Unusual Artifacts: A Venetian Fan Handle, 1550

Fan Handle
Gilt Brass, designed for a feather fan.
Made in Venice, c. 1550
The Victoria & Albert Museum

Here we see what was once the handle of a feather fan.  Such luxurious hand fans were introduced into Tudor England through import from Venice, Milan and Genoa. In the early Sixteenth Century, Italian fan makers borrowed the lush look of these feather fans from designs which had been brought to Europe from Asia.  Such fans were very expensive to make and ownership of one confirmed the user’s status and rank.

This exquisite fan handle is comprised of gilt brass which was cast, pierced and engraved with an Eastern-influenced Moresque ornament.  In this case, a Moorish design is created through stylized, interlaced geometric patterns like those which evolved in Arab civilizations of the Near East and in the Moorish states of Spain.

The handle was designed to be durable.  When the fan's feathers became ratty, they could be replaced with new feathers which were arranged in the metal handle. This gilt-brass handle was, actually, a less extravagant version of the style.  Higher-end handles were crafted of carved ivory, gold or silver. The feathers would come from a native bird, but usually, more expensive feathers from exotic birds such as peacocks, swans, ostriches or, even parakeets would be used—especially for the finer gold or ivory handles.

Fans like this one were worn attached to the belt of the dress by a metal chain or silk cord.

This example comes from Venice, Italy and was made ca. 1550.