A FRENCH SCULPTOR EN WILTSHIRE: HENRI DE TRIQUETI AT TEFFONT EVIAS 



41 



is not recorded and the photograph does not 

 survive in the Royal Archives. 48 



Triqueti's scheme for the Albert Memorial 

 Chapel involved a series of fourteen rectangular 

 marble tarsia pictures, surrounded by borders in 

 Florentine mosaic (inlay of semi-precious hard 

 stones) with bas-reliefs. Set into the borders above 

 the tarsia pictures on the north, south and west 

 walls are medallion portraits of Queen Victoria and 

 Prince Albert's nine children together with one of 

 the Princess ofWales. These were executed by Susan 

 Durant (d. 1 873), Triqueti's favourite pupil and also 

 a close friend of the Crown Princess. 49 The overall 

 format of the tarsia pictures and their borders, and 

 the combination of flat and relief surfaces, recalls 

 the Marmor Homericum on which Triqueti was 

 working at the same time. 



The tarsia pictures and bas-reliefs on the north, 

 south and west walls of the chapel depict stories 

 from the Old Testament which allude to the virtues 



and achievements of the Prince Consort: thus, 

 David listens to the angelic choir which inspires his 

 psalms (Fig. 7) refers to Prince Albert's eloquence 

 and musical gifts. 50 The tarsia pictures in the east 

 end of the chapel are devoted to the Passion of 

 Christ. The first panels arrived in the winter of 

 1867" but completion of the remaining ones was 

 delayed in consequence of the Franco-Prussian war 

 and they were not in place until 1871. 52 Queen 

 Victoria, who 'had never seen before any of Mr. 

 Triqueti's inlay works', first viewed the panels in 

 March 1868 with Susan Durant. The sculptress 

 reported that 'the beauty of the marbles was quite 

 a surprise' to Her Majesty, adding that 'much as 

 she [Queen Victoria] had heard of them she had no 

 idea of anything so beautiful!' 55 The panels formed, 

 however, only one part of Triqueti's contribution 

 to the Albert Memorial Chapel which also included 

 the cenotaph to the Prince Consort among other 

 works. 54 The sculptor did not live to see the interior 



Fig. 7. Henri de Triqueti : David listens to the angelic choir which inspires his psalms, marble tarsia 1 864-1 871 . Albert 

 Memorial Chapel, Windsor Castle. (The Royal Collection ©2001, Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II. Photograph: 

 Conway Library, Courtauld Institute of Art) 



