Explore the Provenance of this artwork, Miniature altarpiece (WB.232).
The altar was in the possession of the Austrian banker and member of the Vienna branch of the Rothschild family, Anselm Salomon von Rothschild of Vienna in 1866. He willed part of his collection to his son Ferdinand, including a number of other boxwoods, known then as religious objets d'art. Thornton and the art historians Pippa Shirley note that Ferdinand held the boxwoods in such esteem that they were placed centrally in the New Smoking Room of Waddesdon Manor. Ferninand's taste tended towards ornate and rarefied objects, and he was especially interested in miniature boxwood sculptures. He sought to acquire the Louvre altar, at the time belonging to his cousin Adolphe. Although his collection of prayer nuts were often laid open on pins behind small thin enamels, the more complex pieces were encased in protective glass cases. Ferdinand's interest in boxwood carvings is further evident in his long but unsuccessful, pursuit of the Paris miniature altar owned by his cousin; both father and son were keenly fascinated by objects of this kind.It was bequeathed, as part of the Waddesdon Bequest, to the British Museum on Ferdinand death in 1898, marking one of the most significant acquisitions in the museum's history.
Ferdinand prayer nut British Museum Waddesdon Manor Anselm Salomon von Rothschild Smoking Room wood carving Louvre Waddesdon Bequest boxwood Rothschild family