Father Time

This piece of cast sculpture is made of Coade stone, the trade name for a type of stoneware developed by the British businesswoman Eleanor Coade (1733–1821). In comparison to marble, stone, or lead, this material provided a cheaper and more efficient way of reproducing large sculptures and had the added benefit of being almost entirely resistant to weathering. As a consequence, Coade stone was widely used for the production of statues, garden ornaments, and architectural decorations. This figure of Father Time often appeared in memorials, funerary monuments and, as in this example, as the centerpiece for a garden.

Gallery label for installation of YCBA collection, 2016

Credit Line: Yale Center for British Art, Paul Mellon Fund