''The Ruins of Holyrood Chapel'' is an oil on canvas painting of the

Holyrood Abbey Holyrood Abbey is a ruined abbey of the Canons Regular in Edinburgh, Scotland. The abbey was founded in 1128 by David I of Scotland. During the 15th century, the abbey guesthouse was developed into a royal residence, and after the Scottish Ref ...

completed around 1824 by the French artist

Louis Daguerre Louis-Jacques-Mandé Daguerre ( , ; 18 November 1787 – 10 July 1851) was a French artist and photographer, recognized for his invention of the eponymous daguerreotype process of photography. He became known as one of the fathers of photog ...

. The painting measures , and is exhibited at the

Walker Art Gallery The Walker Art Gallery is an art gallery in Liverpool, which houses one of the largest art collections in England outside London. It is part of the National Museums Liverpool group. History of the Gallery The Walker Art Gallery's collection ...

Liverpool Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a popul ...

, England. The museum acquired it in 1864.

Background

Holyrood Abbey is located next to the

Palace of Holyroodhouse The Palace of Holyroodhouse ( or ), commonly referred to as Holyrood Palace or Holyroodhouse, is the official residence of the British monarch in Scotland. Located at the bottom of the Royal Mile in Edinburgh, at the opposite end to Edinburgh ...

, built by

James IV of Scotland James IV (17 March 1473 – 9 September 1513) was King of Scotland from 11 June 1488 until his death at the Battle of Flodden in 1513. He inherited the throne at the age of fifteen on the death of his father, James III, at the Battle of Sauchi ...

in 1501, which became the official residence of the

Monarch of the United Kingdom The monarchy of the United Kingdom, commonly referred to as the British monarchy, is the constitutional monarchy, constitutional form of government by which a hereditary monarchy, hereditary sovereign reigns as the head of state of the United ...

situated in

Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...

, Scotland. The Abbey started operation in 1128, with various rounds of destruction and reconstruction over the centuries. It has been used as the

Parliament of Scotland The Parliament of Scotland ( sco, Pairlament o Scotland; gd, Pàrlamaid na h-Alba) was the legislature of the Kingdom of Scotland from the 13th century until 1707. The parliament evolved during the early 13th century from the king's council o ...

, the site of

coronation A coronation is the act of placement or bestowal of a coronation crown, crown upon a monarch's head. The term also generally refers not only to the physical crowning but to the whole ceremony wherein the act of crowning occurs, along with the ...

royal weddings Royal may refer to: People * Royal (name), a list of people with either the surname or given name * A member of a royal family Places United States * Royal, Arkansas, an unincorporated community * Royal, Illinois, a village * Royal, Iowa, a cit ...

, and the location of royal tombs.Gallagher, p.1084 During a storm in 1768 the roof collapsed, leaving the abbey as it currently stands. Daguerre, who worked at the time as a

stage designer Scenic design (also known as scenography, stage design, or set design) is the creation of theatrical, as well as film or television scenery. Scenic designers come from a variety of artistic backgrounds, but in recent years, are mostly trained ...

for the theatre, was enamored by dioramas and the contrast of light and shadow. Although it is not known whether Daguerre visited the abbey in person, he created and exhibited a

diorama A diorama is a replica of a scene, typically a three-dimensional full-size or miniature model, sometimes enclosed in a glass showcase for a museum. Dioramas are often built by hobbyists as part of related hobbies such as military vehicle mode ...

of Holyrood Abbey (along with many other dioramas) in Paris around 1824. The diorama measured wide. When lit from behind, a small figure could be seen inside the chapel. Real-life ruins inspired Daguerre, and he used the Holyrood Abbey ruins as a source of inspiration for two paintings, both with the same title. The first painting had the same figure from the diorama visiting the grave of her friend. Daguerre was able to study the way the light hit the interior of the ruins by emulating the scenario with his diorama.

Description

The painting depicts the ruins of Holyrood Abbey during a moonlit scene, which was a popular attraction (in real life) for visitors to the abbey at the time. The perspective and scale of the ruins was altered slightly to fit the walls onto the canvas.

In Literature

Letitia Elizabeth Landon Letitia Elizabeth Landon (14 August 1802 – 15 October 1838) was an English poet and novelist, better known by her initials L.E.L. The writings of Landon are transitional between Romanticism and the Victorian Age. Her first major breakthrough ...

's poem ''Holyrood'' was written in response to a visit to the diorama in Regent's Park, London, in 1825.

Mendelssohn

In 1829, a young Felix Mendelssohn embarked on a concert tour which brought him to London. He then travelled north to tour Scotland, and visited Hollyrood Chapel, where he found the inspiration for his Symphony No. 3 in A Minor, Op. 56 "Scottish".

References

;Bibliography * *Gallagher, Dennis
"Holyrood Abbey: the disappearance of a monastery"
in the ''Proceedings of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland'', 128 (1998), pp. 1079–1099. ;Notes {{DEFAULTSORT:Ruins of Holyrood Abbey 1824 paintings French paintings Architecture paintings