Drawing of the Day: You'd Best Go Down to the Gardener, 1916

Scene from "The Widow's Son"
Kay Nielsen, 1916
The Victoria & Albert Museum

The Danish-born illustrator Kay Nielsen had long been inspired by native Scandinavian tales. Even as a child, Nielsen would draw the epic Viking stories which were read aloud to him by his family. This influence naturally led to a career illustrating fairytales and nursery rhymes.

Nielsen’s work hints at the Art Nouveau. He’d studied in Paris during the height of the movement. There, he developed a trademark style which shows elements of the Art Nouveau as well as lines and patterns influenced by Japanese Art.

This 1916 image from the traditional Norse tale, “The Widow’s Son” shows Nielsen’s typical style. A work of pen and ink on paper, the illustration depicts a stylized garden occupied by a bearded man who holds a spade and flowers. He looks over his shoulder to a vision of a female face. I’m not familiar with this story, but, if you are, the inscription must make sense. It reads’ You’d best go down to the gardener.”

The Home Beautiful: Queen Alexandra's Elephant Bell-Push, 1896-1900

Bell-Push
Crown Copyright
The Royal Collection
Courtesy of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II

Queen Alexandra, consort of the rather lusty Edward VII, amused herself while her husband was dating other women by collecting the work of the House of Fabergé—especially wee animals made of precious stones. This collection was one of the few things upon which Queen Alexandra and her daughter-in-law, the Duchess of York (later Queen Mary, Consort of George V) could agree as both enjoyed this particular hobby.


When one collects Fabergé animals, it’s only natural, after amassing a few hundred, that one would start to commission unusual pieces to make the collection a little more exciting. So, why not a bell-push shaped like an elephant?

Here, made between 1896 and 1900 in nephrite, silver, and guilloché enamel, and rubies we see such a bell-push. Even though Fabergé was bes known for opulent decorative items, they did occasionally produce practical items, among which bell-pushes were some of the most functional and complicated. Such bell-pushes were designed to sit upon a desk.

Here, the push-piece is in the form of a silver elephant set with cabochon ruby eyes. The elephant is a reference to Queen Alexandra’s native Denmark, where the elephant is incorporated in the design of the senior Danish order of chivalry.

The elephant, here, stands on a tapered platform of salmon-pink guilloché enamel with a nephrite base. It bears the mark of Fabergé ‘s Karl Armfelt; with a silver mark of 88 zolotniks (1896-1908); and Fabergé in Cyrillic characters.

The Home Beautiful: Princess Maud and Prince Charles of Denmark 1896-1901

Prince Charles of Denmark and Princess Maud
1896-1901
Frame by Viktor Aarne of Fabergé
The Royal Collection

This beautiful frame of three-color gold, dazzling blue guilloché enamel, half pearls, rose diamonds, and ivory by Viktor Aarne (Johann Victor Aarne (1863-1934)) of Fabergé rather steals focus from the photographs it holds. But, honestly, there are few photos which could rival the beauty of this magnificent frame.


Still, the photos themselves are quite handsome. Here, we see the pretty Princess Maud in a photo from 1896. Maud was the daughter of King Edward VII and Queen Alexandra. The other oval houses a photo of her new husband, Prince Charles of Denmark who was quite a fine-looking chap. Maude married the Prince in 1896. From 1905 onward, he was King Haakon VII of Norway, ensuring that Maud always enjoyed a Royal lifestyle. 

Crown Copyright
The Royal Collection
Images Courtesy of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II

Object of the Day, Museum Edition: Princess Marina’s Baby Dress, 1910

Dress
Embroidered Linen
Made for Princess Marina, 1910
The Victoria & Albert Museum

Though children’s fashions tended to be simpler in design than their adult counterparts, they were nonetheless well made. Clothing, overall, was made to last. Even in the early Twentieth Century, most families—even the wealthiest—didn’t have closets full of changes of clothes. Children’s clothes, especially, were constructed to be sturdy. However, great attention to detail was still paid because, in many cases, these articles were passed down from child to child—often for generations.

This beautiful dress of embroidered linen was made in 1910 for Princess Marina of Greece and Denmark (1906-1968). The Princess was the youngest of the three daughters of HRH Prince Nicholas of Greece and his wife Grand Duchess Elena of Russia. However, most people remember Princess Marina as the wife of the fourth son of King George V and Queen Mary, Prince George (“Georgie” to his mother, the Queen), the Duke of Kent whom the Princess married in 1934. “Georgie” and Marina appeared to have a happy marriage though beneath the surface there was a lot going on that wasn’t known by the public. Together, they had one child, Prince Edward (now Duke of Kent). Princess Marina, even after the untimely death of the Duke of Kent in 1942, was quite popular with the people of Britain who admired her fashion sense—a trait, it seems, which she developed as a child. 

Mastery of Design: The Louise of Denmark "Fly" Box, Early Nineteenth Century

Silver Gilt Box set with European Cut Diamonds and Table-Cut Rubies and Emeralds
Bequest of Queen Louise of Denmark
Crown Copyright
The Royal Collection
Image Courtesy of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II

In 1926, Queen Mary was bequeathed this handsome, jeweled box from Queen Louise of Denmark.  The silver-gilt box is set with rubies, emeralds and diamonds within a black enamel border.  Curiously, the jewels form the shape of a fly.  

While we know that the box was made in Denmark, it's hard to decide on the year of creation, but all signs point to it having been made in the early Nineteenth Century or Late Eighteenth.

Drawing of the Day: You'd Best Go Down to the Gardener, 1916

Scene from "The Widow's Son"
Kay Nielsen, 1916
The Victoria & Albert Museum

The Danish-born illustrator Kay Nielsen had long been inspired by native Scandinavian tales. Even as a child, Nielsen would draw the epic Viking stories which were read aloud to him by his family. This influence naturally led to a career illustrating fairytales and nursery rhymes.

Nielsen’s work hints at the Art Nouveau. He’d studied in Paris during the height of the movement. There, he developed a trademark style which shows elements of the Art Nouveau as well as lines and patterns influenced by Japanese Art.

This 1916 image from the traditional Norse tale, “The Widow’s Son” shows Nielsen’s typical style. A work of pen and ink on paper, the illustration depicts a stylized garden occupied by a bearded man who holds a spade and flowers. He looks over his shoulder to a vision of a female face. I’m not familiar with this story, but, if you are, the inscription must make sense. It reads’ You’d best go down to the gardener.”

The Home Beautiful: Queen Alexandra's Elephant Bell-Push, 1896-1900

Bell-Push
Crown Copyright
The Royal Collection
Courtesy of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II

Queen Alexandra, consort of the rather lusty Edward VII, amused herself while her husband was dating other women by collecting the work of the House of Fabergé—especially wee animals made of precious stones. This collection was one of the few things upon which Queen Alexandra and her daughter-in-law, the Duchess of York (later Queen Mary, Consort of George V) could agree as both enjoyed this particular hobby.


When one collects Fabergé animals, it’s only natural, after amassing a few hundred, that one would start to commission unusual pieces to make the collection a little more exciting. So, why not a bell-push shaped like an elephant?

Here, made between 1896 and 1900 in nephrite, silver, and guilloché enamel, and rubies we see such a bell-push. Even though Fabergé was bes known for opulent decorative items, they did occasionally produce practical items, among which bell-pushes were some of the most functional and complicated. Such bell-pushes were designed to sit upon a desk.

Here, the push-piece is in the form of a silver elephant set with cabochon ruby eyes. The elephant is a reference to Queen Alexandra’s native Denmark, where the elephant is incorporated in the design of the senior Danish order of chivalry.

The elephant, here, stands on a tapered platform of salmon-pink guilloché enamel with a nephrite base. It bears the mark of Fabergé ‘s Karl Armfelt; with a silver mark of 88 zolotniks (1896-1908); and Fabergé in Cyrillic characters.

Object of the Day, Museum Edition: Princess Marina’s Baby Dress, 1910

Dress
Embroidered Linen
Made for Princess Marina, 1910
The Victoria & Albert Museum

Though children’s fashions tended to be simpler in design than their adult counterparts, they were nonetheless well made. Clothing, overall, was made to last. Even in the early Twentieth Century, most families—even the wealthiest—didn’t have closets full of changes of clothes. Children’s clothes, especially, were constructed to be sturdy. However, great attention to detail was still paid because, in many cases, these articles were passed down from child to child—often for generations.

This beautiful dress of embroidered linen was made in 1910 for Princess Marina of Greece and Denmark (1906-1968). The Princess was the youngest of the three daughters of HRH Prince Nicholas of Greece and his wife Grand Duchess Elena of Russia. However, most people remember Princess Marina as the wife of the fourth son of King George V and Queen Mary, Prince George (“Georgie” to his mother, the Queen), the Duke of Kent whom the Princess married in 1934. “Georgie” and Marina appeared to have a happy marriage though beneath the surface there was a lot going on that wasn’t known by the public. Together, they had one child, Prince Edward (now Duke of Kent). Princess Marina, even after the untimely death of the Duke of Kent in 1942, was quite popular with the people of Britain who admired her fashion sense—a trait, it seems, which she developed as a child.

Antique Image of the Day: Princess Maud and Prince Charles of Denmark 1896-1901

Prince Charles of Denmark and Princess Maud
1896-1901
Frame by Viktor Aarne of Fabergé
The Royal Collection

This beautiful frame of three-color gold, dazzling blue guilloché enamel, half pearls, rose diamonds, and ivory by Viktor Aarne of Fabergé rather steal focus from the photographs it holds. But, honestly, there are few photos which could rival the beauty of this magnificent frame.


Still, the photos themselves are quite handsome. Here, we see the pretty Princess Maud in a photo from 1896. Maud was the daughter of King Edward VII and Queen Alexandra. The other oval houses a photo of her new husband, Prince Charles of Denmark who was quite a fine-looking chap. Maude married the Prince in 1896. From 1905 onward, he was King Haakon VII of Norway, ensuring that Maud always enjoyed a Royal lifestyle.