Lecture & Afternoon Tea | Dining at the Palace: Collecting British Royal Tableware with Scott Coleman

From Worcester to Wedgwood, the finest potters have enhanced the splendour of the royal dining table since the dawn of porcelain manufacture in Britain. Successive sovereigns have proven passionate and important patrons of ceramics, each commissioning and collecting pieces of the highest quality. These tactile royal objects offer a window onto the grand banquets and royal dining habits of the past while continuing to contribute to the magnificence of the monarchy today.

In 'Dining at the Palace', Scott Coleman explores the varied tastes and pursuits of royal patrons, from King George III to Queen Elizabeth II. Examples of royal tableware from Scott’s personal collection will be on display at this special presentation.

Scott Coleman has an abiding interest in the relationship between the monarchy and the arts. He has lectured at the National Portrait Gallery and the Museum of Australian Democracy on subjects relating to royal jewels, regalia and collecting, and serves on the National Council of the Australian Monarchist League. Scott is a Portrait Donor at the National Portrait Gallery, where his work has twice been exhibited, and in 2008 was awarded the National Gallery of Australia’s Summer Art Scholarship. He makes regular loans to exhibitions from his collection and speaks on themes of heraldry and history to various research societies. His interests include collecting royal artifacts, English porcelain, painting and dogs.

Join The Friends for another interesting and stimulating presentation. Afternoon tea, to include an array of delicious petit fours and biscuits, will be served on arrival. 

NOTE: Tickets for this event do not include access to our exhibition-house, Fairhall. Guided tours of the current exhibition can be booked separately.

This event is supported by The Colin Holden Charitable Trust. 

Image: Dish from the 'Hope Service' for the Duke of Clarence (later King William IV), 1790, by Flight, Worcester. Courtesy of the Coleman Collection.