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Our most dramatic entrance – a truly magnificent pair of gates and piers inspired by the original Queen's Gates in Hyde Park, London – was commissioned for Osbourne House.
Standing over three metres high, the gates have more than 44 finely modelled cast iron spear head finials. Substantial box piers carry lamps on either end with heraldic shields at front.
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The ironwork now surrounding Osbourne House is entirely in keeping with traditional installations of the Victorian era.
The original Queen's Gates in Hyde Park are a good example of both Victorian style and manufacture. They were manufactured by a Scottish foundry and installed after the Great Exhibition of 1851.
Unusual in their use of cast iron and steel, they are highly decorative and manufactured in a strong and substantial manner typical of Victorian installations.
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The frontage consists of a straight run of railing panels supported by decorative railing pilasters that contribute to the rigidity of the length.
This, too, is a design method favoured by the Victorians and a traditional way of securing railings after ironwork became more common from 1740 onwards. The railings pilasters help maintain strength as well as describe a pattern.
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Box piers were once a normal feature of ironwork around the English house. Because almost all of our best ironwork was removed during the war, it is now unusual to see them.
However, they are entirely in keeping with ironwork of the time. They are special in terms of design and also because of the strength they introduce to the structure.
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The gates are a fine example of heavy and detailed Victorian design.
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