Royal Gardens
Depictions of the gardens at Windsor Castle and other royal residences
Replica of the Warwick Vase
signed & dated 1830RCIN 71434
Garden sculpture was brought from the eastern lawns and privy gardens at Hampton Court to Windsor in 1829 for George IV. Most of these pieces have largely been relocated during the course of the twentieth century, however the large bronze cast replica of the Warwick Vase still sits as the focal point at the castle end of the East Terrace Garden just before the steps.
The vase was purchased around 1822 by George IV from Messrs Rundell, Bridge & Rundell at a cost of £1470. The original Warwick Vase, from which this cast was made, was named after the 2nd Earl of Warwick who acquired it as an ancient relic from his uncle, Sir William Hamilton in around 1775. The main body of the piece is decorated with vine leaves and berries, scrolls, and female and male masks in high relief. It was not original, but a recreation that incorporated fragments from the late Hellenistic period, discovered in 1770 in the Villa Adriana (Emperor Hadrian’s Villa) in Tivoli, during excavations organised by the Scottish painter Gavin Hamilton. The vase sits on a granite base, which was created specifically for it at a cost of £95.