BATTY LANGLEY'S EARLY YEARS IN LONDON, 1729-35: LANGLEY, HANS SLOANE AND ARTIFICIAL STONE

摘要

Batty Langley was a prolific writer on gardens and horticulture between 1726 and 1728, but he found that writing alone was not sufficiently lucrative and looked for additional sources of income. This paper explores new documentary sources to shed a light on his other activities, particularly the manufacture of artificial stone. Langley sought patronage from Hans Sloane and letters from Langley to Sloane provide information about his artificial stone products and also reveal an abortive plan for a book based on a survey of important English gardens. Langley won a commission from the leading freemason Nathaniel Blackerby and in 1735 built a garden temple for him in a prominent position on the banks of the Thames in the Palace of Westminster, which heprobably used as a showcase for his artificial stone products.