If you are a fan of the series on PBS, "Downton Abbey", you will enjoy the current exhibition at the Legion of Honor in San Francisco. This exhibit will also be seen in Houston, Texas. The installation includes furniture, paintings, ceramics, elaborate table service, and an amazing collection of tapestries, all from the house in Norfolk, England. Sculptures on display attest to the collections passed down to successive generations.
The house was built in the 1720's for Britain's first Prime Minister, Sir Robert Walpole. The house was built in the Palladian style. Although built for the Prime Minister, he used it as a hunting lodge, entertaining wealthy and influential friends and acquaintances. Houghton Hall, as the home is known, is the current home of the 7th Marquess of Cholmondeley, his wife and their twin sons, aged 2. Many of the paintings on display are representations of earlier residents of the house.
The idea of a noble class of patrician men and women, kings and queens, still fascinates many Americans. Judging by the popularity of "Downton Abbey" and its resident family of aristocrats, the Crawleys, it seems this traveling exhibit of genuine "noble" artifacts is being warmly received by those same fans.
This weekend marks the end of the visit in SF.
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