In The Groove

The clean lines and striking simplicity of the bolection chimneypiece ensure that it’s as sought after in the 21st century as it was in the 17th, says Arabella Youens.

- John Hommond

IT was Inigo Jones, the Italophile 17thcentury architect, who transformed the mighty Jacobean hearth into a classically inspired status symbol heavily laden with reliefs and trailing swags. Size was important, too—an eye-catching marble number not only spoke volumes about the owner of the house, but also served as a decorative focal point that pulled a room together.

In fireplaces, as in frocks, the pendulum swings to and fro. When Sir Christopher Wren came to the fore in the latter half of the 17th century, there was a shift away from rooms with highly decorated fireplaces towards panelled rooms embellished with decorative carvings. When designing chimneypieces, Wren turned again to Italy for inspiration, but this time to the beauty and simplicity of what in Italian is called a Salvator Rosa surround.

The bolection, as it’s known in English— the origins of the name aren’t clear—is the antithesis of its heavily decorated forebears. Elegant and simple, Wren embraced it with gusto, notably at William III’s private rooms in Hampton Court Palace.