We're taking a look at nine of the greatest objects on display in the National Trust's properties across Britain.
The National Trust’s collections are not only vast, but contain objects of astonishing beauty, quality and human interest.
To coincide with the Trust’s 125 anniversary, we asked nine senior curators — including national experts in painting and sculpture, textiles, furniture and decorative arts — to choose their favourite object from among those in their care.
Each of the objects they’ve chosen is discussed in individual articles, but we’ve collected them all together here to make it easier for you to enjoy all of these wonderful items — and plan your trips for 2020 accordingly.
‘An allegorical dream’
©NTPL
Idleness and the Pilgrim of Love by Sir Edward Coley Burne-Jones, about 1872–76, at Wallington, Northumberland.
The Marquess of Anglesey’s revolutionary wooden leg
©NTPL
The first articulated wooden leg, limewood and leather, at Plas Newydd, Anglesey.
A red tunic that tells a tale of sinking ships, man-eating sharks and stupendous bravery
©NTPL
Red flannel tunic, part of a uniform of the 12th Lancers by an unknown maker, about 1851, at The Argory, Co Armagh.
‘A man utterly consumed by passion’
©NTPL
A Man Consumed by Flames by Isaac Oliver, about 1610. Watercolour and body colour with gold on vellum, at Ham House, Richmond-upon-Thames.
A great Italian masterpiece brought to life as a woodcut by an English genius
©NTPL
The Crucifixion (after Jacopo Tintoretto), wooden carving by Grinling Gibbons, at Dunham Massey
The Rococo silver soup tureens at Ickworth
©Simon Buck/Country Life
Pair of silver soup tureens, Frederick Kandler, London, 1752–53, at Ickworth
Chippendale’s table that is the ‘epitome of light-hearted Chinoiserie’ at Anglesey Abbey
©NTPL
The Garrick Dressing Table by Thomas Chippendale, about 1775, at Anglesey Abbey.
A 15th-century altar cloth that survives in almost miraculous condition
©NTPL
Altar frontal of silk, velvet and linen, about 1493–1520, at Cotehele.
The humane, charming and utterly priceless Velazquez at Ickworth
©Simon Buck/Country Life
Prince Baltasar Carlos, aged six, as a hunter by Diego Velázquez, about 1635–36, at Ickworth.
How the 125-year-old National Trust fulfils 21st-century needs for a beautiful Britain
Caring for places of history and natural beauty is a necessity which spans the ages.
A week-by-week guide to the National Trust’s properties in 2020
The 15 best pictures from the National Trust’s photo competition to find a cover for its 2020 member handbook
A beautiful image of a nature reserve on the Isle of Wight has won the honour of being on the
