From silver door locks and ornamental fingerplates to firedogs, polished steel grates and wrought iron gates, metal plays an important role in the ornamentation of most houses and gardens.
A selection of properties to visit with examples of metalwork:
Polished steel and brass firedogs, bearing the arms of Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn and chased brass lock plates with the monogram of William III can be seen at Knole in Kent.
Other fine examples of door furniture can be seen at Dyrham Park in Gloucestershire and Petworth House in West Sussex.
The great gates at Erddig and Powis Castle in Wales, Clandon Park in Surrey and Belton House in Lincolnshire date from the early 18th century.
The delicately wrought and gilded balustrade to the staircase at Claydon House in Buckinghamshire dates from the middle of that century, while the engraved steel grates at Castle Coole in Northern Ireland are masterpieces of the neo-classical era.
Waddesdon Manor in Buckinghamshire has an important and varied collection of continental metalwork.
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