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Kensington Palace - Discover the
stylish spaces available for events
palace has spaces to suit
events large and small, from
intimate drinks receptions to
lavish dinners. What finer
setting for a celebration to
remember?
C
elebrate in royal style at
Kensington Palace. For
almost 400 years,
Kensington Palace has been
home to some of England’s
most popular royals, from
Queen Victoria to Diana,
Princess of Wales.
A series of stylish residents and
virtuoso artists have left their
mark on the palace over the
centuries, and the result is part
stately home, part work of art.
Nestled in the heart of London
and set in its own magnificent
grounds, this stunning Baroque
With its acres of rolling gardens
and convenient Central London
location, Kensington Palace
seems almost tailor-made for
show-stopping events, from
food and music festivals to
private parties. Indeed, the
palace has played host to
some sensational gatherings
over the years, including large
scale auctions and major
charity concerts.
Now, this magnificent Baroque
palace could be the backdrop
to your big event. The
Kensington Palace Pavilion, a
glass-fronted building
overlooking the palace’s
famous Sunken Garden,
replaces the Orangery at
Kensington Palace until 2021.
This unique space provides a
truly exclusive and memorable
event experience for bespoke
large-scale events for up to
800 guests.
Kensington Palace and its surrounding parkland are available
for daytime and evening hire. hrp.org.uk/kensingtonpalace
Last Supper in Pompeii
ASHMOLEAN, OXFORD
T
he terror of when time
stood still in AD 79 and
the eruption of Mount
Vesuvius, which destroyed
the town of Pompeii, is
vividly recreated in this
exhibition. An entire town
was suddenly engulfed in
lava. It is ironic that what
has been preserved since
has given us such
fascinating insights into the
Roman way of life.
Its theme is their eating and
drinking habits, the way they
entertained, the artefacts they
used and the food they
produced in such a fertile area.
The various parts of a Roman
villa are recreated on screens
and we see how the building
was decorated for the purposes
of enhancing the status of the
owner.
Visitors are greeted,
appropriately, by a statue of
Bacchus, followed by some
fascinating Etruscan cremation
urns where the dead, sculpted
as reclining figures, offer
libations to the gods. There are
also examples of the painted
tomb panels of Paestum in
Greece which are decorated
colourfully but crudely. We then
enter a reimagining of what an
imposing Roman villa was like,
beginning with the Atrium, its
main entrance, which was
decorated to impress.
Some beautiful frescoes,
especially examples from the
House of the Golden Bracelet,
adorn the walls and there are
some recreations on screens of
how the interior of this villa
would have looked. There is the
peaceful background sound of
birds singing and also that of
water dripping from gorgeously
designed fountains. A frieze of
feasting figures gives a sense
of joie de vivre, as yet
undisturbed by the horror that
is about to descend. This adds
an extra poignancy to the
mosaic of a skeleton which is
given much prominence. It is a
reminder of the shortness of
life and therefore the need to
enjoy it.
Visit The London & UK DatebooK on www.thedatebook.co.uk
Fish © Museo Archeologico Nazionale di Napoli
There are some amazing
exhibits, most memorably a
statue of Silenus, cradling the
baby Bacchus and possessing
one gargantuan foot as well
as a gigantic phallus-shaped
lamp. A special section is
devoted to the Romans in
Britain, which has obvious
relevance to us.
There is also a reimagining of
the kitchens, where slaves
prepared the meals, and
examples of food which was
carbonised after the
catastrophe.
An exhibit of a pig, caught in
its death throes, seems
macabrely incongruous.
The Lady from Oplontis, the
famous resin cast of the
body of a wealthy young
woman who contorts in
agony as she is asphyxiated,
is memorably horrifying.
This is an exhibition which is
mostly about worldly
pleasures, yet perversely its
title has a religious echo.
The vengeance wrought by
this volcanic eruption on an
ordinary town could have
been by a vengeful deity
and is a terrifying illustration
of the lottery that is human
life …. whichever god you
pray to.
THE LONDON & UK DATEBOOK
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