Regency or Georgian or Adams or ???

[atlasfever]

Background: Modern added room in Georgian flat, circa 1790-1805.
Question: Is there an online site that anyone has used that classifies the type of cornice or other plasterwork designs with the timeperiods?

I have the one modern room that I do want to add a cornice to, and I want it to be consistent with the period of the build. I already discussed the merits of putting it in within another PPUK post, and decided I would like to do it. So, I am just researching what could be the design. There is a pine swag/drop fireplace in my flat, which I believe is an Adams design. Though, I think he died around 1765, though maybe his designs carried on in popularity for a bit -- I believe regency starts in around 1810. Anyway, not to over analyze -- I just want to figure out what types of cornice designs are associated with timeperiods.

Thanks -- (oh, and i don't like referring to plaster company sites as it seems that they sometimes just make up names -- I'm sure there's a definitive source). I plan on going to the Georgian Society's office in Fitzroy Square this week, perhaps they will have the answer. Also hope I can just pop in and use a reference book

 

[plasticpigeon]

I can't help, but I'm looking forward to seeing pictures of your flat, as it sounds like you are putting in a great deal of effort to get it right.

 

[DJH]

They may well have copies of William Millar's book 'Plastering Plain and Decorative', 'The Art of the Plasterer' by George P Bankart and Lawrence Weaver published a folio of plates about Modern Plasterwork. Historic Scotland have also published booklets about the conservation of plasterwork and Geoffrey Beard has several published one of which, about plasterwork in Somerset, I have.

It's highly probable that Adams styles were continued well after his death as the companies he used would have still had the moulds which were made to produce their designs. Copies would have been made by others I'm sure, although a lot of later reproductions lack the delicacy of modeling that was a hallmark of Adams designs.

Doug

 

[JoceAndChris]

The Adam brothers died in the 1790s, an Adam design would be highly appropriate for your flat. A later Regency one would also work, but they're plainer - have a look at the Stevensons of Norwich website. The odd palmette but very clean lines.

My house has very very plain original cornice from 1810, but what's nice about it is it's a scaled down version of the greater houses. An interesting idea to enliven it with an Adam frieze just below, but the scale of this at 50 cm high would be overkill for these small delicate rooms here. Might look nice in your flat though.

https://www.originalfeatures.co.uk/online-shop/adam-frieze-lincrusta-rd1955-beige.html

 

[JoceAndChris]

By the way, please don't say "Adams style", it's wrong. There were three brothers and there was no "s" on their surname. You can say "the Adam style" or "the style of the brothers Adam".

You don't say "that's a Monet's painting" so why do people say "that's an Adam's fireplace"? I expect the pluralisation arose because there were three of them so the Adams' style is acceptable grammatically. But notice it is called an Adam frieze, not an Adams frieze.

Sorry to be pedantic but we are sticklers for this kind of thing.

 

[Svenedin]

My house is far more modern than yours (Edwardian) but it has a lot of original cornice. Upstairs, the cornice is all exactly the same in all the rooms. Downstairs, there are different designs in different rooms. In one of the bedrooms the cornice was entirely missing. We suspect this was due to damage from either a bomb in WW2 (my area was also bombed by Zeppelin in WW1 as well) or a serious leak in the roof that destroyed the ceiling. Marks on the plaster of the walls confirmed that cornice had been there originally. I engaged a plasterer who specialises in cornice and he made an exact copy of the cornice in the other bedrooms and fitted this in the room where the cornice was missing. I am very pleased with the result. Perhaps you could have your existing cornice copied in this way (assuming you have cornice in other rooms)?

 

[Svenedin]

Pictures of Edwardian cornice showing how this can be exactly copied.

Original cornice



Replacement cornice made from a template taken from the old, produced and fitted by a cornice specialist.