Matthew Boulton (1728-1809)
Ormolu Figure of the Fate Clotho, circa 1775
ENGLAND
36 x 19 x 14 cm
14 ¼ x 7 ½ x 5 ½ in
14 ¼ x 7 ½ x 5 ½ in
7175
Further images
Provenance
Private European CollectionLiterature
For a reproduction of the original design see figure h, page 18, Boulton and Fothergill's Pattern Book I, circa 1762 – 1790.
A figure of the Fate Clotho designed by Matthew Boulton. Mounted in Ormolu, Boulton’s signature craft, the sculpture rests upon a neoclassical white marble layered pedestal, decorated with contrasting leaf...
A figure of the Fate Clotho designed by Matthew Boulton. Mounted in Ormolu, Boulton’s signature craft, the sculpture rests upon a neoclassical white marble layered pedestal, decorated with contrasting leaf and dart cornices. The colour of the marble is exceptionally pure with very little texture. Clotho is robed in the traditional Greek costume of the Doric chiton with a himation and is depicted holding a spindle and distaff with adjoining thread.
This figure of Clotho is remarkable in being the only known surviving example of Matthew Boulton’s solitary freestanding ormolu figure design. The design can be found in Boulton and Fothergill's Pattern Book I, page 18, figure h, part of the Archives of Soho, held by Birmingham City Archives [Ref: MS3782]. The only variation from the design being that it was drawn on a cylindrical pedestal. Whilst Boulton sometimes used classical figures to adorn timepieces, candelabra and brule parfums, throughout his vast oeuvre he never produced or designed any freestanding ormolu figures apart from Clotho. There is no evidence of others in his surviving work or pattern books. Also of note, is that Clotho’s pattern is not shown as part of a set with the other two Fates, showing her significance as a goddess in her own right to Boulton.
The figure of the fate Clotho would have been produced Boulton’s renowned Soho Manufactory in Birmingham. Prior to Boulton establishing his manufactory, Birmingham was a city of small trade workshops with craftsmen relying on hand tools with a limited production output. Boulton’s manufactory revolutionised this and became the region’s largest employer. Matthew Boulton was a visionary with a remarkably forward-thinking attitude to design and many of his creations could be made to order from specialised pattern books.
Materials:
Boulton was the first English designer to mount with ormolu, a technique which had previously only been achieved by the French. Ormolu came from the French ‘dorure d’or moulu’ meaning ‘gilding with gold paste’ and used mercury which was burnt away to leave gold deposits on the surface. Whilst the use of mercury poses no danger to the owner of the sculpture, it conferred significant risk onto the craftsmen making them and production of ormolu was eventually banned and discontinued in the mid-19th Century until safer methods were found. Later objects are often incorrectly labelled as ormolu and this sculpture, therefore, is a relic of a time specific craft. The purity of the white marble colour and its lack of veins and texture indicate that it is likely Thassos marble. Often imported to Italy and sold as Carrara marble, marble from the Island of Thassos is noted for its pure white colour and has been used in the decorative arts since antiquity.
Mythology:
Clotho was the first of the three Fate sisters or Moirai, the goddesses of destiny in Ancient Greece with her Roman equivalent being the goddess Nona. Destiny and life were viewed through the metaphor of weaving and Homer was the first to name the Fates as spinners ‘Klôthes’ in the Odyssey. Clotho was the ‘Spinner’ of the thread, Lachesis the ‘Apportioner’ who measured it and Atropos the ‘Inevitable’ who finally cuts the thread. Clotho was the most powerful of the three Fates as she decided when and where each mortal was born. Upon a birth, Clotho spun a thread which the Fates then followed and used to dictate the consequences of the person’s actions throughout their life. As the spinner of the thread of life, she symbolised the inception of destiny and the potential of each god and mortal.
Despite being little known today in comparison to other gods, Clotho played a large role in Greek mythology and appears in many legends. Clotho was a primordial goddess; she came before the Olympian gods and had greater powers than them, supremely the ability to resurrect other gods, which belonged to her alone amongst the Pantheon. Notably, Clotho collaborated with Hermes the messenger god, to create the alphabet. This represents the transfer of knowledge across generations and is symbolic of the transition from oral to written history and culture, a major milestone in human history.
Later Greek sources establish the fates as daughters of Zeus, king of the gods and Themis, goddess of divine order, law and justice. Clotho and her sisters were the only beings who controlled destiny, and other gods could only obey the decisions that the Fates made. Her unique ability to control life and death represented balance and divine justice amongst the spiritual and earthly realms. Clotho plays a major role in the myth of Asclepius. The legend states that Asclepius, the god of medicine became so skilled at his craft that he learnt to revive the dead. This was a violation of Clotho’s powers and a crime against the natural order, so she persuaded Zeus to strike down Asclepius with a thunderbolt, thus restoring balance between life and death.
Depiction:
Clotho is shown with the distaff and spindle, traditional tools used to spin thread in ancient times. The Fates were usually represented as decrepit elderly women, lame, austere and inflexible. Clotho, however, was the youngest sister, which is perhaps why Boulton decided to depict her as a young woman.
Clotho appears in Pattern Book I, which is dated between 1762 and 1790. These dates encompass a time of tremendous social and political upheaval, spanning the Industrial Revolution, the American Revolution and the French Revolutions. She may have been chosen to symbolise the inception of destiny at a time of great social change and could be symbolic of Boulton’s own meteoric rise to fame. Similarly, Boulton may have chosen to depict Clotho for her representation as one who restores balance and the natural order during a time of great change and unrest, a reassuring sentiment to his genteel patrons.
This figure of Clotho is remarkable in being the only known surviving example of Matthew Boulton’s solitary freestanding ormolu figure design. The design can be found in Boulton and Fothergill's Pattern Book I, page 18, figure h, part of the Archives of Soho, held by Birmingham City Archives [Ref: MS3782]. The only variation from the design being that it was drawn on a cylindrical pedestal. Whilst Boulton sometimes used classical figures to adorn timepieces, candelabra and brule parfums, throughout his vast oeuvre he never produced or designed any freestanding ormolu figures apart from Clotho. There is no evidence of others in his surviving work or pattern books. Also of note, is that Clotho’s pattern is not shown as part of a set with the other two Fates, showing her significance as a goddess in her own right to Boulton.
The figure of the fate Clotho would have been produced Boulton’s renowned Soho Manufactory in Birmingham. Prior to Boulton establishing his manufactory, Birmingham was a city of small trade workshops with craftsmen relying on hand tools with a limited production output. Boulton’s manufactory revolutionised this and became the region’s largest employer. Matthew Boulton was a visionary with a remarkably forward-thinking attitude to design and many of his creations could be made to order from specialised pattern books.
Materials:
Boulton was the first English designer to mount with ormolu, a technique which had previously only been achieved by the French. Ormolu came from the French ‘dorure d’or moulu’ meaning ‘gilding with gold paste’ and used mercury which was burnt away to leave gold deposits on the surface. Whilst the use of mercury poses no danger to the owner of the sculpture, it conferred significant risk onto the craftsmen making them and production of ormolu was eventually banned and discontinued in the mid-19th Century until safer methods were found. Later objects are often incorrectly labelled as ormolu and this sculpture, therefore, is a relic of a time specific craft. The purity of the white marble colour and its lack of veins and texture indicate that it is likely Thassos marble. Often imported to Italy and sold as Carrara marble, marble from the Island of Thassos is noted for its pure white colour and has been used in the decorative arts since antiquity.
Mythology:
Clotho was the first of the three Fate sisters or Moirai, the goddesses of destiny in Ancient Greece with her Roman equivalent being the goddess Nona. Destiny and life were viewed through the metaphor of weaving and Homer was the first to name the Fates as spinners ‘Klôthes’ in the Odyssey. Clotho was the ‘Spinner’ of the thread, Lachesis the ‘Apportioner’ who measured it and Atropos the ‘Inevitable’ who finally cuts the thread. Clotho was the most powerful of the three Fates as she decided when and where each mortal was born. Upon a birth, Clotho spun a thread which the Fates then followed and used to dictate the consequences of the person’s actions throughout their life. As the spinner of the thread of life, she symbolised the inception of destiny and the potential of each god and mortal.
Despite being little known today in comparison to other gods, Clotho played a large role in Greek mythology and appears in many legends. Clotho was a primordial goddess; she came before the Olympian gods and had greater powers than them, supremely the ability to resurrect other gods, which belonged to her alone amongst the Pantheon. Notably, Clotho collaborated with Hermes the messenger god, to create the alphabet. This represents the transfer of knowledge across generations and is symbolic of the transition from oral to written history and culture, a major milestone in human history.
Later Greek sources establish the fates as daughters of Zeus, king of the gods and Themis, goddess of divine order, law and justice. Clotho and her sisters were the only beings who controlled destiny, and other gods could only obey the decisions that the Fates made. Her unique ability to control life and death represented balance and divine justice amongst the spiritual and earthly realms. Clotho plays a major role in the myth of Asclepius. The legend states that Asclepius, the god of medicine became so skilled at his craft that he learnt to revive the dead. This was a violation of Clotho’s powers and a crime against the natural order, so she persuaded Zeus to strike down Asclepius with a thunderbolt, thus restoring balance between life and death.
Depiction:
Clotho is shown with the distaff and spindle, traditional tools used to spin thread in ancient times. The Fates were usually represented as decrepit elderly women, lame, austere and inflexible. Clotho, however, was the youngest sister, which is perhaps why Boulton decided to depict her as a young woman.
Clotho appears in Pattern Book I, which is dated between 1762 and 1790. These dates encompass a time of tremendous social and political upheaval, spanning the Industrial Revolution, the American Revolution and the French Revolutions. She may have been chosen to symbolise the inception of destiny at a time of great social change and could be symbolic of Boulton’s own meteoric rise to fame. Similarly, Boulton may have chosen to depict Clotho for her representation as one who restores balance and the natural order during a time of great change and unrest, a reassuring sentiment to his genteel patrons.