Edwardian Shellwork Valentine Diorama of a Clipper Ship

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Edwardian Shellwork Valentine Diorama of a Clipper Ship
Date: Circa 1900
Origin: England

Materials: Shells, coral, seaweed, chromolithograph, wood, glass

… Read more Edwardian Shellwork Valentine Diorama of a Clipper Ship
Date: Circa 1900
Origin: England

Materials: Shells, coral, seaweed, chromolithograph, wood, glass

8 inches diameter x 2 inches deep (27 cm x 5.08cm)


A finely executed example of turn-of-the-century maritime folk art. This circular diorama features a central chromolithograph depicting a clipper ship in the foreground with a paddle ship in the background. The image is presented under its original convex and beveled glass with bands of seashell applied to the exterior rim.

The primary artistic feature is the elaborate shellwork border, which is densely encrusted with a wide variety of seashells, coral fragments, and preserved seaweed. The composition demonstrates a skilled hand in its arrangement and texture creating a tangible frame of the ocean itself and a testament to the popular craft of shellwork.

Such shellwork dioramas were popular souvenirs in British coastal towns during the late Victorian and early Edwardian eras. Often purchased by sailors and naval men, they served as sentimental gifts, or "valentines," for wives and sweethearts, making them poignant artifacts of social and maritime history

(Ref: NY10921-pucx) See less