Surrey · Royal palace

Hampton Court Palace

Documented commission

The place & the work.

Twelve richly ornamented panels mark the edge of the Privy Garden: royal crests, gilded foliage and mythical creatures worked into iron. The palace’s river front and painted stair place this celebrated screen in its wider architectural setting.

The Privy Garden screen is a documented work by Jean Tijou, comprising twelve richly ornamented panels. Its attribution does not automatically extend to every gate or staircase in the palace photographs.

Historic Royal Palaces · The Jean Tijou screen

Read the preserved historical account

Preserved from the previous Tijou website. Its historical assertions are retained as archive text; the attribution note above distinguishes what is established from what remains uncertain.

At Hampton Court Palace, Tijou achieved perhaps his most celebrated work: the ornate wrought iron screens that border the Privy Garden along the River Thames. Commissioned by William III and Mary II and completed around 1700, the monumental Tijou Screen consists of twelve flamboyantly decorated panels, richly embellished with royal crests, gilded foliage, and mythical creatures. This expansive screen forms a grand Baroque backdrop to the formal gardens and is considered a pinnacle of decorative ironwork. Tijou’s touch at Hampton Court also extended indoors – the King’s Staircase boasts an intricate iron balustrade he designed, which perfectly complements the staircase’s painted ceiling and the palace’s overall splendor.

The photographic collection