Object of the Day, Museum Edition: A Sheffield Silver Salver, 18th Century

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Silver Salver
Sheffield, 1740-1780
The Victoria & Albert Museum

In the Eighteenth Century, small silver salvers (wee trays with no handles) were used for a variety of purposes such as presenting a glass or small object to the master of the house. However, by the mid Eighteenth Century, salvers were mostly used to carry letters, cards or newspapers. For a servant to hand something directly to the master of the house was considered very bad form, so, the silver salver served as a handy go-between.

Salvers were usually round or slightly oval. Every so often, they were made in a square or polygonal form, often with rounded corners. They, more often than not, featured little silver feeties upon which the tray could rest when left upon a flat surface such as a center table or sideboard.

This circular example with three feet is made in Sheffield plate—coated with silver on both sides, but with the upper layer being thicker to better withstand the wear that the top of the object would receive. Furthermore, thicker silver on the top surface allowed sufficient material for a coat of arms or monogram to be engraved without exposing the base metal of the copper core. Such salvers were typically engraved. This one, for example, has been adorned with a coat of arms and branches of laurel and palm. This salver is an excellent example of the type of salvers made in Sheffield between 1740 and 1780.

Unusual Artifacts: The Angel Chalice, c. 1905

"The Angel Chalice"
Phoebe and Ramsay Traquair with J.M. Talbot
Scotland, 1905
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The Victoria & Albert Museum

Made in Edinburgh, Scotland around 1905, this cup is constructed of an abalone shell mounted in silver and decorated with enamel. A pierced silver foliate border adorns the rim of the cup which is supported on three, sculptural wires which terminate in moonstone mounts at the rim. Mounts of enamel mimicking cabochon-cut gems adorn the junctions of the supporting wire frames which hold enamel paintings of angels with musical instruments. The monogram “PT” is visible on one of these three triangular panels.

This chalice is the work of Edinburgh artist and jeweler Phoebe Traquair (1852-1936) whose celebrated enamel work is praised to this day. Phoebe’s husband, Ramsay, assisted on the design and the physical work was carried out by their frequent assistant J.M. Talbot. It’s the first, and finest, of a series of five chalices set with shells designed by Ramsay and Phoebe Traquair, and crafted by Talbot.

History's Runway: A Silver Tobacco Box, 17th C.

Silver Tobacco Box, c. 1655
The Victoria & Albert Museum

Western Europeans were introduced to tobacco in the Sixteenth Century when the herb was brought from the Americas.  From about 1570, tobacco was highly prized for both its alleged medicinal and obvious narcotic qualities.  By the 1630s, tobacco use was accepted (for men) as a fashionable habit for all classes though the cost was rather prohibitive for those without extra spending money.  For centuries, tobacco was chewed or smoked in a pipe, or combined with other herbs or spices to create snuff which was inhaled through the nostrils. 

Given the cost of tobacco, it was only fitting that special containers would be created for it, especially ones meant to appeal to wealthy tobacco users.  A precious tobacco box was quite the fashionable accessory.  This silver tobacco box is an excellent example of that trend.  Made around 1655, it was intended for personal use, its slightly-domed oval lid engraved with heraldic ornament—namely the crest of the Wayte Family from the Isle of Wight. It is further adorned with a cabled wire ornament at the rim and base. The back bears the inscription: “JW / 1680 / R W Jan 1st / 789.”  Though the inscription was finished in 1680 (the date of presentation), the hallmark for the creation of the box indicates 1655-1656.

The owner of this box would have carried it in his pocket.  Due to this practice, the corded molding has been worn away.  

The Home Beautiful: Crane's Lily and Rose Wallpaper, 1894

Wallpaper by Walter Crane, 1894
The Victoria & Albert Museum

The celebrated Walter Crane was known for his wallpaper designs. Crane’s papers lined the wall of many a Victorian parlor. Here, we see a design for one of Crane’s papers. This woodblock print on paper is an original sketch for Crane’s “Lily and Rose” paper. A pattern of lilies and roses is set upon foliage against a dark red ground. Made in 1894, this is an excellent example of the color scheme which was popular a the time. The paper was designed to be surmounted by a corresponding frieze or border. 

After A Fashion: A Costume Design for Wendy Hiller, 1935

Dress Design for Wendy Hiller, c. 1935
The Victoria & Albert Museum

Wendy Hiller (1912-2003) was trained at the Manchester Repertory Theatre in 1930 and made her West End debut, to exceptional acclaim. In 1935, at the apex of her illustrious carrer, Miss Hiller appeared as Sally Hardcastle in “Love on the Dole.”  Later, she went on to star in countless roles on the stage and, then, in film and television.  Her grand career led to being awarded a DBE (Dame of the British Empire) in 1975.

Here, we see a pencil and watercolor costume design for Dame Wendy Hiller. The drawing shows a side view of an elegant lady with her auburn hair swept back into a low bun. She is depicted wearing a pink dress with cap sleeves trimmed with pearls, a row of pearls, and elbow-length white opera gloves.

The costume sketch is unsigned, but it is inscribed “Miss Wendy Hiller. Heavy Silk Dress Flamingo Pink. Organza Pleated Insets. Large Chiffon Scarves in Three (underlined) Pinks.”

The drawing dates to about 1935.  It’s not certain which of her shows the costume was for.  Perhaps it was a drawing for a gown for her to wear personally.

The Art of Play: A Pelham Puppet March Hare, 1950-1955

The March Hare
Pelham Puppets
1950-1955
The Victoria & Albert Museum

Pelhams, the wildly popular British toymaker, began in 1947 when Bob Pelham opened his business in Malborough, Wiltshire. The company survived until 1993 and, in that time, made thousands of different puppet characters of both glove and marionette varieties. The Pelham puppets were simple to operate for children and evolved in appearance as fashions changed from decade to decade. It’s easy to identify when a Pelham puppet was made just by looking at it because the designs seem to represent the visual ideals of each era. 

For example, this marionette March Hare could not possibly look more like a creation of the 1950s. And, that’s when he was made—between 1950 and 1955. He features a solid, molded wooden head and hands, all painted. Meanwhile his body and arms are made of wooden blocks which are hidden under his costume of striped trousers, a green jacket and waistcoat and an orange bow tie.

Masterpiece of the Week: The Birds and Ferns Potpourri Vase, 1820

The Victoria & Albert Museum

Made purely for the sake of satisfying the senses, this cylindrical vase of square form, features a tapering neck, spreading foot and gilded handles in the form of grotesque animal heads. The central section of the vase is painted with a tree on which sits an exotic bird and a parrot above an abundance of roses and other flowers in blue, yellow, brown, orange, pink and black enamels. The background, in its entirety, undulates with an abstracted painted fern pattern in mauve.

The base is pierced with three circular holes and the lid—which is surmounted by the figure of a gilt, seated greyhound--is pierced with eight circular holes. These openings allowed scent to escape from the potpourri with which this vessel was filled.

These beautiful container was made in Longport, England, c. 1820 by Davenport & Co. who specialized in bone china which was gilt and painted in brilliant enamel colors. It is marked “DAVENPORT, LONGPORT.”

Figure of the Day: Fanny Kemble, 1840

Fanny Kemble
Staffordshire, 1840
The Victoria & Albert Museum

As I’ve mentioned before, the earliest Staffordshire earthenware flatbacks depicted Queen Victoria. The popularity of these Royal portraits gave rise to portraits of notable public figures, often celebrated entertainers and actors.

This Staffordshire flatback depicts the actress Fanny Kemble and is based on an 1829 engraving by Richard J. Lane, after a drawing by Sir Thomas Lawrence. Frances “Fanny” Anne Kemble (1809-1893) was the daughter of the famed actors Maria and Charles Kemble and one of the long acting dynasty which had dominated the British stage since the late Eighteenth Century. 

Fanny made her debut on stage at the age of nineteen as “Juliet” at the Covent Garden Theatre. She found fame both in England and in the U.S. where she was married to a Philadelphia businessman.

Painting of the Day: Two Turks, with a Servant, 1828-1840

Two Turks, with a Servant, Smoking on a Terrace Overlooking a Lake or Sea in Turkey or Greece
William Page
British, 1828-1840
The Victoria & Albert Museum

This graceful painting has been saddled with a very cumbersome title, “Two Turks, with a Servant, Smoking on a Terrace Overlooking a Lake or Sea in Turkey or Greece.”  It is the work of William Page (1794-1872). This William Page is a British painter, not to be confused with the American artist of the same name who lived roughly during the same period.  Page demonstrates his delicate skill with watercolors in this work on rough paper.  Highlights and details are accentuated in pencils.

Painted between 1828-1840, the work is inscribed on the back, probably partly erroneously, “Turks. Village of Scutari.”  Later notes by the artist suggest that the scene may be in or near Ioannina.

Page’s style went through two distinct stages.  This painting represents Page's later, more picturesque, style.  Previously, during the 1810s and early/mid 1820s, Page focused mainly on costume studies.  During the late 1820s and  early 1830s, he mainly depicted graceful landscapes.  Here, he appears to have combined the two.

Drawing of the Day: The Yellow-Breasted Chat and the Turk's Cap Lily, c. 1765

The Yellow-Breasted Chat and The Turk's Cap Lily, c. 1765
Mark Catesby
Purchased by King George III
Crown Copyright
The Royal Collection
Image Courtesy of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II

From the Royal Collection, we have this handsome watercolor by Mark Catesby (1682-1749). Catesby created the painting of a small bird (known as a Yellow-Breasted Chat) with a Turk’s Cap Lily. To give emphasis to the bird, Catesby has only faintly sketched-in the plant with it’s maple-shaped leaves. 

The painting was created for one Thomas Cadell from whom it was purchased by King George III in 1768.

To Serve and Project: The Summer Tile, 1881

Tile of "Summer"
Kate Greenaway, 1881
The Victoria & Albert Museum

In the late Nineteenth Century, ceramic wall tiles were considered quite fashionable and the demand for them grew considerably, especially to be used in conjunction with fireplaces since the new cast-iron grates that began to appear during this period were specifically designed to be set with tiles. The tiles were fitted to metal panels that bolted onto the frame. At the start of this trend, pictorial tiles with pastoral scenes were especially popular and, often, tiles with series of different scenes were used.

The invention of “dust-pressing,” which developed in the 1840s, aided the mass production of tiles. The process allowed tiles to be formed by compacting powdered clay under high pressure in a screw-press. As many as 1,800 tiles a day—of a consistently high quality--could made on a single press, operated by two people. The result was tiles which were much less prone to warping than earlier examples.

Here, we see a tile made in such a manner—in 1881. It is one of a set of four tiles of the seasons. In this example, a woman is in her garden watering flowers, wearing a Japanese hairstyle and clothing. The style of the figure on this tile is close in appearance to figures drawn by one Kate Greenaway (1846-1901)-- one of the most celebrated children's book illustrators of the period. It is highly likely to have been her work since she often lent her talents to especially commissioned tile pieces.

Object of the Day, Museum Edition: The Refusal by Sir David Wilkie, RA

The Refusal
Sir David Wilike, 1814
The Victoria & Albert Museum

Duncan Gray cam here to woo,
Ha, ha, the wooing o't,
On blythe Yule Night when we were fu',
Ha, ha, the wooing o't,
Maggie coost her head fu' high,\
Looked asklent and unco skeigh,
Gart poor Duncan stand abeigh;
Ha, ha, the wooing o't.


Duncan fleeched, and Duncan prayed;
Ha, ha, the wooing o't,
Meg was deaf as Ailsa Craig;
Ha, ha, the wooing o't,
Duncan sighed baith out and in,
Grat his een baith bleer't and blin',
Spak o' lowpin ower a linn;
Ha, ha, the wooing o't.

--Robert Burns

Robert Burn’s song, “Duncan Gray” was the inspiration for this painting which has been attributed to Sir David Wilkie, RA. The song, similar in theme, if not tone, toBarbara Allen, is about a young lady’s refusal of a man who courts her, later changing her mind, but suffering in the process.

Here, we see Duncan in the moment after “the refusal” as Maggie sits coldly in front of him. Wilkie’s friend, the painter William Mulready, served as the model for Duncan.

This painting was one of eight by Wilkie that had been gifted to the V&A by John Sheepshanks (1784-1863), a wealthy art collector who promised his impressive collection of British art to the Nation after his death. The first permanent structure at the site of the V&A was built to house his collection.

Unusual Artifacts: The Hand and Arm of Victoria, Princess Royal, 1843

The Royal Collection

Queen Victoria had a great desire to capture moments in the lives of her family. She was very much interested in recording the growth of her children so that she could remember them at all stages of their lives. This desire took many forms. She had miniature portraits painted of her children as they grew. She even had jewelry commissioned which used their baby teeth as the principal ornament.


When Victoria died in 1901, a touching (and to modern eyes, quite odd) collection of marble arms, hands and feet was found in her private rooms at Buckingham Palace. The Queen had commissioned sculptor Abraham Kent (who would most likely not be remembered were it not for these objects) to create these marble keep-sakes of her children’s features so that she could remember them when they were small. Kent took a plaster mold of the Princess Royal’s hand and arm in order to capture every detail when he was sculpting the stone. The process of obtaining the casts had to be done while the children were sleeping as they would not stand for it while they were awake.

The Royal Collection

This sculpture, like its brethren, was kept on a crimson velvet cushion under a glass dome to ensure that the marble would stay a pristine white. It really is quite beautiful in its own way. We must remember, when we view artifacts such as this, that this was before everyone had a camera in their pocket. Today, we have so many ways of recording our lives. Victoria, like many other mothers throughout time, simply wanted a way to recall the sweetest years of her children’s lives.

Painting of the Day: A View of Snow Hill, Windsor Great Park, 1799

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View of Snow Hill, Windsor Great Park
Benjamin West, 1799
The Victoria & Albert Museum

Benjamin West (1738-1820) is notable as the first American-born artist to gain international renown. He famously was appointed as Historical Painter to King George III and was granted the position of the second President of the Royal Academy.

West was decidedly ambitious and, in many ways, ruthless in his pursuit of prestige. Later in life, both he and his work became affected by a melodramatic grandiosity which was both charming and repulsive.

Upon his death, he left behind a legacy of nearly 750 paintings of which only about thirty were landscapes. Therefore, this canvas from 1799 is particularly special. Entitled, “A View of Snow Hill, Windsor Great Park” depicts West himself, at the left, sketching. He is joined by his friend and companion, James Dyer, a former soldier in the Horse Guards who would later become a life model at the Royal Academy Schools. Furthermore, Dyer served as West's valet for fifty years. This painting is one of a group of seven views in and around Windsor which were created by West. West rented a house in Windsor, circa 1780, in large part because he had been commissioned for a series of paintings in the Royal Chapel in Windsor Castle.

Mastery of Design: The Imperial State Crown

The Imperial State Crown. Courtesy of The British Monarchy.

One of the most stunning achievements of the jeweler’s art, the British Imperial State Crown, is, perhaps, the most famous piece in the Crown Jewels. Based on the crown worn by St. Edward, the crown is an architectural marvel. From a base of four crosses pattée which alternates with four fleurs-de-lis, four half-arches support an orb and cross—symbols of the monarchy. The crown itself is lined in velvet and ermine. 

Crown Copyright
The Royal Collection
Image courtesy of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II

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A glittering mosaic of 2,868 diamonds, 273 pearls, 17 sapphires, 11 emeralds, and 5 rubies, the crown also boasts some of the most famous gems in the world including The Black Prince’s “Ruby” (a red spinel, actually), a sapphire from the ring of Edward the Confessor, the Stuart Sapphire and the magnificent Cullinan II Diamond which alone weighs 317.4 carats. 

Crown Copyright
The Royal Collection
Image courtesy of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II

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Crown Copyright
The Royal Collection
Image courtesy of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II

Click image to enlarge.

The current version of the crown was designed and manufactured in 1937 for the coronation of King George VI and was altered for the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II. Worn annually by the Queen for the State Opening of Parliament, the crown usually resides in The Jewel House in the Tower of London with the other crown jewels. 

Crown Copyright
The Royal Collection
Image courtesy of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II

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Drawing of the Day: Costume Design for 'Babes in the Wood,' 1907

Costume Design
Attilio Comelli
1907
The Victoria & Albert Museum

Here we see a costume design by Attilio Comelli for the character of the Jester in the 1907-1908 play Babes in the Wood which ran at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane.  This production featured characters from the legend of Robin Hood.

In this production, the Jester was played by a woman, so, the drawing for the costume design depicts a female figure wearing a red, orange and purple jester's outfit.

The drawing was finished in 1907 prior to the debut of the production.

Painting of the Day: A Basket of Fruit for the Empire Marketing Board, 1931

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Still-Life of Exotic Fruit
Mark Gertler
The Empire Marketing Board, 1931
The Victoria & Albert Museum

Painted in 1931 by Mark Gertler (1891-1939), this still-life of a basket holding pineapple, apples, bananas and pears on a cloth-draped table, was commissioned by the Empire Marketing Board.

The Marketing Board had been established in 1926 in order to promote trade with the Colonies and Dominions of the British Empire.  This original painting was one of several lush designs which, through using brilliant, enticing imagery, were commissioned to encourage British people to support these growing industries.  

Posters printed with these paintings, many of which were the work of Gertler in a similarly appealing style, were emblazoned with effective slogans such as "Buy Empire Every Day" and "Follow the Flag in all your Purchases."

Print of the Day: The Sailor's Uniform, pre-1886

Print
Illustrated by Alfred Concanen
pre-1886
The Victoria & Albert Museum

Illustrated by Alfred Concanen (1825-1886) and published by G. Heybourn, this color portrait depicts a man in a sailor’s uniform. This is what would be called a “proof between letters” wherein the image is examined and corrected (if need be) before the layer of type is added.