Mastery of Design: The John Paul Cooper Pendant, 1906

Pendant
John Paul Cooper
1906
The Victoria & Albert Museum

Jeweler John Paul Cooper (1869-1933) was awarded high honors at the 1906 Arts and Crafts Exhibition, when the Studio magazine singled out his jewelry for its “sculptural qualities” and for its originality during an exhibition in which other exhibitors' work appeared rather formulaic.

Bold colors and cabochon-cut stones are typical features of Arts and Crafts jewelry, and Cooper uses these brilliantly along with the favored bezels and silver settings. Cooper's work relied on spiritual and symbolic subjects as the jeweler was long-fascinated by the magical and spiritual associations of precious metals and stones.

This is one of the pieces which Cooper displayed in 1906.  The pendant consists of a Madonna and Child within a jeweled niche which hangs within a rounded wire frame which is decorated with stars. A further small circular pendant and drop hang below this central portion,  as above a dove descends between the two chains that connect the suspension loop.  The hand-worked silver and gold is set with rubies, aquamarines, sapphires, opals and chrysoprases.

Cooper made this in his Birmingham, England workshop for the 1906 Exhibition.

The Art of Play: The Circle of Knowledge, A New Game of the Wonders of Nature, Science and Art, 1845

The Circle of Knowledge
E. Wallis and J. Passmore, 1845
The Victoria & Albert Museum

This board game dates to 1845.  The playing board is divided into four concentric circles, three of which contain 16 pictures each. The inner ring depicts the signs of the Zodiac and the four cardinal points of the compass. The 16 pictures of the outer ring each display one title, relating to two other pictures on the two inner rings. These are Europe, Asia, Africa and America; Earth, Air, Fire and Water; Electricity, Chemistry, Optics and Astronomy; Spring, Summer, Autumn and Winter.

It’s very attractive, but I suspect playing it would have been excruciatingly dull.  The rules to the game are long gone, but it is possible that the game was played in a similar manner to the previous games published by E. Wallis and J. Passmore who produced this example.

Sunday Morning Special: Betty Boop and Cab Calloway in “Minnie the Moocher”

In this 1932 Flesicher animated film, Betty Boop, urged by her parents to eat, seems to take offense and runs off to a scandalous world.  The cartoon, pre-code, was considered quite scandalous.  Accordingly, it was banned from broadcast for many years.  

Unusual Artifacts: Minnie The Magic Piano, 1954

Minnie the Magic Piano
Theatrical Prop, 1954
The Victoria & Albert Museum

“Minnie the Magic Piano” (seen above)  was a prop created for the original production of the musical “Salad Days: by Julian Slade and Dorothy Reynolds. The show debuted at the Bristol Old Vic in 1954 and transferred to London's Vaudeville Theatre where it ran from 5 August 1954 for over 2,000 performances.

Obviously, given the title, the “magic piano” is central to the plot of the show, in which a tramp’s piano makes anyone who hears it play, dance.  After five and a half years at the Vaudeville, followed by two years on tour, the prop is clearly well-used.

“Salad Days” was written hastily to fill a gap in the schedule at the Bristol Old Vic, so the company had only two and a half weeks for rehearsal and preparations.  This is not the original piano made for the production.  The first version of “Minnie” was assembled by the master carpenter Phillip Wilson and his assistant Tom Lovell from parts of old pianos mounted on pram wheels.

Dorothy Reynolds, the show’s co-creator, as the V&A tells us “was upset because it was too large, the size of an upright with a full keyboard.”  Reynolds insisted that Minnie  needed to “be small, or 'mini', with a five and a half octave keyboard,” so Tom Lovell built a second version under the supervision of Patrick Robertson, the production designer—rushing to finish it on time.

In the rush to complete the prop, thirteen people helped create it, painting it, making the lamps, finding the fringing and pasting the back with theatrical prints.

Mr. Punch of Belgrave Square will continue on Monday

Last week, in Mr. Punch of Belgrave Square, the day after his birthday celebration, Punch, Robert, Colin, Ellen, Charles and Gamilla visited Coven Garden to watch one of the Punch & Judy shows.  The plan was for them to all watch the show and, then, Mr. Punch/the Duke, Robert and Ellen would go to see Ellen’s ailing brother while Gamilla and Charles did some shopping and took Colin home.  While there, Robert and Charles spotted William Stover watching them, and Robert ended the outing quickly.

At home, Gamilla and Charles discussed Gerard’s strange behavior.  Charles later realized the Gerard was taking the medication which Robert had given to Charles after breaking his wrist in a fall.  Meanwhile, Punch volunteered to pay for better care for Ellen’s brother.

As Charles was about to tell Dr. Halifax about Gerard and the medication, Robert received an urgent letter stating that an accident had happened at the Stover Porcelain Company.  Robert hurried off, causing Charles to keep his news to himself.  When Robert arrived at the porcelain concern, he saw that he’d been tricked.  There was no emergency.  William, who honestly did not know what was going on, lied to Robert who blasted his old acquaintance in a threatening way Later Eudora and Hortence—who had sent the letter—told William not to concern himself with the situation. 

As Robert was venting to Mr. Punch, who had already privately threatened William, Charles, Ellen and Gerard all stated that should anyone interfere with their household, the interloper would be punished severely.

Charles confronted Gerard about the medicine and Gerard agreed not to take it anymore, swearing that he’d return it to the doctor.  Charles also stated that the Countess Hamish had sent a letter of apology for her rude behavior on the evening of Punch’s birthday, once again, inviting Punch and Robert to a dinner party, but Punch declined.

The following day, Punch and Robert lunched with Prince Albert at Buckingham Palace.  The Prince suggested that Robert might examine the very-pregnant Queen Victoria.

Upon returning to No. 65, Punch and Robert noticed a dirty heap on the front stairs and quickly realized that it was a man.  Robert declared the man dead just as Punch realized that the deceased was none other than William Stover!

Now, finding a dead man on your front steps is never a good thing, but especially when you’re a high-ranking nobleman like the Duke of Fallbridge.  It’s especially bad when that Duke is rumored to be mad.  And, it’s even worse when the dead man is none other than an “old acquaintance” of the supposedly mad Duke’s companion.

Come back on Monday for Chapter 42 of Mr. Punch of Belgrave Square.  Who could have killed William?  Nearly everyone said that they would if they needed to.  Was it one of the residents of No. 65?  Could Mr. Punch have reverted back to his old, head-hitting ways?  After all, he seemed certain that William wouldn’t bother them again.  Or, was it someone far more sinister who took the man’s life?  And, what does this death mean for our heroes?

You won’t want to miss a chapter as this mystery unfolds.  And, remember, all past chapters and summaries of each are available in the Chapter Archive.  

Unusual Artifacts: A Magic Lantern and Slides, 1890s

German Magic Lantern Slides
1890
The Victoria & Albert Museum

The “magic lantern” was a Eighteenth through Nineteenth Century device used to project slides.  Lantern slides were first made in the 18th century.  These early examples for quite large and cumbersome with wooden frames.   All early lantern slides boasted hand-painted images on glass.  For a very long time, there was no standard size for lantern slides.

After 1880 lantern slides were made to a standard size, 3¼ by 3¼ inches to allow them to be fitted into a slide carrier. The pictures in these later slides were usually produced by lithography (transfer) or photography as opposed to hand-painting though many manufacturers still produced high-quality painted images.

Most slides were square-ish.  These slides are unusual in that they are circular and, therefore,  would have needed a special type of lantern. This set was  made for children and feature scenes of Robinson Crusoe, Little Red Riding Hood, portraits of famous people,  and assorted illustrations of the different human races in sets of eight per disk which could have been turned in the lantern. These images are all hand-colored and the glass is mounted in metal frames. 

These were made around 1890 in Germany by Ernst Planck.

Object of the Day: a Giant Trade Card for Magic Yeast Cakes

Of the few hundred antique trade cards I’ve amassed over the last year, this is the largest.  In fact, it’s the largest I’ve ever seen.  The image on the front, in a gold-bordered ocal frame, shows a seductively-clad gypsy woman in a sumptuous, draped room.  She holds above her head an ornate tray.

Now, let’s think.  I’ve already given away the product being advertised in the title of this post, but if you didn’t already know, what would you think this card advertised?  Perfume?  Make-up?  Scented soap?  Lady stuff?  Nope—yeast.

Yeast.

Let’s see what it says on the back.  The copy is set landscape style while the image on the front is vertical.

And, no, it doesn’t make a lot of sense.

It reads:

THE ONLY WAY TO GET A PICTURE LIKE THIS

IS TO BUY A PACKAGE OF

MAGIC

YEAST CAKES

THE BEST DRY HOP YEAST IN THE WORLD.

They are prepared upon scientific principles.  They possess the greatest

strength and keeping qualities.  They will keep good over one

year.  They will make lightest, whitest, sweetest bread.

They never fail to give entire satisfaction.  If not kept

by  your grocer, he can order them of any whole-

sale grocer in the United States.

E.W. GILLETT, Manufacturer

CHICAGO, ILL.

MAGIC

YEAST CAKES

TRADEMARK

J&E

GILLETT’S

CREAM of TARTAR BAKING POWDER

AND

DOUBLE FLAVORING EXTRACTS