Keats–Shelley Memorial House

Transcription

The Keats-Shelley House has now served as a museum for more than a century and continues to attract visitors from all over the world. Many who come here are already well acquainted with the work of Keats and his fellow Romantics; others are simply spurred by their curiosity about this handsome house in the heart of this historic city. The collection, which is devoted to the second generation English Romantic poets, Shelley, Keats and Byron, attests to the importance of Rome in the minds and imaginations of many writers and artists not just in the Romantic age, but over the centuries. Shelley, Keats and Byron came to Rome just as many had done before them following a century in which the Grand Tour had become a must for the completion of a gentleman's cultural education and refinement. Because of its thrilling Classical past, Rome was the holy grail of the Grand Tour and back in the 18th century, everybody who was anybody would come here to learn and then return home to boast of their experiences. But for the Romantics, well, things were slightly different. They came here for escape, for personal reasons as much as they did to come and learn For me, this painting by Joseph Severn, which displays the young poet Shelley composing his lyrical drama Prometheus Unbound in the Baths of Caracalla sums up the essence of the Romantic version of the Grand Tour. The glories of the Classical past are still there, but they are eulogized in the form of ruins, rather than celebrated. And Severn also suggests a link between Shelley's poetic imagination and the Romantic past. But the city's great beauty wasn't its only attraction for northern European writers and artists. Like many other sufferers from tuberculosis John Keats came here in the vain hope that the milder climate would alleviate his poor health. It was indeed a vain hope. In this letter here, which was written by Joseph Severn, Severn tells us: "He is gone. He died with the most perfect ease. "He seemed to go to sleep. "On the twenty-third, at about four, the approaches of death came on. "'Severn, aye, lift me up. I am dying. I shall die easy. "'Don't be frightened. Be firm; and thank God it has come.' "I lifted him up in my arms -- the phlegm seemed boiling in his throat and increased until eleven when he gradually sunk into death, so quiet that I still thought he slept." Some very special things, however, escaped unharmed and remain here to this day. The fireplace, which is an original feature of the house, and, of course, the famous ceiling with its elaborate flower motifs. But the Keats-Shelley House is also a place of great life and energy, and hosts many special events, temporary exhibitions, and readings. When I first arrived here to work as curator, my own first impressions of the place were dominated by the same sense of wonder and excitement I see on visitors' faces when they cross the threshold into the museum. But we must never rely on our laurels. As a British museum abroad, we receive no public funding from the UK, and survive solely on the price of our tickets and on the generosity of our donors. I'm glad to say we currently receive some 23,000 visitors a year, but we are always looking to expand this number. These three great men behind me worked tirelessly, and selflessly one century ago to ensure the prosperity and longevity of this special museum, and it is now up to all of us who care about why this house matters to ensure that it survives, and thrives, for at least another hundred years.