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STONE, Nicholas the Elder - b. 1586 Exeter, d. 1647 Exeter - WGA

STONE, Nicholas the Elder

(b. 1586 Exeter, d. 1647 Exeter)

British mason-sculptor and architect, trained under Hendrick de Keyser in Amsterdam. and appointed master mason to James I (1619). He worked on the Banqueting House, Whitehall, where he began an association with Inigo Jones. He is best known for his tombs, which include that of Francis Holles (Westminster Abbey) based on Michelangelo’s tomb of Giuliano de Medici, and that to John Donne (made from Donne’s own design, St Paul’s Cathedral).

Monument to the Poet John Donne
Monument to the Poet John Donne by

Monument to the Poet John Donne

There was a decline of English sculpture after Mid-Gothic times. It is not until Nicholas Stone that something approaching real sculptural quality returns. His monument to the great poet John Donne in St Paul’s Cathedral shows imagination and vivacity in handling of the overall composition.

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Tomb of Lady Elizabeth Carey
Tomb of Lady Elizabeth Carey by

Tomb of Lady Elizabeth Carey

The deceased lady seems to be sleeping. The white marble figure and the black slab of the sarcophagus provides a very effective contrast.

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Tomb of Lady Elizabeth Carey (detail)
Tomb of Lady Elizabeth Carey (detail) by

Tomb of Lady Elizabeth Carey (detail)

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Tomb of Sir William Curle
Tomb of Sir William Curle by

Tomb of Sir William Curle

In his period Nicholas Stone was the best sculptor of English origin. He brought into his country the style of Hendrick de Keyser of Amsterdam, whose son-in-law he was.

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