Unusual Artifacts: Harry Randall's Dressing Case, 1840-60

Dressing Case of Harry Randall
1840-60
This and all related images from the
Victoria & Albert Museum

This dressing case was used by the leading music hall comic and “pantomime dame” Harry Randall (1860-1932) as a make-up box. The fine quality of the box and its handsome fittings mark of the status that Randall reached as a performer. Curiously, this was the only personal possession of Harry Randall's that was preserved by his family.

Randall's first professional appearance was in 1884 at Deacon's Music Hall in Islington. He was very close friends with champion dancer Dan Leno and, like Leno, Randall became known for his comedy character songs and his pantomime dames, several of which he performed in pantomimes with Leno. He became so well known that his name was used in the rhyming slang for 'candles' which became known as “Harry Randalls,” or simply “Harrys.”

The wooden dressing case boats inlaid brass edging to the lid and sides. The lid of the box is lined with ruched and padded blue velvet, around which there is a dark blue leather border stamped with a gilt foliate pattern.


The box contains a removable wooden tray divided into six compartments, three of the compartments are lined with blue leather; two with pads of blue velvet and one without lining but with a wooden lid with a silver knob.



The tray contains a wooden lidded compartment, two small round glass jars with silver lids, a long glass tray with a pierced and chased silver lid and a compartment with indentations for tweezers, a corkscrew, a button hook, an awl, manicure scissors and a nail file with a mother-of-pearl handle. The main body of the dressing case has four deep compartments, three containing silver-lidded jars, and one empty with a wooden lid with a silver knob, similar to the wooden lid in the tray but not the same size.


The case was made in London between 1840-1860 by J.J. Mechi. It is marked:

'No.4 LEADENHALL ST. LONDON. J.J.MECHI. To prevent fraudulent imitations signs all his articles thus without which NONE ARE GENIUNE.'
'J.J.Mechi'

When the case was donated to the V&A, the donor, a relative by marriage to Harry Randall, wrote: "I am the current custodian of his travelling box in which he kept his make-up. It has been passed down through the family originating from his sister in law Mrs Annie (Nancy) Randall who was married to Alf Randall, Harry's brother. She had everything belonging to Harry Randall, his make-up box, his scrap book, his chair and his sheet music. After my Great Aunt Nancy died everything of Harry's was thrown out, except his make-up box which my father's sister kept. At this time it still had his original make in on the jars but when my father's sister died and I became the new owner of the box, all the make-up had been washed out by my aunt, unfortunately."

Her Majesty’s Furniture: Prince Albert’s Casket, 1871

Casket
Glass, Ebony, Silver Gilt
1871
The Victoria & Albert Museum

No, this isn’t the casket in which dear old Albert was buried. He’s got that with him in the Royal Mausoleum at Frogmore—right next to Victoria. This is something much different. It’s essentially a display case of glass, ebony and silver gilt.


This little beauty was created in 1871 to display Prince Albert’s season ticket for the Great Exhibition of 1851. Albert and his wife, the Queen, were much excited about the Great Exhibition and enjoyed it immensely, thrilled with the works of the British people and, also, using it as an opportunity to shop—an activity that they both fancied. The casket was also meant to house two volumes about the life of the Prince Consort as well as the records of his public addresses.

It’s especially important since Prince Albert was vital in starting the project for the exhibition and the Queen was adamant that her dearly departed husband’s contributions should be forever remembered. Per the Queen’s instructions, the casket is surmounted by figures representing Learning, Science and Philosophy. F. W. Moody (1824–86) designed the casket, O. Gibbons modeled it, and G. Franchi cast and chased the figures and silver gilding.

All that said, I can’t quite figure out what happened to the important contents it was designed to hold, but they don’t appear to be anywhere near it if they ever made it in there in the first place. Nevertheless, the casket, empty though it is, is rightfully in the V&A, looking very pretty and mildly creepy—just as the best things do.

Painting of the Day: Judith Leyster’s “A Boy and Girl with a Cat and an Eel,” 1635

A Boy and Girl with a Cat and Eel
Judith Leyster, 1635
National Gallery, Britain

Dutch painter Judith Leyster was one of the few recognized Seventeenth Century female painters of her time. She often used children in her compositions to create allegorical scenes to demonstrate the foolishness of humanity.  Drawing on the Dutch saying, “He who plays with cats gets scratched,” Leyster has painted a rather gruesome scene of two children.  The boy has baited a cat with a wriggling eel.  The child has captured the cat who is further being taunted by a wicked little girl who’s pulling his tail.  The cat’s extended claws tell us how this little situation will end.  Meant to be a warning against foolish and destructive behavior, this painting is simultaneously charming and disturbing. It can be viewed amongst other works by Leyster at the National Gallery, Britain.

The National Gallery, Britain

Building of the Week: Hampton Court Palace, the East Molesey, Greater London

Originally built circa 1514 for Cardinal Thomas Wolsey, The Archbishop of York , Chief Minister and a favorite of King Henry VIII, Hampton Court Palace was intended to show foreign visitors that British cardinals wielded just as much prestige and power as those of the Catholic Church in Rome.


The palace was initially built in an unusual combination of styles which reflected the transition of architectural preferences that defined the reign of Henry VIII. Predominantly domestic Tudor in style, the palace—as originally built—contained many perpendicular Gothic features along with some unexpected Classical detailing. Wolsey oversaw the completion of the palace, but only managed to live there for a few years before he realized that he’d been increasingly falling out of favor with Henry VIII. In order to pacify the king, Wolsey made a gift of the palace to him. The cardinal then died the following year.

The Tudor Entrance

King Henry VIII rather liked the palace and wanted to make it the central residence of his court. However, his court—when fully assembled—contained about one thousand people. The palace as it was, could not hold all of them at once, and furthermore the kitchens were certainly not big enough to feed Henry, let alone his entire court. Under Henry VIII’s direction, the kitchens were quadrupled in size in 1529. Henry also commissioned the famous Great Hall as well as the tennis courts.

EnglishMonarchs.co.uk

Meanwhile, Henry VIII was having some marital difficulties—wives were cheating, dying, being killed and generally irritating him. Some of this must have distracted him because the palace had several years where it was not altered. After the king’s death, his eldest daughter, Queen Mary I succeeded him—for a bit—and she was replaced with Queen Elizabeth I who lived at the Palace and added yet another kitchen.

In 1603, the Tudor Period ended with the death of Elizabeth I. The monarchy was taken over by the Stuart Dynasty, initially led by James I, and then his son, Charles I. There was some much publicized trouble with Charles I, but we won’t get into that now. We’ll just say that Charles II became King, and he was followed by James II—neither of them cared much for Hampton Court Palace and it went into a long period of disuse.

EnglishMonarchs.co.uk

That all changed when joint monarchs, William of Orange and Queen Mary II (daughter of James II) ascended to the throne(s) in their rather peculiar arrangement. They enlisted Sir Christopher Wren—the top architect of the day, to demolish the Tudor palace bit-by-bit and replace it with a new Baroque palace so as not to be outdone by those pesky French with their Versailles. They did, however, intend to leave Henry VIII’s great hall intact.

And, so, a long period of construction began to make Hampton Court Palace look more like Versailles—which it did, in parts. But, the job was never finished because Mary died and William lost interest, and then fell off of his horse and died, too. So, what remains is a essentially a Tudor palace on one side and a Baroque palace on the other. Fortunately, they’re unified in color by the use of rosy bricks. Many courtiers found the new round windows with pointed pediments to be “startling” as if the new courtyard was simply a line of wondering eyes. Others felt that the improvements to the structure rivaled Versailles grandeur.

The Baroque Facade

After the end of the Stuart Dynasty, only George I and George II used the palace as a residence. In 1838, Queen Victoria ordered that the palace be restored. Victoria intended for the palace to house much of the artifacts in the Royal Collection. For most of the Twentieth Century, Hampton Court Palace has been open to the public so that all can enjoy the art and architecture of one of the world’s most intriguing and unusual palaces. 

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. 

History's Runway: A Double-Breasted Sporting Suit, 1904

Double-breasted Sporting Suit
England, 1904
The Victoria & Albert Museum

By the 1890s, light-colored suits such as this one were fashionable for men to wear for summer sports, boating, bicycling, and during visits to the seaside. These suits were comprised of a matching coat, trousers and waistcoat in pin-striped flannel (known as “dittos”) and the outfit was often completed with a straw boater.

The cut of the flannel jacket pictured above is derived from the earlier “reefer” coat—a style which was usually worn for sailing. However, by the end of the Nineteenth Century, fashions were relaxing a bit for men (certainly not to the extent that they are now) and this style was acceptable for social wear at informal, outdoor events.

A gentlemen's etiquette book wrote:

There are special suits for all kinds of outdoor amusements, such as shooting, golfing, tennis, boating, driving, riding, bicycling, fishing, hunting, &c., but into the details of these it is unnecessary to enter. It may be remarked, however, that it is easy to stultify the whole effect of these, however perfectly they may be 'built' by the tailor, by the addition of a single incongruous article of attire; such as a silk hat or patent boots with a shooting-suit. (Mrs Humphry, Manners for Men, London 1897)

This particular pinstripe suit is of exceptional quality with buttons made of mother-of-pearl and a fine cotton lining. It was made in London around 1904.

Drawing of the Day: Alexander the Circus Pony, 1940-60

Sketch from "Alexander the Circus Pony,"
Phyllis Ginger, 1940-60
The Victoria & Albert Museum

Well, look, it’s Alexander the Circus Pony!  I’m unfamiliar with Alexander the Circus Pony, but if I were a pony I would want that to be my name.

This drawing is by Phyllis Ginger (1907-2005) and was created for the children's story, “Alexander, the Circus Pony.”  This book was Miss Ginger’s primary commission from Puffin books in which the entire book, story and illustrations were her own exclusive creation. Published in 1943, the book was quite popular in Britain and has been reprinted many times.

Here, we can see Ginger’s trademark bright and brilliant watercolor style. Previously, Ginger had been best known as topographical watercolor artist, who donated her talents to the Pilgrim Trust’s World War II “Recording Britain” project.  Throughout her early career, Ginger longed to be an illustrator.  She finally achieved her dream with “Alexander” and, then, illustrated another children's story featuring a horse a few years later, “The Mushroom Pony,” which was written by Joan Lamburn.

A Preliminary Sketch for "Alexander"

Object of the Day, Museum Edition: A Landscape with a Ruined Castle and a Church, Jacob Van Ruisdael, 1665-70

Landscape with a Ruined Castle and a Church
Jacob Van Ruisdael, 1665-1670
The National Gallery, Britain

Inspired by a view he’d seen in the Dutch town of Haarlem, celebrated landscape painter produced one of his most famous paintings. A Landscape with a Ruined Castle and a Churchwas such a well-received scene that Van Ruisdael repainted the landscape in several smaller versions.

Here, he shows his mastery of composition. The banks of clouds balance the painting while a diagonal slash of sky simultaneously draws the viewer into the painting and stops the viewer’s gaze at the spire of the church as it appears to pierce the sky. Van Ruisdael was careful to give the painting a natural scale. By incorporating the human figures (probably painted by another artist) into the canvas, he’s given us a sense of the epic sweep of the land.

This painting as well as some of the variations on it are on display at the National Gallery in London.

Masterpiece of the Week: Portrait of Armand Gérôme, 1848

Jean-Leon Gerome, 1848
The National Gallery, Britain

Jean-Léon Gérôme, a painter and sculptor, who was educated in Paris under Delaroche and Gleyre exhibited his work at the Paris Salon in 1847 and 1848. This bust-length portrait depicts the artist’s brother, Armand, in the uniform of his polytechnic school.

The painting may have been a study for a full-length portrait of the same sitter which the artist exhibited at the Salon in 1848. The whereabouts of the full-length portrait are unknown. However, this painting remains in perfect condition in the collection of Britain’s National Gallery.

To Serve and Project: The Minton Phoenix Dish, c. 1825

Click Image for Original Size Picture
Dish, c. 1825
Minton &  Co.
The Victoria & Albert Museum

Made at Minton’s Stoke-on-Trent factory, this porcelain plate is painted in enamel colors and adorned with fine gilding. Dating to about 1825, this oval plate features a high, shaped rim which frames the oval panel in the center which depicts flowering plants.

Two birds, based on Chinese paintings, adorn the plate. I’d guess they were meant to represent the phoenix. The sides come alive with panels of cloud ornament while the high rim is decorated with rosettes and a pattern of dots on a blue ground. Eight floral scenes punctuate the rim.

The 1820s, especially in England, saw a stylistic turn, a stylized nod to Asian themes, which found a comfortable spot in the home. Such Asian-inspired motifs adorned everything from porcelain to furnishings and offered an interesting counterpoint to the heavier, darker pieces which had long been in fashion. 

Figure of the Day: Billy Waters, 1823-1830

Billy Waters
1823-1830
Staffordshire Porcelain Factory
The Victoria & Albert Museum

In the early Nineteenth Century, it has been recorded that several Britons of African descent worked as street entertainers. These men were well-known throughout London, garnering good reputations for their remarkable talents and many charms. Perhaps the most famous of these was Billy Waters who, among with several of his counterparts, has been immortalized in British art and literature.

Billy Waters had served in the British navy, and, while in service lost a leg. While he received a Navy pension, it wasn’t enough to maintain his family in their home in the London parish of St. Giles. In order to pay all of the family bills, Waters turned to working as a busker. He became quite well-known—immediately identifiable for his peg-leg and feathered hat. He was famously sketched by George Cruikshank who also brought us some of the earliest drawings of Mr. Punch. Waters usually performed outside the Drury Lane Theatre, paying his violin to entertain the posh of London coming and going to the fashionable shows. Waters’ dog, his constant companion, is said to have held a hat in his mouth, entreating passersby to deposit coins in it. He was sketched outside the Drury Lane by Cruikshank who had the drawing published in Pierce Egan’s “Life in London” in 1821.

“Life in London” was transformed into a monumental operatic piece by W.T. Moncrieff. The show opened at the Adelphi Theatre in 1821 with Billy Waters as a character. Sadly, Waters received nothing from being represented in the extravaganza and was given no extra publicity for having his life immortalized on the stage. Had he been compensated for the use of his name and likeness, he might not have died two years later at the age of 45 in a workhouse. Shortly before his death, at least, he was recognized by his fellow buskers and declared “The King of the Beggars.”

Somehow, greater fame found Waters after his death. This Staffordshire figure depicts the Beggar King with his familiar costume. He’s playing his violin while waving his wooden leg in the air. Waters ever-present and loyal canine companion is depicted at his side—holding the hat. The figure was made between 1823 and 1830. 

History's Runway: The David Thomas Topaz and Garnet Pendant, 1967

Pendant/Brooch
David Thomas, 1967
The Victoria & Albert Museum

As fashions changed in the 1960s, jewelry designers played with conventional and traditional forms to make unusual pieces which were meant to be wearable art. London was a center for such designers and David Thomas (born 1938) was among the leaders of this new approach to jewelry design.

Here we see an example of Thomas’ cutting-edge work. This pendant (can also be worn as a brooch) features a raised central cluster of irregular topaz crystals. From these, individually-applied gold wires radiate--some of these are adorned with a granular decoration. These are peppered with narrow, rectangular garnets.

Building of the Week: Hampton Court Palace, the East Molesey, Greater London

Originally built circa 1514 for Cardinal Thomas Wolsey, The Archbishop of York , Chief Minister and a favorite of King Henry VIII, Hampton Court Palace was intended to show foreign visitors that British cardinals wielded just as much prestige and power as those of the Catholic Church in Rome.


The palace was initially built in an unusual combination of styles which reflected the transition of architectural preferences that defined the reign of Henry VIII. Predominantly domestic Tudor in style, the palace—as originally built—contained many perpendicular Gothic features along with some unexpected Classical detailing. Wolsey oversaw the completion of the palace, but only managed to live there for a few years before he realized that he’d been increasingly falling out of favor with Henry VIII. In order to pacify the king, Wolsey made a gift of the palace to him. The cardinal then died the following year.

The Tudor Entrance

King Henry VIII rather liked the palace and wanted to make it the central residence of his court. However, his court—when fully assembled—contained about one thousand people. The palace as it was, could not hold all of them at once, and furthermore the kitchens were certainly not big enough to feed Henry, let alone his entire court. Under Henry VIII’s direction, the kitchens were quadrupled in size in 1529. Henry also commissioned the famous Great Hall as well as the tennis courts.

EnglishMonarchs.co.uk

Meanwhile, Henry VIII was having some marital difficulties—wives were cheating, dying, being killed and generally irritating him. Some of this must have distracted him because the palace had several years where it was not altered. After the king’s death, his eldest daughter, Queen Mary I succeeded him—for a bit—and she was replaced with Queen Elizabeth I who lived at the Palace and added yet another kitchen.

In 1603, the Tudor Period ended with the death of Elizabeth I. The monarchy was taken over by the Stuart Dynasty, initially led by James I, and then his son, Charles I. There was some much publicized trouble with Charles I, but we won’t get into that now. We’ll just say that Charles II became King, and he was followed by James II—neither of them cared much for Hampton Court Palace and it went into a long period of disuse.

EnglishMonarchs.co.uk

That all changed when joint monarchs, William of Orange and Queen Mary II (daughter of James II) ascended to the throne(s) in their rather peculiar arrangement. They enlisted Sir Christopher Wren—the top architect of the day, to demolish the Tudor palace bit-by-bit and replace it with a new Baroque palace so as not to be outdone by those pesky French with their Versailles. They did, however, intend to leave Henry VIII’s great hall intact.

And, so, a long period of construction began to make Hampton Court Palace look more like Versailles—which it did, in parts. But, the job was never finished because Mary died and William lost interest, and then fell off of his horse and died, too. So, what remains is a essentially a Tudor palace on one side and a Baroque palace on the other. Fortunately, they’re unified in color by the use of rosy bricks. Many courtiers found the new round windows with pointed pediments to be “startling” as if the new courtyard was simply a line of wondering eyes. Others felt that the improvements to the structure rivaled Versailles grandeur.

The Baroque Facade

After the end of the Stuart Dynasty, only George I and George II used the palace as a residence. In 1838, Queen Victoria ordered that the palace be restored. Victoria intended for the palace to house much of the artifacts in the Royal Collection. For most of the Twentieth Century, Hampton Court Palace has been open to the public so that all can enjoy the art and architecture of one of the world’s most intriguing and unusual palaces.

Painting of the Day: A Landscape with a Ruined Castle and a Church, Jacob Van Ruisdael, 1665-70

Landscape with a Ruined Castle and a Church
Jacob Van Ruisdael, 1665-1670
The National Gallery, Britain

Inspired by a view he’d seen in the Dutch town of Haarlem, celebrated landscape painter produced one of his most famous paintings. A Landscape with a Ruined Castle and a Churchwas such a well-received scene that Van Ruisdael repainted the landscape in several smaller versions.


Here, he shows his mastery of composition. The banks of clouds balance the painting while a diagonal slash of sky simultaneously draws the viewer into the painting and stops the viewer’s gaze at the spire of the church as it appears to pierce the sky. Van Ruisdael was careful to give the painting a natural scale. By incorporating the human figures (probably painted by another artist) into the canvas, he’s given us a sense of the epic sweep of the land.

This painting as well as some of the variations on it are on display at the National Gallery in London.

Unusual Artifacts: Harry Randall's Dressing Case, 1840-60

Dressing Case of Harry Randall
1840-60
This and all related images from the
Victoria & Albert Museum

This dressing case was used by the leading music hall comic and “pantomime dame” Harry Randall (1860-1932) as a make-up box. The fine quality of the box and its handsome fittings mark of the status that Randall reached as a performer.  Curiously, this was the only personal possession of Harry Randall's that was preserved by his family.

Randall's first professional appearance was in 1884 at Deacon's Music Hall in Islington. He was very close friends with champion dancer Dan Leno and, like Leno, Randall became known for his comedy character songs and his pantomime dames, several of which he performed in pantomimes with Leno.  He became so well known that his name was used in the rhyming slang for 'candles' which became known as “Harry Randalls,” or simply “Harrys.”

The wooden dressing case boats inlaid brass edging to the lid and sides.  The lid of the box is lined with ruched and padded blue velvet, around which there is a dark blue leather border stamped with a gilt foliate pattern.

The box contains a removable wooden tray divided into six compartments, three of the compartments are lined with blue leather; two with pads of blue velvet and one without lining but with a wooden lid with a silver knob.

The tray contains a wooden lidded compartment, two small round glass jars with silver lids, a long glass tray with a pierced and chased silver lid and a compartment with indentations for tweezers, a corkscrew, a button hook, an awl, manicure scissors and a nail file with a mother-of-pearl handle. The main body of the dressing case has four deep compartments, three containing silver-lidded jars, and one empty with a wooden lid with a silver knob, similar to the wooden lid in the tray but not the same size.

The case was made in London between 1840-1860 by J.J. Mechi.  It is marked:

'No.4 LEADENHALL ST. LONDON. J.J.MECHI. To prevent fraudulent imitations signs all his articles thus without which NONE ARE GENIUNE.'
'J.J.Mechi'

When the case was donated to the V&A, the donor, a relative by marriage to Harry Randall, wrote: "I am the current custodian of his travelling box in which he kept his make-up. It has been passed down through the family originating from his sister in law Mrs Annie (Nancy) Randall who was married to Alf Randall, Harry's brother. She had everything belonging to Harry Randall, his make-up box, his scrap book, his chair and his sheet music.  After my Great Aunt Nancy died everything of Harry's was thrown out, except his make-up box which my father's sister kept. At this time it still had his original make in on the jars but when my father's sister died and I became the new owner of the box, all the make-up had been washed out by my aunt, unfortunately."

Painting of the Day: Judith Leyster’s “A Boy and Girl with a Cat and an Eel,” 1635

Painting of the Day: Judith Leyster’s “A Boy and Girl with a Cat and an Eel,” 1635

A Boy and Girl with a Cat and Eel
Judith Leyster, 1635
National Gallery, Britain

Dutch painter Judith Leyster was one of the few recognized Seventeenth Century female painters of her time. She often used children in her compositions to create allegorical scenes to demonstrate the foolishness of humanity.  Drawing on the Dutch saying, “He who plays with cats gets scratched,” Leyster has painted a rather gruesome scene of two children.  The boy has baited a cat with a wriggling eel.  The child has captured the cat who is further being taunted by a wicked little girl who’s pulling his tail.  The cat’s extended claws tell us how this little situation will end.  Meant to be a warning against foolish and destructive behavior, this painting is simultaneously charming and disturbing. It can be viewed amongst other works by Leyster at the National Gallery, Britain.

Print of the Day: Heigh Ho! Come to the Fair! 1932

Print
British, 1932
The George Speaight Punch & Judy Collection
The Victoria & Albert Museum

This print published by Edmund Evans, Ltd. and drawn by Nina K Brisley in 1932 is entitled “Children at a Country Fair” and was produced for Child Education Publications as a fun way to encourage youngsters and their families to attend county and local fetes and fairs. 

Such events are deeply entrenched in the English tradition. So, it’s only fitting that Mr. Punch—perhaps the most long-lived fictional figure in theatrical history—should act as ambassador of the gatherings which have long served as one of his most popular performing grounds. Here, we see a Punch & Judy show (featuring Mr. Punch and Dog Toby) in mid-performance in the foreground of the print above the words, “Heigh Ho! Come to the Fair!”

A print like this depicted the innocent possibilities for entertainment available in Britain during a time when funds were limited and families were searching for low-cost fun. 

The Art of Play: The Merrythought Mohair Chicken, 1935

Toy Chicken
Mohair and felt
Merrythought, 1935
The Victoria & Albert Museum

Britain’s Merrythought Toys first opened as an independent concern in 1930 with a factory in Ironbridge, Shropshire. However the Merrythought name first began in 1919 when one W.G. Holmes went into partnership with a G.H Laxton.  Together, they manufactured, in a small spinning mill, a special mohair yarn for the use in making toys.  When the toy factory opened in 1935, Merrythough poached man y of the employees from Chad Valley Toys.

Florence Atwood, Merrythoughts chief toy designer was hearing impaired and mute.  During a time when such persons often could not find employment, W.G. Holmes welcomed her into his concern.  There, she produced the entire range of toys for the first Merrythought line in 1931 and remained their chief designer for Merrythought until her death in 1949.

The company is still in operation.

Here, we see an early Merrythought toy in the form of a plush mohair hen with a beak, tail and feathers that are all made out of padded felt.  The Merrythought logo is sewn underneath on a cream label and reads, “MERRYTHOUGHT, HYGIENIC TOYS, MADE IN ENGLAND.”