“And now you must look under the bracket on your left hand for Canova’s tools- another interesting relic…" wrote the 6th Duke in his 'Handbook to Chatsworth', and addressing his sister Harriet, to whom this work was devoted.

Inside a small case, nestled in a corner of Chatsworth's Sculpture Gallery, and set into the local gritstone walls, is a collection of tools.  Unsurprisingly, these tools are often missed by visitors, however, they belonged to the great Italian sculptor, Antonio Canova (1757-1822), and may even have been used to form the celebrated sculptures by which they are eclipsed. 

Alongside them is a handwritten notice: “Strumenti da modellare de’ quali di serviva Canova Roma - 31 December 1822," which translates as 'The tools used by Canova, Rome'.

The tools consist of a quill, a marble working chisel, and three implements for moulding clay, all used to develop finished carvings and sculpture.

They came to the Devonshire Collections at Chatsworth due to the 6th Duke's reverence for Canova and his work. After his first visit to the sculptor’s studio, the Duke had declared Canova "the most talented, the most simple, and the most noble-minded of mankind."

Within four years, he had acquired the sculptor’s carvings of Endymion, a seated Madame Mere, Petrarch’s Laura, and Hebe, alongside a bust of Madame Mere, all of which form part of the neoclassical sculpture collection preserved in Chatsworth's Sculpture Gallery.

Above: 1. Chatsworth's Sculpture Gallery, 2. Napoleon by Canova, 3. Canova's sculptures of Napoleon (left) and Madame Mere (right), 4. Canova's lions (by pupils of Canova) and above left a bust of Canova and above right a bust of the 6th Duke, 5. Details from Endymion (pictured front right in image 1). 

The tools were a gift through the Duke’s old friend Lady Abercorn, whom he referred to sympathetically as the ‘Aqua Infelice,’ owing to her deep attachment to the late sculptor and being reduced to tears at the mention of his name.

During the winter between 1822 and 1823, the Duke and Lady Abercorn travelled together, touring places associated with Canova, as a pilgrimage and last farewell to their mutual friend.

In earlier arrangements in the Gallery, the tools were displayed within one of a set of tazze (a wide saucer-like dish on a stem) acquired from Lorenzo Bartollini, which flanked the great carved head of Emperor Napoleon, also by Canova and bequeathed to the Duke in Lady Abercorn’s will.

Like much of the arrangement in the Sculpture Gallery, a deeper meaning was likely intended by the Duke in this pairing: the tazza were originally designed for Napoleon’s residence on Elba, and when combined with his bust and Canova’s tools, formed a memorial to both men, and to the Duke’s friend, Lady Abercorn.

Canova’s tools, interred in the walls of the Sculpture Gallery are a lasting monument to the great Italian sculptor, and remain a treasured relic today in the Devonshire Collections at Chatsworth.

Above: Chatsworth's celebrated lions, created by two of Canova's most talented pupils, Francesco Benaglia and Rinaldo Rinaldi. They were made using casts taken from two lion sculptures by Canova for the tomb of Pope Clement XIII, in St. Peter’s Basilica, Vatican City. The pupils crafted these sculptures as faithful copies of Canova’s masterpiece for the Duke.

Learn more:

Professor Alison Yarrington offers a detailed account of the 6th Duke, Canova and the creation of Chatsworth's Sculpture Gallery in this paper, and in this film.