Gothic reunion

摘要

In 1842 one of the most important art collections in the country, that of politician, writer and antiquarian Horace Walpole (1717-97), was auctioned and its contents scattered. Spread over 24 days, the sale was an important society event, with special steamers laid on to take prospective buyers down the Thames from London to Walpole's Gothic revival creation, Strawberry Hill House, in Twickenham.