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| Archive Reference / Library Class No. | D8116/3/1 |
| Title | The "Byron Window", removed in 1988 from the first floor breakfast room of the Temple Hotel, Matlock Bath |
| Date | 19th cent |
| Description | This pane of glass (cracked and repaired before its donation) bears several etched inscriptions. At the time of donation, Derbyshire Record Office staff have been unable to find firm documentary evidence of authorship. The sale catalogue from a 1975 auction of the property (LS/SALE_CATS/270) asserts that the pane of glass had been inscribed by George Gordon the 6th Lord Byron with a poem and that Princess Victoria had later etched her name on the same pane. An article in Derbyshire Life and Countryside (Vol 53, no 9, Sep 1988) makes the same claim and quotes the owner of the Temple Hotel as saying that during refurbishment works the pane had been removed from the window and framed for display. William Adam's "The Gem of the Peak" (1838/1851 editions) mentions that the name of Walter Scott is to be found etched in a window in Room 5 of the Temple Hotel, and discusses incidents in the life of Byron, including a visit to Matlock Bath. He does not, however, mention a window at the Temple on which Byron wrote.
However, the date nearest to the poem reads 8 Oct 1786, some four years prior to the birth of George Gordon, 6th Baron Byron. Furthermore, it is uncertain that the name below the poem reads Byron. For information please see the URL below to a post about the "Byron Window" on the Record Office Blog, 14 Oct 2017 |
| Extent | 1 item |
| Level | Item |
| Repository | Derbyshire Record Office |
| Archive Creator | The Temple Hotel, Matlock Bath |
| Access Conditions | This item is made of glass and contains sharp edges. It must be kept in its packaging when viewed and remain the right way up at all times. |
| Physical Description | FRAGILE - Pane of glass mounted on display board. Many years prior to the donation of this collection, the pane had been removed and mounted on a board for display purposes within the hotel. The glass was cracked in several places by the time it was donated; as the existing display board had proved sufficient for keeping the pieces stable this was not removed after the donation. |
| Useful Links | https://recordoffice.wordpress.com/2017/10/14/authenticity-hoo-ha-pt-2-did-lord-byron-and-princess-victoria-etch-their-names-on-the-windows/ |