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
research, over 650 pieces are still in existence worldwide.
External links
Gallery of images.
- Plate 48: A view of Westminster Bridge, 1791. shows King's Arms Stairs in the foreground (possibly) with a sign advertising Coade's factory.
- COADE'S ARTIFICIAL STONE MANUFACTORY, circa 1800
- Plate 38a: Coade's Artificial Stone Manufactory 1801
- Plate 39a: The entrance to Coade and Sealy's Gallery of Sculpture, Westminster Bridge, 1802
- Coade stone factory, Narrow Wall, Lambeth, London, c1800.
- http://onelondonone.blogspot.com/2011/02/guest-blogger-judith-laik-carves-coade.htmlCoade and Sealey's Artificial Stone Factory, by Thomas Hosmer Shepherd
Thomas Hosmer Shepherd was a watercolor artist well known for his architectural works. Brother of topographical artist George "Sidney" Shepherd, Thomas was employed to illustrate architecture in London, and later Edinburgh, Bath and Bristol...
]