And Yet Another Day At The V&A

August 19th we were at the V&A, again. It was not our best day, inasmuch as several of the galleries we wanted to see were closed: lack of sufficient staffing, they said. We surmised this is due to a) COVID quarantines, or b) lack of young Europeans wishing to work in Britain for a time because of Brexit, or c) delays in staffing up for the summer tourist season. Or some or parts of all. We carried on, however, stiff upper lips and all that, keeping calm, and seeing the inlaid furniture, enameled jewelry, gold and silver, paintings, stained glass, and ever more jewelry. What we want to see is furniture and the rest of British history. We had gotten only as far as the Tudors. Next time, hopefully. 

Old entrance to the V&A; now the current exit
(through the gift shop)

Inlaid furniture

Pretty little boxes

Bracelet of tiny enameled paintings of scenes from Venice

Rarest of sights: the V&A pool not filled with kids splashing 
around; it was a chilly morning

Now we are into vast halls of silver and gold

Silver guy stuff from past ages

Children's tea sets; also doll house silver

Rattle and teething device; also utensil for those
to be born with silver spoon in mouth

Gal silver stuff

Inlaid silver ladies' sewing kit; pretty neat

Wine cooler; seats two

Silver chicken wire item

A silver clutch purse; seriously

Yours truly trying both hands at silversmithing in the silver
workshop (I think it was actually aluminum foil (or aluminium
at the Brits say)

Moving right along, we are now doing the halls of stained glass

Order of the day; how exciting could tapestry work be?

We also did the V&A's four rooms of paintings...some notable
British artists, some Millets and Courbets, Degas and Delacroix,
including two full rooms of Turners and Constables, from which
Vicki was excused; the above is Turner's St. Michael's Mount,
Cornwall, 1834; not to be confused with Mt. St Michel in 
Brittany; and not nearly so high and mysterious looking as
Turner makes it; blog readers also are excused from any further
V&A paintings in this episode

And now we are in the vast but congested hall of jewelry, 
looking at it in somewhat chronological order...

First, the classical and Medieval stuff

The Renaissance, including two Popes' rings; papal bling

Moving right along to Art Nouveau

A couple items Vicki really liked

A ring collection

And, finally, the stairs not taken to the upper realms of jewelry