Philippa Jane Glanville, OBE, FSA (born 16 August 1943), formerly chief curator of the metal, silver and jewellery department of the
Victoria and Albert Museum
The Victoria and Albert Museum (often abbreviated as the V&A) in London is the world's largest museum of applied arts, decorative arts and design, housing a permanent collection of over 2.27 million objects. It was founded in 1852 and nam ...
, is an English art historian who is an authority on silver and the history of dining.
Early life
The daughter of the Rev. Wilfred Henry Fox-Robinson and Jane Mary Home, she was educated at
Talbot Heath School
Talbot Heath School is a selective, private day and boarding School for girls aged 3–18 located in Talbot Woods, Bournemouth, Dorset, England. The school was established in 1886 and was previously known as Bournemouth High School for Girls.
...
,
Bournemouth
Bournemouth () is a coastal resort town in the Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole council area of Dorset, England. At the 2011 census, the town had a population of 183,491, making it the largest town in Dorset. It is situated on the Southern ...
, before going up to
Girton College, Cambridge
Girton College is one of the 31 constituent colleges of the University of Cambridge. The college was established in 1869 by Emily Davies and Barbara Bodichon as the first women's college in Cambridge. In 1948, it was granted full college status ...
, where she read History, and taking a degree in Archives Administration at
University College, London
, mottoeng = Let all come who by merit deserve the most reward
, established =
, type = Public research university
, endowment = £143 million (2020)
, budget = Â ...
. While at Cambridge she took part in the archaeological excavations at Winchester conducted by
Martin Biddle
Martin Biddle, (born 4 June 1937) is a British archaeologist and academic. He is an emeritus fellow of Hertford College, Oxford. His work was important in the development of medieval and post-medieval archaeology in Great Britain.
Early life ...
, later Professor of Medieval Archaeology at Oxford.
Career
After graduating, she joined the London Museum (later the
Museum of London
The Museum of London is a museum in London, covering the history of the UK's capital city from prehistoric to modern times. It was formed in 1976 by amalgamating collections previously held by the City Corporation at the Guildhall, London, Gui ...
) as curator in the Tudor and Stuart department, from 1966 to 1972, and as head of department from 1972 to 1980. Her interest in the history of food was stimulated in 1968 by curating a London Museum exhibition on Tudor food celebrating 400 years of ownership of
Loseley Park
Loseley Park is a large Tudor manor house with later additions and modifications south-west of Guildford, Surrey, England, in Artington close to the hamlet of Littleton. The estate was acquired by the direct ancestors of the current owners, the ...
, Surrey by the More-Molyneux family. In 1980 she moved to the
Victoria and Albert Museum
The Victoria and Albert Museum (often abbreviated as the V&A) in London is the world's largest museum of applied arts, decorative arts and design, housing a permanent collection of over 2.27 million objects. It was founded in 1852 and nam ...
as an assistant in the metalwork department, of which she was chief curator between 1996 and 1999. She was encouraged by the director,
Sir Roy Strong
Sir Roy Colin Strong, (born 23 August 1935) is an English art historian, museum curator, writer, broadcaster and landscape designer. He has served as director of both the National Portrait Gallery and the Victoria and Albert Museum in London. ...
, to study the social history of silver and the hierarchy of status. This led her increasingly to examine the uses of silver at the table. Among her accomplishments at the V&A, she redisplayed the museum's silver collection to reveal how historic meals were served. On leaving she was appointed Academic Director at
Waddesdon Manor
Waddesdon Manor is a country house in the village of Waddesdon, in Buckinghamshire, England. Owned by National Trust and managed by the Rothschild Foundation, it is one of the National Trust's most visited properties, with over 463,000 visitors i ...
, the former Rothschild seat in Buckinghamshire, where she remained until 2003. There, she created exhibitions that placed objects in situ, sometimes with elaborate recreations of the foods served in them by the historian Ivan Day. These included a display in the dining-room intended to show how Baron Rothschild might have dined in the 19th century, when he resided there; as well as an exhibition showing the use of French 18th-century
porcelain
Porcelain () is a ceramic material made by heating substances, generally including materials such as kaolinite, in a kiln to temperatures between . The strength and translucence of porcelain, relative to other types of pottery, arises mainl ...
, one of the strengths of the collection.
Among the exhibitions she has curated or worked on are ''A King's Feast The Goldsmith's Art and Royal Banqueting in the 18th Century, (the Danish Queen's French service)'' at
Kensington Palace
Kensington Palace is a royal residence set in Kensington Gardens, in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea in London, England. It has been a residence of the British royal family since the 17th century, and is currently the official L ...
in 1991, ''
Versailles
The Palace of Versailles ( ; french: Château de Versailles ) is a former royal residence built by King Louis XIV located in Versailles, about west of Paris, France. The palace is owned by the French Republic and since 1995 has been managed, u ...
et les Tables Royales en Europe'', 1993, ''Feeding Desire; design and the tools of the table 1500-2005'', for the
Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum
Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum is a design museum housed within the Andrew Carnegie Mansion in Manhattan, New York City, along the Upper East Side's Museum Mile. It is one of 19 museums that fall under the wing of the Smithsonian Inst ...
, New York in 2005 and ''Drink: A History 1695-1920'', for the
National Archives in 2007.
She served on the Council for the Care of Churches (now the Church Buildings Council), 1997-2001, and since 1998 has served on the
Westminster Abbey
Westminster Abbey, formally titled the Collegiate Church of Saint Peter at Westminster, is an historic, mainly Gothic church in the City of Westminster, London, England, just to the west of the Palace of Westminster. It is one of the United ...
Fabric Committee. She also serves as a vice-president of the
National Association of Decorative and Fine Arts Societies
The National Association of Decorative and Fine Arts Societies (NADFAS), operating under the name The Arts Society, is a national organisation in the United Kingdom promoting education in the arts and the preservation of artistic heritage.
It was ...
(NADFAS). She is an assistant fellow of
Warwick University
, mottoeng = Mind moves matter
, established =
, type = Public research university
, endowment = £7.0 million (2021)
, budget = £698.2 million (2020â ...
, a liveryman of the
Goldsmiths' Company
The Worshipful Company of Goldsmiths, commonly known as the Goldsmiths' Company and formally titled The Wardens and Commonalty of the Mystery of Goldsmiths of the City of London, is one of the Great Twelve Livery Companies of the City of Londo ...
and a founder liveryman of the
Company of Arts Scholars.
She was elected
Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries
A fellow is a concept whose exact meaning depends on context.
In learned or professional societies, it refers to a privileged member who is specially elected in recognition of their work and achievements.
Within the context of higher education ...
in 1968 and appointed an
Officer of the Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations,
and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...
(OBE) in 2015.
Personal life
She married Gordon Glanville in 1968. They have two sons and live in Richmond, Surrey.
Books
This bibliography lists books of which Philippa Glanville is the author or editor, or to which she has been a contributor.
* ''London in Maps'' (
Yale University Press
Yale University Press is the university press of Yale University. It was founded in 1908 by George Parmly Day, and became an official department of Yale University in 1961, but it remains financially and operationally autonomous.
, Yale Universi ...
, 1982) (). Paperback edition, 1985 ()
* ''Silver in Tudor and Early Stuart England'' (V&A Publications, 1986) ()
* ''Silver in England'' (Unwin Hyman, 1987,
Routledge
Routledge () is a British multinational publisher. It was founded in 1836 by George Routledge, and specialises in providing academic books, journals and online resources in the fields of the humanities, behavioural science, education, law, and ...
edition, 2005) ()
* ''The Glory of the Goldsmith: Magnificent Gold and Silver from the Al Tajir Collection''
Charles Truman (preface by Philippa Glanville) (Christie, Manson & Woods, 1989) ( )
* ''Women Silversmiths'' (with Jennifer Faulds Goldsborough) (
National Museum of Women in the Arts
The National Museum of Women in the Arts (NMWA), located in Washington, D.C., is "the first museum in the world solely dedicated" to championing women through the arts. NMWA was incorporated in 1981 by Wallace and Wilhelmina Holladay. Since openin ...
, 1990) ()
* ''Versailles et les tables royales en Europe: XVIIème-XIXème siècles'' (contrib. Philippa Glanville) (Réunion des Musées Nationaux, 1993) ()
* ''Quand Versailles était meublé d'argent'' ed. Catherine Arminjon (contrib. Philippa Glanville) (Réunion des Musées Nationaux, 1997) ()
* ''The Albert Collection: Five Hundred Years of British and European Silver'' Robin Butler (ed. Philippa Glanville) (Broadway Publishing, 1999) ()
* ''Elegant Eating'' (editor and contributor) (V&A Publications, 2002) ()
* ''East Anglian Silver'' ed. Christopher Hartop (contrib. Philippa Glanville) (
John Adamson, 2004) ()
* ''Royal Goldsmiths: The Art of
Rundell & Bridge
Rundell & Bridge were a London firm of jewellers and goldsmiths formed by Philip Rundell (1746–1827) and John Bridge (baptized 1755–1834).
History
When Edmond Walter Rundell, nephew of Philip Rundell, was admitted as a partner in 1804, the ...
1797-1843'' ed. Christopher Hartop (contrib. Philippa Glanville) (
John Adamson, 2005) ( )
* ''Feeding Desire: Design and the Tools of the Table, 1500-2005'' (contrib. Philippa Glanville) (
Assouline
Assouline Publishing is a book publisher and luxury lifestyle company founded in 1994 by Prosper and Martine Assouline. It has published more than 1,700 titles on subjects including architecture, art, design, fashion, gastronomy, lifestyle, phot ...
, 2006) (; paperback )
* ''Britannia and Muscovy: English Silver at the Court of the Tsars'' ed. Natalya Abramova and Olga Dmitrieva (contrib. Philippa Glanville) (
Yale University Press
Yale University Press is the university press of Yale University. It was founded in 1908 by George Parmly Day, and became an official department of Yale University in 1961, but it remains financially and operationally autonomous.
, Yale Universi ...
, 2007) ()
* ''The Art of Drinking'' (ed. Philippa Glanville and Sophie Lee) (V&A Publications, 2007) ()
* ''A Noble Feast: English Silver from the Jerome and Rita Gans Collection at the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts'' Christopher Hartop (contrib. Philippa Glanville) (
Virginia Museum of Fine Arts
The Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, or VMFA, is an art museum in Richmond, Virginia, United States, which opened in 1936. The museum is owned and operated by the Commonwealth of Virginia. Private donations, endowments, and funds are used for the su ...
in association with
John Adamson, 2007) ()
* ''Dinner with a Duke: Decoding Food and Drink at Welbeck Abbey 1695-1914'' (
Harley Foundation, 2010) (ASIN B009WPGQF4)
* ''Gold: Power and Allure'' ed. Helen Clifford (contrib. Philippa Glanville) (Paul Holberton, 2012) ()
* ''The Oxford Companion to Sugar and Sweets'' (contrib. Philippa Glanville) (
OUP
Oxford University Press (OUP) is the university press of the University of Oxford. It is the largest university press in the world, and its printing history dates back to the 1480s. Having been officially granted the legal right to print books ...
, 2015) ()
Other publications
Numerous articles in: ''Antiquaries' Journal''; ''Apollo''; ''Burlington Magazine''; ''Country Life''; ''NADFAS Magazine''; ''Silver Studies'' (formerly the ''Silver Society Journal''); ''World of Interiors'', &c.
References
External links
The Worshipful Company of Arts Scholars Past Master
{{DEFAULTSORT:Glanville, Philippa
Living people
1943 births
People educated at Talbot Heath School
Alumni of Girton College, Cambridge
Alumni of University College London
Fellows of the Society of Antiquaries of London
Officers of the Order of the British Empire
English curators
British women curators
English art historians
People associated with the Victoria and Albert Museum
British women historians
Women art historians