Calke Abbey is a Baroque house that was built in 1704 for Sir John Harpur Crewe. Through the generations the family displayed a range of eccentric characteristics from being strangely reclusive to fanatical collectors.
We at Fucking Wonderful wanted to go visit and see just how crazy these collections were. Boooooyyy, were we in for a suprise.
On entry into the grounds we were given a CD with a brief history of the house on to listen to whilst driving up.
What a beautiful house.
The first part of the tour showed us the rooms which were most recently in use.
This was the Caricature Room that had unusual wallpaper with cartoons relating to politics and society of the day.
The Saloon was the original entrance hall, however since the 19th Century has been a crowded private museum. Below were some of the treasures inside.
The School Room. This was used in the 2nd World War by the army officers that were billeted there. This was the beginning of the closed off rooms, with a clear change in up keep.
Sir Vauncey Harpur Crewe's Bedroom. This held many of his treasured collections. Eg. The first deer he had ever shot.
Lady Crewe's Room. This room held more feminine pieces, such as this beautiful divider.
The Bird Lobby. This room reflected Sir Vauncey's enthusiasm for collecting stuffed birds.
The Oak Bedroom. This room was shown as the National Trust had found it, with collections scattered around the room. We particularly liked the wax seals.
The Lamp Room. This held loads of old oil lamps, very pretty.
The Harpur Crewes were a wonderfully eccentric family who loathed everything away. They amassed a unique collection ranging from significant pieces of fine art through to various tools. It is estimated that within the 106 rooms, there is in excess of 10,000 items.
The collection and recording of natural history was an important pastime an preoccupation for several generations of the family. The collection stands today as an important record of an all consuming hobby and as a resource for environmental and nature conservation studies.
