Walpole collection

The Walpole collection was a collection of paintings and other works of art at Houghton Hall, Norfolk and other residences of Sir Robert Walpole. Many of the important works were sold to Catherine the Great, and the Hermitage still owns more than 120 works from the collection.

The collection was put together by Sir Robert Walpole, Britain's first prime minister and housed at Houghton Hall and his other residences. It included paintings by Van Dyck, Poussin, Rubens, and Rembrandt, as well as a number of portraits of family members. Many of the portraits and some of the other paintings came from the collection of the Wharton family which Walpole reputedly bought for £1500. These included royal portraits and family portraits by Lely and van Dyck (such as the double portrait of Philadelphia and Elisabeth Wharton). Walpole bought the complete collection, most of which went to Houghton, but a few of which were sold. Walpole's sons were active in obtaining works for his collection. He also received gifts from friends and from those seeking support or honours.

Walpole's collection of marble Roman busts was also noteworthy and the collection included a pair of silver wine coolers by William Lukin that are now in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York.

Horace Walpole, son of Sir Robert, published a catalogue of the collection in 1736.

Following the death of Robert Walpole, the 2nd Earl of Orford, in 1751, "a lesser part of the collection" was sold at auction by the 3rd Earl.

In 1777, John Wilkes tried (but failed) to persuade parliament to buy the collection for the nation. Many of the Old Master paintings subsequently went to the Hermitage Museum having been sold by the 3rd Earl to Catherine the Great in 1779 for £40,550.

In total 206 works travelled from Houghton to the Hermitage. Many of these remain in the Hermitage, but some subsequently passed to other Russian museums. Some items from the collection were sold in 1853, including a portrait of Joseph Carreras by Sir Godfrey Kneller which returned to Houghton Hall. Further sales took place in the 1930s. During the 2nd World War, the collection was stored for protection in Sverdlovsk. The collection returned to the Hermitage in 1946 and it still owns 127 works from the collection.

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