Slate

The timber-framed outer court of Henry VIII’s Nonsuch Palace was covered with stucco panels framed by plaques of carved and gilded slate. Several of the slate fragments from Nonsuch Palace have traces of gilding and others have graffito (scratched) instructions in French to indicate fixing positions on the timber framing. The example shown here is inscribed 'Troisiesme pillier' ('third pillar'). The French notations were probably executed by Nicholas Bellin of Modena who had worked for the French king, François I, on his palace at Fontainebleau.
The quality of the slate carving at Nonsuch was extraordinary. Some 750 fragments have survived and were recovered from the palace site during excavation in 1959 and 1960. The best pieces demonstrate the highest level of skill in the execution of the design and the fineness of the carving. The slate was used to clad the timber framing on the southwest facade and filled the interstices between the moulded stucco panels. The resulting effect of stark creamy white with the dark grey and gilded slate was calculated to impress all who saw it.