Antique Victorian Silk Samplers with Embroidered Panels after William Morris, 1880, Set of 2

Details

Description

Pair of narrow, very collectable, antique victorian 1880 silk needlework embroidery's after william morris

the details of each piece are … Read more Pair of narrow, very collectable, antique victorian 1880 silk needlework embroidery's after william morris

the details of each piece are as follows 1. The moses / “ark among the flags” panel the first one is a biblical subject depicting the finding of moses. The wording reads: “and when she saw the ark among the flags, she sent her maid to fetch it” this comes from exodus 2:5. The scene above illustrates exactly that passage: the infant moses is lying in his basket or “ark” amongst the bulrushes, while a female figure approaches through the reeds. The king james wording specifically uses “ark among the flags” and “sent her maid to fetch it.” what i particularly like about this one is that it isn't simply lettering. You've got several different embroidery techniques: the figure and child worked almost like a miniature picture, the mass of individual reeds, water, flowers and foliage, and then the highly elaborate gothic/illuminated lettering underneath. Stylistically, it is very much part of the victorian gothic revival / medieval revival. The coloured initial letters deliberately imitate illuminated medieval manuscripts. Biblical scenes, medieval lettering, naturalistic plants and hand embroidery all fit beautifully with the arts & crafts-influenced taste of the later 19th century. 2. The “happy new year” / tennyson panel this one is particularly easy to identify because the embroiderer has actually included “tennyson” at the bottom. The inscription is an extract from alfred, lord tennyson's famous “ring out, wild bells”, which forms section cvi of in memoriam a.h.h., published in 1850. It begins: “ring out the wild bells, to the wild sky, the flying cloud, the frosty light…” and further down: “ring out the old, ring in the new…” the embroiderer has turned it into a new year's greeting, hence the large illuminated “happy new year” heading and the little “a happy new year” banner amongst the holly. That is a lovely piece of victorian iconography: holly, winter birds, bells/new year imagery and tennyson, all combined into a decorative silk panel. Interestingly, tennyson's poem became strongly associated with new year's eve during the victorian period. There were even elaborately illustrated editions of ring out, wild bells being published by the early 1880s. Condition wise the pair are period perfect, they will have normal age and use related patina but they are much better than normal, the colours are alive and vibrant

dimensions height: 31.5cm width: 12.5cm depth: 1.5cm See less