Mastery of Design: The Castellani Diadem, 1860

Diadem
Castellani, c. 1860
The Victoria & Albert Museum

The Italian jewelry firm of Castellani made this diadem around 1860 based on an Etruscan original which dated to about 300 B.C. The original is the Campana Collection in the Louvre.

This tiara was copied four more times with each of the copies remaining in private collections. This one was shown at the International Exhibition in London in 1862. There, the works of Castellani garnered much attention and acclaim. So many flocked to the Castellani exhibit, in fact, that a policeman was stationed outside of the display to control the crowds. Certainly, the diadem was the centerpiece of the group.

The piece is made of gold with open floral-work. It is set with pearls, and beads and features enameled, serrated leaves and beaded blue berries. 

After a Fashion: A French Beadwork Purse, 1780-1800

Beadwork Purse
Unknown French Workshop, 1780-1800
The Victoria & Albert Museum

The European love of beadwork rose in the Seventeenth Century, and by the Eighteenth Century, this expensive technique became available to a wider audience as many workshops in England, Italy and France produced small items glistening with glass beads. In France, the medium was often found on delicate purses. French workshops produced some of the finest multi-colored beadwork in Europe during this period. These French craftsmen used beads in conjunction with other techniques, to highlight parts of an embroidered pattern. The most expensive examples were made with a single bead for every stitch, producing a dense beaded surface.

This purse is an excellent representation of the fine beadwork produced in France in the Eighteenth Century. It depicts a figure of a woman in a garden, leaning on a plinth with a rolled parasol in her right hand and a small dog at her feet. The purse was made in four sections, each bearing an allegorical figure, one representing Justice, with finish-work of pink silk cords and tassels. It was made between 1780 and 1800.

Masterpiece of the Week: “The Fairytale,” by James Sant, 1845

The Fairytale
James Sant, 1845
The Walker Art Gallery, Liverpool

A favorite painter of Queen Victoria’s, James Sant enjoyed painting landscapes, but was better known as a portrait painter. This member of the Royal Academy was welcomed into the most prominent homes in England, including the Royal residences, where his prestigious sitters were delighted by his beautiful canvases and marveled at his exceptional work ethic. The collections of many of England’s stately homes include portraits and landscapes painted by Sant.

Every so often, Sant combined his two loves—landscape and portraiture—into genre paintings, domestic scenes and historical or literary groups with strong compositions and delicately painted figures. He especially thrilled in painting mothers and children. One of his more famous paintings is a portrait of a mother and child in a allegorical composition entitled “The Fairytale.” 

Now housed in the Walker Art Gallery, Liverpool, the painting is at once tranquil and tender as well as urgent and mysterious. On the surface, it is simply a scene of a mother telling her young child a fairytale, but look closer. This is a study of Victorian-era ideals. Examine the painting and see what it says to you. 

Click on the image below for a super big copy:

Bertie's Weekly Pick: A Clockwork Bear, 1850-1899

Every week, I'm giving Bertie a chance to pick a favorite object to discuss.  This week, he's decided on this cute, but sadly-muzzled, toy bear which was the subject of a past article. 

Clockwork Bear
1850-1899
France?
The Victoria & Albert Museum

While the concept of a “Dancing Bear” seems quite cruel to us now, it was a staple of Nineteenth Century carnivals and an idea that was often incorporated into children’s playthings. To begin with, the bear was already a favorite subject of toy makers of the Nineteenth Century both in Europe and in the U.S. Here’s a rabbit skin and clockwork example which not only looks disturbingly realistic, but also dances just like the bears that people would see in traveling shows.

This poor bear stands on its hind legs and balances its weight on a walking stick. A figure of wood and cardboard covered in fur, it contains a clockwork mechanism. The bear has a brown glass eye (the other is missing), red plush jaws and teeth made of bone. Its nose and paws are of carved and painted wood. Upon his mouth, he wears a brass wire muzzle from which hangs an attached chain and ring.

Probably the work of a French toymaker, the toy is operated by a large brass key with a circular handle which is inserted into the right side of the body. When the metal rod on the left side is moved, the figure is animated--alternately rocking from side to side to give the impression of walking and dancing.

It’s attractive and horrible all at the same time, sort of like the very idea of a dancing bear.

Object of the Day, Museum Edition: A Paper Model Kit, 1939

Model of the Empire State Building
Robert Freidus, 1939
The Museum of Childhood
The Victoria & Albert Museum

In the 1930’s, artist Robert Freidus, created a series of paper model sets for children which were based on popular architecture across the world. Building paper models was a beloved pastime for both young and old since the Eighteenth Century. Though it’s largely fallen out of fashion, there’s still a fascination with these delicate models.


This set from 1939 produced a scale model of New York’s Empire State Building. This set, among many others, was part of an exciting exhibit at The Victoria $ Albert Museum which concluded in January wherein the guests were welcomed to create models of their own.

Figure of the Day: A Victorian Fairing, 19th C.

Porcelain Fairing
Germany, 19th C.
The Victoria & Albert Museum

Fairings were small porcelain objects (boxes, little cups, vases, etc) of a figural design which were given out as prizes and trinkets at village fairs in Victorian England.  They’re relatively difficult to come by these days since they weren’t really as appreciated at the time as they are today.

The body of this Nineteenth Century fairing is of white porcelain with two figures on the base. One shows a seated man in a dressing gown and night-cap while the other is depicts a woman in casual day attire and a hat, carrying a folded umbrella.  A wee chest of drawers stands behind the figures. The front of the base is outlined in gilding, inscribed with “Missus is Master.”  Ha!

This, like most of the fairings used at British fairs was made in Germany.  Of the factories making them by far the most prolific was Conta and Boehme of Pössneck in Saxony. The subjects of these pieces vary from the innocent (playing children or animals or puns) to the saucy (bedroom frolics or the purely suggestive).

Gifts of Grandeur: Edward Burne-Jones' Marriage Piano, 1860

"[I] lived inside the pictures and from the inside of them looked out upon a world less real than they."

--Pre-Raphaelite artist Edward Burne-Jones, in a letter to May Gaskell

Piano
Frederick Priestly, 1860
Painted panels by Edward Burne-Jones
This and all related images courtesy of the Victoria and Albert Museum

The name Edward Burne-Jones immediately puts one in mind of the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood and theatrical images of languid, titian-haired beauties, rich turquoise and emerald hues and deceptively sparkling waters.  Burne-Jones was one of the most influential of the Brotherhood, the conductor of a beautiful orchestra, if you will.

Georgiana Burne-Jones

And, so, such an artist should have a lovely instrument.  This piano, made in 1860, is the work of Frederick Priestley, an otherwise, as the V&A puts it, unknown piano maker.  The piano was presented as a wedding gift to Edward Burne-Jones and Georgiana "Georgie" MacDonald in 1860. 

Burne-Jones decorated the otherwise modest and plain instrument's case of American oak with a scene from the Medieval Romance,  the Chant d’Amour as an allegory of death--you know, standard wedding stuff. 

In her biography, The Memorials of Edward Burne-Jones, Georgie referenced a portrait of Death on the panel below the keyboard of their piano.  She described Death as  "standing outside the gate of a garden where a number of girls, unconscious of his approach, are resting and listening to music."

Mastery of Design: The Castellani Peace Necklace, 1870

Micromosaic and gold necklace
Castellani, 1870
The Victoria & Albert Museum

The Roman jewelry company of Castellani is considered as one of the first and finest makers of jewelry based on various ancient styles which had been uncovered through then-recent archaeological findings.

Alessandro Castellani remarked upon the firm’s introduction of micromosaic jewelry based on archaeological finds:  "At the time when we took up the subject the greater number of those who followed the occupation of working in mosaic at Rome were almost unemployed; […] We therefore applied mosaics to classical jewellery, imitating at first the antique scenic masks, and many Greek and Latin inscriptions, and our designs were very soon copied elsewhere."

This necklace of gold, made in 1870, shows Castellani’s fine micromosaic work with its woven chain of diverse-shaped pendants matching on each side. The medallions are arranged symmetrically on the chain and depict various symbols of peace, starting at hook clasp: a cherub, doves of peace, two crosses, another cherub and the Christian chi-rho motif; the central pendant with Cupid. The large pendants are hung with smaller pendants which show: roses, christian symbols, flowers, bunches of grapes and the moon and sun.

This necklace is part of an import parure which was once owned by Rosalinde Gilbert who, along with her husband, Sir Arthur, donated this suite along with their impressive collection of gems, gold, snuffboxes, enamels, portrait miniatures and other assorted treasures to the V&A.  

Figure of the Day: A Victorian Fairing, 19th C.

Porcelain Fairing
Germany, 19th C.
The Victoria & Albert Museum

Fairings were small porcelain objects (boxes, little cups, vases, etc) of a figural design which were given out as prizes and trinkets at village fairs in Victorian England.  They’re relatively difficult to come by these days since they weren’t really as appreciated at the time as they are today.

The body of this Nineteenth Century fairing is of white porcelain with two figures on the base. One shows a seated man in a dressing gown and night-cap while the other is depicts a woman in casual day attire and a hat, carrying a folded umbrella.  A wee chest of drawers stands behind the figures. The front of the base is outlined in gilding, inscribed with “Missus is Master.”  Ha!

This, like most of the fairings used at British fairs was made in Germany.  Of the factories making them by far the most prolific was Conta and Boehme of Pössneck in Saxony. The subjects of these pieces vary from the innocent (playing children or animals or puns) to the saucy (bedroom frolics or the purely suggestive).

The Art of Play: The Albert Smith Clown, 1890

"Joey the Clown"
Albert Smith, 1890
The Victoria & Albert Museum

Celebrated Punch & Judy Man and puppet maker, Albert Smith delighted late Nineteenth Century audiences with his enchanting puppets. Here, we see one of the few surviving examples of Smith’s puppets—a figure of “Joey the Clown”—one of the standard characters in the Punch & Judy mythology.

Joey, as has been customary for the last couple of centuries, is a glove puppet with a carved and painted face and hands and painted black hair. Joey sports a red leather pointed hat which is edged with fringe at the front. He wears a multi-colored striped tunic with a red and white ruff, blue cuffs and edging, and a strip of red, yellow and red braid at the front. His wardrobe is adorned with three metal buttons set with artificial jewels (some of which are now missing). On the reverse of the puppet is stitched a long black wired sleeve which was meant to conceal the Professor's arm

The set by Albert Smith from which "Joey" comes. 

Antique Image of the Day: Elphinstone Agnes Maude, Barefoot, c. 1859-1861

Elphinstone Agnes Maude, Barefoot
Lady Hawarden, c. 1859
The Victoria & Albert Museum

I've seen Bertie make this same face.

Photographed between 1859 and 1861 by Clementina, Lady Hawarden (1822-1865), this image of a seemingly spontaneous moment of childish petulance took hours to set-up, pose and photograph in the wet collodion on glass negative process in use in the late 1850s.  

Lady Hawarden was described by her family as the "great baby lover," an affection evident in her many photographic portraits of children, most of them her own.  Clementina had a reputation as a devoted mother.  Lady Hawarden's uncle, Mountstuart Elphinstone, said of Clementina's brood that he "never saw nicer children or better brought up. It seems strange in Clemy who could never keep her own shawl in order & whose devotion to her children seemed enough to spoil a whole generation, but her good sense and regard to duty has kept all right."

This charming image in sepia, mounted on green card, was taken in South Kensington and shows that Clementina's children, especially Elphinstone Agnes Maude (pictured here), were more than happy to participate in their mother's photographic experiments.  

The Art of Play: William Terry Bear, 1905-1908

Mohair Bear
William Terry, 1905-1908
The Museum of Childhood
The Victoria & Albert Museum

English toymaker William Terry began his business in 1890 and found moderate success with his line of stuffed animals made from real animal fur. However, his first commercial triumph was a stuffed, mohair-covered, replica of King Edward VII’s beloved terrier, Caesar. From 1909 onward, due to the success of the Ceasar toy, Terry’s company used the trademark, Terry’er Toys.

Another popular stuffed toy, as always, was the bear. During World War I, when Britain banned the import of German products, British toymakers began to thrive with the production of their own stuffed bears. This bear by William Terry is one of the earliest known English “Teddy Bears.” Made between 1905 and 1908 from shaggy mohair and stuffed with wood wool and kapok, this doll set the standard for British toy bears. With glass eyes, a sharply humped back, webbed claws and stitched nose and mouth, this bear was copied many times by a variety of toymakers.

Today, he lives in the Museum of Childhood at the Victoria & Albert Museum. We know his name is “Ted” and that he was the loyal companion of a boy who was born in 1894. This bear is remarkable in that it predates the creation of the brand Terry’er Toys and shows not only one of Terry’s earliest attempts at creating a mohair toy, but also represents the most influential introduction of a stuffed bear into the world of English toy-making.

Object of the Day, Museum Edition: A Clockwork Bear, 1850-1899

Clockwork Bear
1850-1899
France?
The Victoria & Albert Museum

While the concept of a “Dancing Bear” seems quite cruel to us now, it was a staple of Nineteenth Century carnivals and an idea that was often incorporated into children’s playthings. To begin with, the bear was already a favorite subject of toy makers of the Nineteenth Century both in Europe and in the U.S. Here’s a rabbit skin and clockwork example which not only looks disturbingly realistic, but also dances just like the bears that people would see in traveling shows.

This poor bear stands on its hind legs and balances its weight on a walking stick. A figure of wood and cardboard covered in fur, it contains a clockwork mechanism. The bear has a brown glass eye (the other is missing), red plush jaws and teeth made of bone. Its nose and paws are of carved and painted wood. Upon his mouth, he wears a brass wire muzzle from which hangs an attached chain and ring.

Probably the work of a French toymaker, the toy is operated by a large brass key with a circular handle which is inserted into the right side of the body. When the metal rod on the left side is moved, the figure is animated--alternately rocking from side to side to give the impression of walking and dancing.

It’s attractive and horrible all at the same time, sort of like the very idea of a dancing bear.

Object of the Day, Museum Edition: Oxford Street for the 1953 Coronation

Click Image to Enlarge
Proposed Decoration Scheme for Oxford Street
Coronation, 1953
The Victoria & Albert Museum

This painting is by Edward Bawden (born Braintree 1903; died Saffron Walden, Essex 1989). The artist taught at the Royal College of Art from 1933. This design shows a perspective view of the Oxford Street frontage of the famed Selfridges department store and is meant to demonstrate the proposed decorations for the doorway and windows to celebrate the Coronation of Queen Elizabeth II in 1953.

This is one of three drawings which were made as proposals for the Coronation decoration of Selfridges' exterior. 

The Home Beautiful: Edward Burne-Jones' Marriage Piano, 1860

"[I] lived inside the pictures and from the inside of them looked out upon a world less real than they."

--Pre-Raphaelite artist Edward Burne-Jones, in a letter to May Gaskell

Piano
Frederick Priestly, 1860
Painted panels by Edward Burne-Jones
This and all related images courtesy of the Victoria and Albert Museum

The name Edward Burne-Jones immediately puts one in mind of the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood and theatrical images of languid, titian-haired beauties, rich turquoise and emerald hues and deceptively sparkling waters.  Burne-Jones was one of the most influential of the Brotherhood, the conductor of a beautiful orchestra, if you will.

Georgiana Burne-Jones

And, so, such an artist should have a lovely instrument.  This piano, made in 1860, is the work of Frederick Priestley, an otherwise, as the V&A puts it, unknown piano maker.  The piano was presented as a wedding gift to Edward Burne-Jones and Georgiana "Georgie" MacDonald in 1860. 

Burne-Jones decorated the otherwise modest and plain instrument's case of American oak with a scene from the Medieval Romance,  the Chant d’Amour as an allegory of death--you know, standard wedding stuff. 

In her biography, The Memorials of Edward Burne-Jones, Georgie referenced a portrait of Death on the panel below the keyboard of their piano.  She described Death as  "standing outside the gate of a garden where a number of girls, unconscious of his approach, are resting and listening to music."

Object of the Day, Museum Edition: Tulips, Camellias and Hyacinths, 1864

Tulips Camillias and Hyacinths
Henri Fantin-Latour, 1864
The Victoria & Albert Museum

This intriguing still life of delicate flowers (tulips, camellias and hyacinths) is the work of Henri Fantin-Latour (1836-1904). Fantin-Latour was born in Grenoble where he trained with his father, the celrbated Jean-Théodore Fantin-Latour (1805-75). Later, the promising young painter would study with Horace Lecocq de Boisbaudran at the Petite Ecole de Dessin in Paris from 1850 to 1856. 

After continually ompressing his tutors, Fantin-Latoure joined Gustave Courbet's studio as a pupil, working mostly on portraiture. However, portraits weren’t the artist’s passion and Fantin-Latour soon began to focus on floral paintings and the still lifes for which he is now most recognized.

British collectors were especially attracted to the painter’s floral scenes. Fantin-Latour exhibited at the Royal Academy in London starting in 1862 onwards, and enjoyed the patronage of James McNeill Whistler (1834-1903), whom he met in 1858.

This painting from 1864 is the perfect example of Fantin-Latour's early floral work. Throughout his life, Fantin-Latour created over five hundred floral compositions, many showing unusual combinations of flowers as evidenced by this bouquet of tulips, camellias, hyacinths, holly hocks and assorted wild flowers. The artist’s work is defined by his attention-getting combination of rich textures and tones which are set against a plain dark background. His paintings are categorized as examples of “new naturalism”—a style which developed in French art in the second half of the Nineteenth Century. New naturalism would prove to be the precursor of Impressionism.

Object of the Day, Museum Edition: A Diamond and Stained Chalcedony Brooch, 1912

Diamond, Platinum and Stained Chalcedony Brooch
Cartier, 1912
The Victoria & Albert Museum

After the coronation of King George V, jewelry design began to change from the florid and curvilinear styles popular during the Victorian and Edwardian eras to the sleeker geometric patterns that would define the 1920’s and 1930’s. A new trend in jewelry-making was the love of contrast provided by diamonds and darker stones such as blue sapphires or onyx. The diamonds’ radiance seemed greater when set in platinum next to these more somber stones which exhibited sheen more so than sparkle. Queen Mary was known to enjoy such pieces and had many in her magnificent collection of jewels. Since the Queen was considered a style-setter, elegant black and white jewelry became all the rage.


Due to its popularity, onyx was becoming increasingly scarce at the time. A variety of substitutes were employed to similar effect. Most often used was stained chalcedony. In its natural state, chalcedony has a pale, milky, bluish color. When boiled in a sugar solution, the stone takes on the look of black onyx. High-end jewelers often substitutes stained chalcedony for onyx, stating that, in the long run, the chalcedony was more valuable. The result was actually quite stunning and offered more of a depth and substance to important pieces than would the comparatively flat onyx.

This stunning platinum, diamond and stained chalcedony brooch, made by Cartier in 1912, demonstrates the clever use of this technique. The perfect example of post-Edwardian style, the roots of Art Deco jewelry design can be seen in the dense, close setting of the stones and the play between light and dark.