BAROQUE, MANNERIST & BOLECTION ANTIQUE FIREPLACES

A selection of English, Scottish, Irish and European Baroque antique fireplaces, chimneypieces and mantels, including Bolections, in wood, stone and marble.

Antique Baroque design, which evolved in the 1600s, was preceded by the Mannerist movement and followed by the Rococo style. Grand and impressive, it orginated in Italy and subsequently developed in France, Germany, Bohemia, Poland, Spain, the Ukraine, Belgium and England.  Architects such as Wren, ( St Pauls Cathedral ) Vanbrugh, ( Castle Howard ) & Hawksmoor, ( St Lukes, Spitalfields ) revelled in its grandeur.
 
An Antique Baroque fireplace, chimneypiece or mantels from our large collection would add an element of drama to any home or property.

The Baroque Style
The Baroque style emerged in Italy as a product of the Counter-Reformation movement. Despite its religious foundations, the style was rapidly adopted over Europe for secular and civic architecture.

It is a grand, monumental style, characterised by bold curved shapes and was a striking departure from the classical restraint of the Renaissance. In England, the Baroque fireplace is often described as Queen Anne in style, as her reign coincided with the arrival of the Baroque on British soil.

The Bolection Fireplace
The bolection fireplace is perhaps best known and best loved in Britain, adored for its simple form consisting of curved moulded jambs and a matching frieze.

Typically, a bolection fireplace does not require a shelf, but often slightly grander incarnations were designed to accommodate a shelf, and even an entablature. Today, a bolection fire surround can be used in both a period style of a contemporary home, as the timeless form of the simple surround does not dominate an interior but rather provides harmony. When selecting a bolection, antique examples were carved by hand from beautiful rare marbles and are infinitely more beautiful.

The Mannerist Style
The Mannerist style preceded the Baroque and mannerist fireplaces were still entwined with the classical past and the High Renaissance, motifs after the antique were incorporated with bolder, more curvaceous designs. They are therefore often more elaborate in form and carving than the later Baroque antique fireplace, and perhaps better suited to a more opulent interior.