Fireplace screen

fireplace screen (mahogany with fan perspective) Fireplace screens are a type of moveable furnishings. They usually have a frame construction supported by a stand. Used in Europe since the Middle Ages as a practical cover to be placed in front of the fireplace, they protected from the excess heat and glare of the fire. It was not uncommon for screens to be combined with a desktop for reading or writing. In the 18th century, screens become more ornate, and their forms varied. Apart from their practical function in palace interiors, they play a decorative role – they cover the opening of an extinguished hearth. It is therefore no wonder that they became refined trinkets. The presented screen is in the style of English Classicism of the late 18th and early 19th centuries. Its light, mahogany frame construction, decorated with bronze castings, is filled with a movable inlay with a perspective of a fan set behind glass. This is a double-sided watercolour painting on paper. Landscape and harem scenes are appropriate subjects, reflecting the interests of the period – bucolic idylls and the broadly-understood Orient. English Classicism entered the interiors of Łańcut Castle thanks to Izabela Lubomirska. Prepared by Teresa Bagińska-Żurawska https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9243-3967