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. 

Sunday Morning Special: Ancient Fistory, 1952

Welcome to a world where Olive Oyl is a beautiful princess and Bluto operates a Beanery. It's a world brought to you by the year 1952.

Unusual Artifacts: A Needlework Portrait by Mary Knowles, 1779

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

In the post below, we discuss the needlework portraits and images of Miss Mary Linwood. However, Linwood wasn’t the only person recreating painted portraits in embroidery. This needlework picture, commissioned by Queen Charlotte (Consort of George V), in wool dates to 1779 and is the work of Mary Morris Knowles.

Mary Morris Knowles was born of a Quaker family in Rugely, Staffordshire, and was celebrated as much for her intellect as for her skill with the needle. Knowles is now considered to be an important early protagonist of the feminist viewpoint in English cultural life. Ahead of her time, Knowles was an early supporter for the abolition of slavery.

In 1771 Knowles was introduced Queen Charlotte at Buckingham House (now Buckingham Palace), forming a friendship which would last over the next thirty years. Following that first visit in 1771, the Queen commissioned Mrs. Knowles to make a copy of Zoffany’s portrait of George III in needlework or ‘needle painting’ as it was also known.

So pleased with the result, Queen Charlotte showed off the portrait to all of her friends. Eight years later, Mrs. Knowles embroidered this companion picture for Queen Charlotte. It is a self portrait of the artist as she created the needle-painting of George III.

Painting of the Day: Miss Mary Linwood, Artist in Needlework, 1800

Miss Mary Linwood, Artist in Needlework
John Hoppner, R.A., c. 1800

After about 1800, portraits were painted of people from all ranks of society as opposed to earlier portraits which were only commissioned by wealthy landowners, nobility or Royalty. Artists, politicians, literary figures and scientists soon found themselves the subjects of portraiture.


Here, we see a portrait of Mary Linwood whose copies of old master paintings in crewel wool (named from the crewel or worsted wool that was employed) were celebrated as artistic novelties. Linwood would recreate the original artist’s brush strokes with stitches and achieved great fame with her first London exhibition in 1787. She was so popular, in fact, on one occasion her copy of a painting by the Italian artist Salvator Rosa (1615-1673) was sold for more than the original.

Mr. Punch of Belgrave Square Will Continue on Monday

Well, now that Mr. Punch, Robert and company have returned to London, they hope their troubles are behind them. They gave Mrs. North a lovely funeral before they left and they even fished Finlay's body out of the well. With their guests all sent home and the management of Grange Molliner relatively settled, Punch and Robert dreamed of some quiet time for themselves and Colin as well as some peace for Lennie to be able to get to know her new family.

Lennie is touched by the generosity of the men, even agreeing that she should call herself "Lennie Molliner." She does, however, want to see Roger--her one-time brother and, it seems, cousin. She fears that Roger won't know her. He does, but he's a little confused since she looked different the last couple of years (after all, the woman who'd been calling herself Ellen was someone else all together). However, Roger seems unbothered by the change and wants "Lennie" to continue to visit. Before Punch, Robert and Lennie left, Roger stated that there was a Punchinello inside of the Duke--a statement which Punch found unnerving.

Finally sleeping in their own bed, they realized that they'd have no time to rest when a letter arrived from Prince albert. Of course, we know that there's more coming than just that. Hortence, Eudora and Tom have been spying, and their conversation hints that Ellen/Orpha is about to make a return.

Next week will be a shorter posting week because of the American Thanksgiving holiday. I'll be posting new chapters on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday. The long weekend will give you a chance to catch up on any chapters you may have missed--in the Chapter Archive.

Thanks for reading!

Her Majesty's Furniture: A Chippendale Armchair, 1740-60

Drawing Room Chair of Mahogany
Thomas Chippendale
1740-60
This and all related images from:
The Victoria & Albert Museum

Myriad variations of this upholstered drawing-room armchair could have been found in almost any wealthy, mid-18th century household.  This particular mahogany chair is exceptional because it came from the workshop of Thomas Chippendale (1718-1779).  The carver has used stylized dolphin heads as terminals for the chair's feet and the arms.

Chippendale's original design incorporated the whole body of the dolphin - its tail visible at the top of the leg, but the carver has adapted the design, possibly because this chair was likely part of a set which was a special commission.  The scale of the chair and quality of the carving are further  indicators that this chair was part of a commission for a set of seating furniture for a large drawing room. According to the V&A, "At least four other chairs and a footstool of the same carved design are known today."

Thomas Chippendale recommended that tapestry or needlework should be used for drawing-room chairs almost exclusively over other materials. The embroidery on this chair probably dates from the 1740s and may have been cut down from a set of larger wall hangings.

This chair is numbered "IV" of a set of six.  Another from the set lives at the Lady Lever Art Gallery in Liverpool and four others were shown by Messrs. Partridge in their summer exhibition in 1939.

Object of the Day: The Mollie Knitting Machine

In the Nineteenth Century, evenings were spent reading, engaged in conversation, playing games, enjoying artistic pursuits, and strapping your daughters into a knitting machine. Well, that’s the impression I get from this trade card.

The card was created for The Mollie Knitting Machine which claims to be “The Cheapest and Best Made.” By the was patented on August 10, 1886. The bottom tells us that we can buy this contraption somewhere in Missouri, in the past.

The chromolithograph, of course, has all the typical trademarks of such products—a happy kitten playing with a ball of yarn and…well, that’s about it. This pale-faced young lady’s cadaverous face is fixed in resolution to her fate as she, bound to her chair, is trapped within the Mollie Knitting Machine. There’s no escape for her. She knows it. So, she’ll just focus on her vaguely Arts and Crafts flower pattern and hope that, perhaps, the kitten will gnaw through the ropes which bind her into this nightmare of needlework.

$500 REWARD 

for any HAND-TUFTING MACHINE on the market at this
date (Sept. 15, 1887,) that can be worked by a child six years
old, with such precision, ease and rapidity, and making such
close solid stitches to the fabric, in working on curves, as can be
done with
Deal’s • Fabric • Tufter
(Pat. Aug. 10, 1886; Improved Aug. 25, 1886.) 
AUTOMATIC STITCHER AND FEEDER. Makes Regular Stitches and Beautiful Work
          So Simple a Child can Operate it with Ease.
                    Beautiful in Finish. Perfect in Construction.
                              Durable in Use.

     Ladies delighted with it, and discarding the heavy, awk-
ward flat-handle and loose working crank-handle machines.
     Articles of handiwork – mementoes in years to come of the
loved ones of “Home, Sweet Home,” – made in a few hours
with this LATEST IMPROVED FABRIC TUFTER; such as
beautiful
TURKISH RUGS.
          OTTOMANS, QUILTS,
                    PIANO SPREADS, TIDIES,
                            STAIR CARPETS, LAP ROBES,
                                      HOODS, MITTENS,
                                              CAPS, SLIPPERS. ETC. 

     One Hundred and Fifty Stitches Easily Made in a Minute.
Works Cotton and Woolen Rags, Ravelings and Yarn. We
guarantee every Tufter to be PERFECT IN EVERY PAR-
TICULAR.      Sent by mail to any address for $1.50. Carpet Yarn in
colors at 60 cents a pound. Beautiful patterns in stock. Ad-
justable hard-wood frames, 4 ft. by 6 ft., at 40 cents. Orders
by mail promptly attended to.
     AGENTS WANTED IN EVERY TOWN. 
Address 
GEO. H. KING, MANAGER
FABRIC TUFTER CO.
26 EAST SEVENTH ST.
KANSAS CITY, MO. 


Well, thank God. Now, I can get my tidies made! I just have to let little Audra’s legs atrophy for it. This thing could do anything, it seems. Anything, I suppose, except give your daughter a healthful glow and a happy look in her eye. So, for $1.50, I can have all manner of fuzzy things in my house AND keep the female children from thriving.

Ah, but they did anyway. As you can see, one of them had the audacity to write on the card. On the front, in neat script, she wrote her name in pencil—“Lissa.” On the reverse, she wrote something which is now unreadable. I think it says, “Help me.”