Study
Despite being referred to as the Study, this is not where Merton liked to work – he preferred to do his paperwork downstairs in the Dining Room. Here Merton relaxed, read and smoked cigars, surrounded by some of his favourite paintings, furniture and ceramics. The blue and white china was particularly fashionable at the time. Merton’s coat of arms can be seen above the doorway, while the tiles surrounding the fireplace were specially commissioned by Carter’s of Poole (later Poole Pottery) to show his monogram, motto and the motif from his crest. The Tynecastle wallpaper is embossed flax. It is in the Stuart pattern, whilst the frieze, also Tynecastle, shows the fleur-de-lys, the English rose and Scottish thistle, possibly intended to represent Merton and Annie’s nationalities. The ceiling mural shows Japanese influences and a repeating bird motif, which is echoed throughout the house. Explore artwork currently on display in the Study.
-
The Butterfly (Ariel)
-
An Egyptian Water Carrier
-
Edward VII
-
Bust of an Old Man
-
Brother of the Artist
-
Sir Frederick Leighton
-
An Italian Girl’s Head
-
Penthesilea, Queen of the Amazons
-
Juliette Récamier
-
Harvesting (The Haymakers)
-
Bournemouth from the Sea
-
The Bathers Alarmed
-
An Autumn Idyl
-
Ehrenbreitstein, from Coblenz on the Rhine
-
Sun Steep’d Noon
-
Landscape with Poultry
-
The Dawn of Love
-
The Cabbage Patch
-
A Capri Girl
-
Athena
-
Mariola
-
Cleopatra and the asp
-
The Sea Cave
-
Proserpine