Rudyard Kipling, born in India in 1865, embodied the spirit of British Imperialism during its peak. His life was a journey of incredible success and unimaginable sorrow, forever marked by the “stiff upper lip” of Victorian stoicism.
Early Years
Growing up in Bombay, Kipling was surrounded by the grandeur and diversity of the British Raj.
Girgaum Road, Bombay, India c.1895
Pydownee Street, Bombay, India c1895
Harbour with arriving mail, Bombay, India, c. 1895
Statue of Queen Victoria (Empress of India, 1 May 1876 – 22 January 1901) in front of Victoria Memorial Hall, Kolkata (calcutta). Credit Karthiknanda
Yet, his idyllic childhood was shattered at the age of five when he and his sister were sent to a cruel boarding house in England. For six years they suffered cruelty and neglect at the hands of the evil Mrs Holloway of Lorne Lodge.
Badly-treated children have a clear notion of what they are likely to get if they betray the secrets of a prison-house before they are clear of it.Rudyard Kipling.
Relief came for one month every year when he and his sister visited their maternal Aunt in London. It was a paradise compared to Lorne Lodge.
A paradise which I verily believe saved me.Rudyard Kipling.
When at last his mother returned from India to remove the children from Lorne Lodge, he was able to tell the story.
The experience instilled in him the importance of emotional control, a trait that would remain with him throughout his life.
Around the World
After a brief stint at school, Kipling returned to India to pursue his passion for writing. By the age of 24, he had already published several successful stories and embarked on a breathtaking journey around the world.
Steamboats revolutionized international travel in the late Victorian era
Kipling left India in March 1889, traveling to San Francisco via Rangoon (a region of Myanmar), Singapore, Hong Kong, and Japan.
After falling in love with a Geisha in Tokyo, he continued his journey through the United States, arriving first in San Francisco and traveling on to Portland OR, Seattle, Vancouver, Alberta, Yellowstone National Park, Salt Lake City, Omaha, Chicago, Beaver PA, Niagara Falls, Toronto, Washington D. C., New York, and Boston.
He stopped along the way to visit Mark Twain, arriving unannounced, but being fortunate enough to find Mr Twain at home and happy to put the world to rights over a few whiskeys.
‘Drop by any time’. Mark Twain pondering the world.
Travelling inspired Kipling’s boundless imagination and laid the foundation for his future literary achievements.
Bliss and Tragedy
In Vermont, Kipling found his haven, building a home he called “Bliss Cottage.” Here, surrounded by his wife and daughters, he penned his most beloved works, including the Jungle Books. However, tragedy struck when his young daughter, Josephine, passed away from pneumonia.
This devastating loss left a permanent scar on Kipling’s soul, forcing him to confront the limitations of the “stiff upper lip.”
Poet of the Empire
As Kipling’s fame grew, so did his association with British Imperialism. He became known as the “Poet of the Empire,” writing poems like “The White Man’s Burden” that reflected the ideals and anxieties of the time. His unwavering support for the British cause during the Boer War further cemented this image.
Take up the White Man’s burden—
Send forth the best ye breed—
Go, bind your sons to exile
To serve your captives’ need;
To wait, in heavy harness,
On fluttered folk and wild—
Your new-caught sullen peoples,
Half devil and half child.Rudyard Kipling.
Dreams and Nightmares
In 1902, Kipling purchased a 17th-century mansion called Bateman’s, a place he cherished for its peace and beauty. Here, he continued to write prolifically, achieving the pinnacle of his career.
Bateman’s. Credit Tony Grist
However, tragedy struck once again with the loss of his son, John, in the First World War. This profound loss left Kipling heartbroken and disillusioned.
John Kipling, 1915
The Scars of War
During the war, Kipling used his powerful pen to write propaganda for the British government.
He held a particularly strong contempt for any man who reneged on his duty to serve his country, calling them outcasts and a disgrace to their family’s name.
What of his family, and, above all, what of his descendants, when the books have been closed and the last balance struck of sacrifice and sorrow in every hamlet, village, parish, suburb, city, shire, district, province, and Dominion throughout the Empire?Rudyard Kipling.
Troops going “over the top”, i.e. emerging from their trenches and charging into “no man’s land” towards enemy lines, often leading to massive casualties.
He viewed the war as a battle between good and evil, civilization and barbarity.
There was no crime, no cruelty, no abomination that the mind of men can conceive of which the German has not perpetrated, is not perpetrating, and will not perpetrate if he is allowed to go on…Today, there are only two divisions in the world…human beings and Germans.Rudyard Kipling.
However, the loss of his son exposed the hollowness of jingoism and forced him to confront the true cost of war.
If any question why we died
Tell them, because our fathers lied.Rudyard Kipling.
“My Boy Jack” by Rudyard Kipling… (Click to View)
“Have you news of my boy Jack?” Not this tide. “When d’you think that he’ll come back?” Not with this wind blowing, and this tide.
“Has any one else had word of him?” Not this tide. For what is sunk will hardly swim, Not with this wind blowing, and this tide.
“Oh, dear, what comfort can I find?” None this tide, Nor any tide, Except he did not shame his kind — Not even with that wind blowing, and that tide.
Then hold your head up all the more, This tide, And every tide; Because he was the son you bore, And gave to that wind blowing and that tide!
The Stiff Upper Lip and Its Limits
Kipling’s life was a testament to the complexities of the “stiff upper lip.” While it undoubtedly helped him navigate the trials of his life, it also prevented him from fully expressing his grief and reconciling with his losses. However, his poems like “If—” continue to inspire generations with their message of courage and resilience, even in the face of unimaginable hardship.
“If” by Rudyard Kipling… (click to view)
If you can meet with Triumph and Disaster and treat those two impostors just the same If you can keep your head when all about you Are losing theirs and blaming it on you; If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you, But make allowance for their doubting too; If you can wait and not be tired by waiting, Or, being lied about, don’t deal in lies, Or, being hated, don’t give way to hating, And yet don’t look too good, nor talk too wise;
If you can dream—and not make dreams your master; If you can think—and not make thoughts your aim; If you can meet with triumph and disaster And treat those two impostors just the same; If you can bear to hear the truth you’ve spoken Twisted by knaves to make a trap for fools, Or watch the things you gave your life to broken, And stoop and build ‘em up with wornout tools;
If you can make one heap of all your winnings And risk it on one turn of pitch-and-toss, And lose, and start again at your beginnings And never breathe a word about your loss; If you can force your heart and nerve and sinew To serve your turn long after they are gone, And so hold on when there is nothing in you Except the Will which says to them: “Hold on”;
If you can talk with crowds and keep your virtue, Or walk with kings—nor lose the common touch; If neither foes nor loving friends can hurt you; If all men count with you, but none too much; If you can fill the unforgiving minute With sixty seconds’ worth of distance run— Yours is the Earth and everything that’s in it, And—which is more—you’ll be a Man, my son!
A Legacy of Triumph and Tragedy
Rudyard Kipling was a man of contradictions: a champion of empire and a critic of its injustices, a master storyteller and a grieving father. His life and work serve as a reminder of the human capacity for both extraordinary achievements and profound suffering. Through his words, he continues to challenge us to confront the complexities of history, the limitations of stoicism, and the enduring power of love and loss.
In 1851, Great Britain stood at the very pinnacle of industrial and cultural leadership of the world.
But running in parallel was an undercurrent of class inequality, a fear of foreigners, and a contempt for internationalism.
Against this backdrop, Queen Victoria’s husband, Prince Albert organized the first world’s fair as a means to unite nations and encourage economic growth through international trade.
The first of many to come, the Great Exhibition was the symbol of Victorian progress and modernization.
Here are 10 fascinating facts about the Great Exhibition of 1851.
1. The Great Exhibition was a showcase for British pride
Although the Great Exhibition was a platform for countries from around the world to display their own achievements, Britain’s primary concern was to promote its own superiority.
British exhibits held the lead in almost every field where strength, durability, utility and quality were concerned, whether in iron and steel, machinery, or textiles.
It was thought foreign visitors would look positively upon British accomplishments, customs, and institutions—learning more in the six months during the exhibition than the prior thirty-six years since the fall of Napoleon.
The Opening of the Great Exhibition by Queen Victoria on 1 May 1851 by Henry Courtney Selous, 1852
Great Britain also wanted to instill optimism and the hope for a better future.
Following two difficult decades of political and social upheaval in Europe, Great Britain hoped to convey that technology—particularly its own—was the key to a better future.
Despite being an advocate for internationalism, Prince Albert’s main objective was predominantly a national one—for Great Britain to make clear to the world its role as industrial leader.
Even so, some saw the rise of a new industrial power—one that would threaten Britain’s dominance in years to come.
With the industrial revolution well underway in the United States, the Great Exhibition was an opportunity for the former British colony to show its machines, products, and agricultural wealth on the world stage.
Unavoidably compared to Great Britain, many looked favorably on the United States’ offerings.
2. The Great Exhibition was a symbol of the Victorian Age
From the 1850’s onward, the term “Victorianism” became popular for describing the strength, bullish superiority, and pride of an ever-improving Britain.
Technology and moving machinery proved popular, as did working exhibits like the entire process of cotton production from spinning to finished cloth.
Drawing attention from the curious-minded were scientific instruments, the like of which most people had never seen before, including electric telegraphs, microscopes, air pumps and barometers, as well as musical, horological, and surgical instruments.
Queen Victoria previewed the exhibition the day before the official opening and wrote in her journal “We saw beautiful china from Minton’s factory and beautiful designs”.
The combination of glazed and decorated bone china with unglazed Parian figures was praised by the Great Exhibition jury for its ‘original design, high degree of beauty and harmony of effect’.
Queen Victoria purchased a 116 piece ‘Victoria pierced’ dessert service in bleu celeste at the Great Exhibition.
She was overwhelmed by the spectacular service with allegorical figure supports modelled by Pierre-Emile Jeannest.
3. The Crystal Palace was purpose-built to house the Great Exhibition
Drawing on his experience building greenhouses for the Duke of Devonshire, architect Joseph Paxton designed the largest greenhouse in the world—so spacious was its interior that it fully enclosed some of Hyde Park’s own trees.
The Crystal Palace was an enormous success, considered an architectural marvel, but also an engineering triumph that reflected the importance of the Exhibition itself.
The Crystal Palace in Hyde Park for Grand International Exhibition of 1851
William Makepeace Thackeray (1811 – 1863)
In the lead-up to the momentous Great Exhibition of 1851, William Makepeace Thackeray’s “May-Day Ode” appeared in The Times, its verses echoing through London’s streets like a triumphant fanfare. Published just one day prior to the opening ceremony, the poem served as more than just an ode to architectural innovation and colonial might.
As though ’twere by a wizard’s rod As blazing arch of lucid glass Leaps like a fountain from the grass To meet the sun.
Thackeray’s lyrical brushstrokes painted the Crystal Palace not just as a testament to human ingenuity, but as a sacred space touched by the divine, bathed in the ethereal light of God’s grace. This literary offering stood as a potent symbol of Britain’s ambition, showcasing not only its industrial prowess and imperial reach, but also its enduring cultural and artistic influence. Open entire poem in a popup window:
May-Day Ode
Lasting six months, the average daily attendance at the exhibition was 42,831, with a peak attendance of 109,915 on 7 October.
One third of the entire population of Britain visited the Great Exhibition.
Whilst the western half of the building was occupied with exhibits by Great Britain and her colonies and dependencies, the eastern half was filled with foreign exhibits, with their names inscribed on banners suspended over the various divisions.
5. Numerous Victorian A-list celebrities visited the Great Exhibition
Attending the Great Exhibition were many notable celebrities of the time, including Charles Darwin, Samuel Colt, members of the Orléanist Royal Family and the writers Charlotte Brontë, Charles Dickens, Lewis Carroll, George Eliot and Alfred Tennyson.
Victorian A-list celebrities: Charles Darwin, George Eliot, Charlotte Bronte, Lewis Carroll, Charles Dickens, Alfred Lord Tennyson
Charlotte Brontë described her visit:
Yesterday I went for the second time to the Crystal Palace. We remained in it about three hours, and I must say I was more struck with it on this occasion than at my first visit. It is a wonderful place …
Read more …
… vast, strange, new and impossible to describe. Its grandeur does not consist in one thing, but in the unique assemblage of all things. Whatever human industry has created you find there, from the great compartments filled with railway engines and boilers, with mill machinery in full work, with splendid carriages of all kinds, with harness of every description, to the glass-covered and velvet-spread stands loaded with the most gorgeous work of the goldsmith and silversmith, and the carefully guarded caskets full of real diamonds and pearls worth hundreds of thousands of pounds. It may be called a bazaar or a fair, but it is such a bazaar or fair as Eastern genii might have created. It seems as if only magic could have gathered this mass of wealth from all the ends of the earth – as if none but supernatural hands could have arranged it this, with such a blaze and contrast of colours and marvellous power of effect. The multitude filling the great aisles seems ruled and subdued by some invisible influence. Amongst the thirty thousand souls that peopled it the day I was there not one loud noise was to be heard, not one irregular movement seen; the living tide rolls on quietly, with a deep hum like the sea heard from the distance.
6. The Great Exhibition broke through class barriers
Ever present in Victorian society was the nagging guilt that this age of individualism, capitalism, and overwhelming self-confidence could not be embraced by all.
Crushing poverty ran concurrent with enormous wealth.
But Prince Albert was not oblivious to the plight of the poor and was determined to make the Great Exhibition accessible to all.
Ticket prices came down dramatically as the exhibition progressed—in today’s equivalent, prices varied from £311 for a season ticket to about £5 for one day.
Thus even the working classes could afford to attend —four and half million of the cheapest day tickets were sold.
A rank in which no aristocratic distinctions were observed from the doors of the Crystal Palace to the very centre of the Metropolis. The proudest equipage of the peer was obliged to fall in behind the humblest fly or the ugliest Henson; there being no privileged order but the order of arrival.Punch, vol.1, 1851, 190.
7. The world’s largest diamond had its own exhibit
The Koh-i-Noor, meaning the “Mountain of Light,” was the world’s largest known diamond in 1851.
One of the most popular attractions of the India exhibit, it was acquired in 1850 as part of the Lahore Treaty.
Dazzling and bewildering, the prismatically separated light of the Koh-i-Noor diamond was a metaphor for the Crystal Palace as a whole.
The eye is completely dazzled by the rich variety of hues which burst upon it on every side.Art Journal Illustrated Catalogue, 1851.
Originally thought to weigh as much as 793 carats, the earliest recorded weight was 186 carats, from which Prince Albert ordered it cut down to 105.6 carats so as to give the much brighter, oval-cut appearance preferred by Victorians—and fit for his Queen.
Today, the Koh-i-Noor diamond is set into The Queen Mother’s Crown and housed in the Tower of London.
The Koh-i-Noor Diamond ‘mountain of light’. Credit Ji Ruan, flickr
8. The Great Exhibition was a great success, but was not without controversy
Just as today, there were naysayers who thought the Great Exhibition would be a flop.
Some people feared that in the face of grinding poverty, the building would be gutted by a revolutionary mob.
The folly and absurdity of the Queen in allowing this trumpery must strike every sensible and well-thinking mind, and I am astonished the ministers themselves do not insist on her at least going to Osborne during the Exhibition, as no human being can possibly answer for what may occur on the occasion. The idea … must shock every honest and well-meaning Englishman. But it seems everything is conspiring to lower us in the eyes of Europe.King Ernest Augustus I of Hanover
But the Great Exhibition of 1851 demonstrated the wisdom of internationalism at a time of widespread isolationism in Europe.
Its success inspired Napoleon III to open the second World’s Fair in Paris in 1855 and to hold some of the world’s grandest, including the Exposition Universelle 1889, for which the Eiffel Tower was built as a grand entrance.
By the time of the World’s Columbian Exposition in Chicago in 1893, attitudes had progressed even further by focusing not on nationalistic prowess, but on the history of the world and its peoples.
9. The profits funded three of London’s most loved museums
Built in the area to the south of the exhibition and nicknamed ‘Albertopolis’, the Victoria and Albert Museum, the Science Museum and the Natural History Museum were all founded using the surplus profit from the Great Exhibition which amounted to a sum equal to £18 million in today’s money.
Even with the cost of these beautiful buildings, there was enough money left over to set up a trust for grants and scholarships for industrial research that continues to this day.
Victoria and Albert Museum. Credit Nick Garrod, flickr
Inside The Natural History Museum, London. Credit Gene Krasko
The Modern World gallery in the science museum, london. Credit Geni
10. The Crystal Palace was destroyed by fire in 1936
After the Great Exhibition had come to a close, plans were drawn up to move the entire Crystal Palace structure to a new location in the suburbs of south-east London.
In 1852, the building went into private ownership and was moved to Sydenham, Kent.
Completely dismantled and re-built in the new Beaux-arts style, the greatly enlarged Crystal Palace was opened by Queen Victoria in 1854.
Costing six times as much to move as the original palace had cost to build, it became an extravagant money pit and the owners quickly fell into debt.
Unlike the unmitigated success of the Great Exhibition, the new Crystal Palace was plagued with financial woes.
Although Sunday was the only free day for the working classes, religious observance prevented the palace from opening.
Even when the palace did start to open on Sundays, people had largely lost interest and attendance was low.
Crystal Palace Fire of 1936
Falling into a state of disrepair, and despite a restoration project by Sir Henry Buckland in the 1920s, tragedy struck on 30 November, 1936.
In a few hours we have seen the end of the Crystal Palace. Yet it will live in the memories not only of Englishmen, but the whole world.Sir Henry Buckland.
100,000 people came to watch the blaze, as 89 fire engines and over 400 firemen fought valiantly through the night.
One of the onlookers was Winston Churchill, who said, “this is the end of an age”.
For Victorians, flowers were the language of love.
Proclaiming feelings in public was considered socially taboo, so the Victorians expressed intimacy through flowers.
Myriad market stalls and street sellers sprang up to cater to the Victorians’ need to communicate covertly.
Learning the particular meanings and symbolism assigned to each flower gave Victorians a way to play the subtle game of courtship in secret.
The Flower Market by Victor Gabriel Gilbert
The Lower Market, Paris by Victor Gabriel Gilbert, 1881
The Flower Seller, Avenue de L’Opera, Paris by Louis Marie de Schryver, 1891
The Flower Market by Victor Gabriel Gilbert
Flower Vendor on the Grandes Boulevards, Paris by Victor Gabriel Gilbert
Coded into gifts of blooms, plants, and floral arrangements were specific messages for the recipient, expressing feelings that were improper to say in Victorian society.
The Bunch of Lilacs by James Tissot, 1875
Alongside the language of flowers was a growing interest in botany.
Housing exotic and rare plants, conservatories enjoyed a golden age during the Victorian era, while floral designs dominated interior decoration.
Dora laughing held the dog up childishly to smell the flowers by George Goodwin Kilburne, 1874
Dedicated to the “language of flowers” were hundreds of guide books, with most Victorian homes owning at least one.
Often lavishly illustrated, the books used verbal analogies, religious and literary sources, folkloric connections, and botanical attributes to derive the meanings associated with flowers.
Floral poetry and the language of flowers, 1877
The appearance or behavior of plants and flowers often influenced their coded meanings.
Plants sensitive to touch represented chastity, whereas the deep red rose symbolized the potency of romantic love.
Pink roses were less intense than red, white suggested virtue, and yellow meant friendship.
Elegant Lady with a Bouquet of Roses by Emile Vernon
Young Girl with a Rose by Emile Vernon
Lovers under a Blossom Tree by John Callcott Horsley (English, 1817 – 1903)
To express adoration, a suitor would send dwarf sunflowers.
Sun and Moon Flowers by George Dunlop Leslie, 1889
Myrtle symbolized good luck and love in a marriage.
At her wedding in 1858, Princess Victoria, the eldest child of Queen Victoria, carried a sprig of myrtle taken from a bush planted from a cutting given to the Queen by her mother-in-law.
Thus began a tradition for royal brides to include myrtle in their bouquets.
In the royal wedding of 2011, Catherine Middleton included sprigs of myrtle from Victoria’s original plant in her own wedding bouquet.
The Marriage of Victoria, Princess Royal, 25 January 1858 by John Phillip
Displaying small “talking bouquets” or “posies” of meaningful flowers called nosegays or tussie-mussies became popular.
The Posy by Edward Killingworth Johnson
Decorative “posy holders” with rings or pins allowed them to be worn and displayed by their owners.
1854 Bouquet holders. metmuseum
Made from brass, copper, gold-gilt metal, silver, porcelain, glass, enamel, pearl, ivory, bone and straw, the holders often had intricate engravings and patterning.
19th century bouquet holders. metmuseum
Other Flower Meanings
Burdock
Importunity. Touch me not.
Buttercup (Kingcup)
Ingratitude. Childishness.
Camomile
Energy in adversity.
Carnation, Striped
Refusal.
Chrysanthemum, White
Truth.
Coltsfoot
Justice.
The Flower Market by Victor Gabriel Gilbert
Crocus
Abuse not.
Daffodil
Regard.
Daisy
Innocence.
Jasmine
Amiability.
At the Flower Market by Victor Gabriel Gilbert
Dandelion
Rustic oracle.
Dogwood
Durability.
Dragonwort
Horror.
Ivy
Fidelity. Marriage.
Flower Seller with Child by Victor Gabriel Gilbert
Everlasting Pea
Lasting pleasure.
Elderflower
Zealousness.
Fennel
Worthy all praise. Strength.
Lemon Blossoms
Fidelity in love.
The Flower Market by Victor Gabriel Gilbert
Flytrap
Deceit.
Foxglove
Insincerity.
Anemone
Forsaken.
Lavender
Distrust.
Flower offering to a child by Victor Gabriel Gilbert
Marigold
Uneasiness.
Hemlock
You will be my death.
Hibiscus
Delicate beauty.
Honeysuckle
Generous & devoted affection.
Flower Seller by Victor Gabriel Gilbert
Who will buy?
The film versions of Oliver! and My Fair Lady made the London flower sellers famous, but their life was far harsher than their Hollywood depictions.
So high was the demand for flowers that it created many opportunities for street traders and the exploitation of child labour.
Victorian social researcher Henry Mayhew wrote about flower sellers in his book London Labour and the London Poor, 1851—a groundbreaking and influential survey of the city’s poor:
Sunday is the best day for flower selling, and one experienced man computed, that in the height and pride of the summer four hundred children were selling flowers on Sundays in the streets. The trade is almost entirely in the hands of children, the girls outnumbering the boys by more than eight to one. The ages of the girls vary from six to twenty, few of the boys are older than twelve, and most of them are under ten. They are generally very persevering and will run along barefooted, with their, “Please, gentleman, do buy my flowers. Poor little girl!” or “Please kind lady, buy my violets. O, do! please! Poor little girl! Do buy a bunch, please, kind lady!”
Today, furniture fills our living and working spaces. It makes a statement about our taste for practicality and aesthetics.
But it wasn’t always so.
At the beginning of the 18th century, only the aristocracy or merchant class could afford furniture as luxurious expressions of individuality.
Then from around 1760, something remarkable happened. The standard of living for the general population began to increase for the first time in history.
This was the dawn of the industrial revolution and the beginnings of what would become a consumer society.
18th-century luminary Sir Joshua Reynolds observed a general progression from buying basic needs to purchasing more luxurious goods.
The regular progress of cultivated life is from Necessaries to Accommodations, from Accommodations to Ornaments.
In this statement was implied the increasing importance of design, which simultaneously created and followed taste, and in so doing, helped stimulate consumer demand and foster economic stability.
Perhaps no other industry demonstrated this better than furniture making. And what piece of furniture was more prominent than a sofa?
The Georgian Era
Some think of the Georgian era as the golden age of furniture.
The drama and exuberance of Baroque, the intricate asymmetrical patterns of Rococo, the graceful lines, sensuous curves, and elegant proportions of Neo-Classical—all helped define Georgian era furniture.
The very names of the period are synonymous with timeless quality—Queen Anne, Chippendale, Sheraton, Hepplewhite.
1760 Sofa. French. Carved and gilded beechwood, upholstered in modern red velours de Gênes. metmuseum
1765 Sofa. French. Carved and gilded beech, modern silk lampas. metmuseum
1770 Sofa. French. Carved and gilded mahogany, modern silk damask. metmuseum
Sofas with a wide central section and a single outward-facing seat at each end were called a canapé à confidents and were meant to be where people could share confidences.
Examples were made primarily in the Louis XV and Louis XVI periods, highly decorative, and the shape and carving were designed to harmonize with the wall paneling.
The artisan’s skill shows particularly in the carving of roses and olive branches tied by a ribbon at the top of each end.
This piece was described by comte de Salverte as the finest of its kind in the Louis XVI style.
1780 Sofa. French. Carved and gilded beechwood upholstered in modern blue dotted silk. metmuseum
The Regency and Federal Era
Roughly coinciding in date and style, the British Regency and American Federal styles were defined by a lighter, more delicate interpretation of the classical Greek and Roman influences.
The shape of this sofa derives from plate 35 in Thomas Sheraton’s “Cabinet-Maker and Upholsterer’s Drawing-Book” (1793).
1800 Sofa. American. Mahogany, white pine, birch. metmuseum
The modern black horsehair and gilded tacks of this scroll-back sofa help define it as the classic New York form as it would have looked when it first came out of the workshop.
1810 Sofa. American. Mahogany, white pine, tulip poplar. metmuseum
1815 Sofa. American. Mahogany, gilt brass, tulip poplar. metmuseum
A highly sophisticated blend of line, detailed carving, and subtle color merge with antique legs in the shape of dolphins, hinting at the maritime influences of the time. In Greek mythology, dolphins swam to the aid of shipwrecked sailors.
Owned by Thomas Cornell Pearsall, a wealthy New York merchant and shipowner, the skillful execution of the details derives from Greco-Roman seating forms illustrated and described in the 1808 supplement to the London “Chairmakers’ and Carvers’ Book of Prices.”
Noteworthy in this design is the unusual trimming of rich stamped brass, rather than the woven galloon or series of brass-headed nails that were customary in this period.
1820 Sofa. American. Mahogany. metmuseum
Italian architect Filippo Pelagio Palagi designed this set of furniture for the principal drawing room next to the royal bedroom of Carlo Alberto, king of Sardinia.
The sculptural detail of the crest rails and the quality and refinement of the veneering help distinguish this sofa, made by Gabrielle Cappello, whose workshop produced many of Pelagi’s designs.
1835 Sofa. Italian. Mahogany veneered with maplewood and mahogany, covered with modern silk brocade. metmuseum
The Victorian Era
With the Victorians, out went the simpler classical lines of Georgian and Regency and in came a more imposing style, with elaborate decoration, heavily carved pieces, plenty of organic curves inspired by nature and glossy finishes.
This sofa is part of a suite of Louis XVI–style furniture that railroad executive John Taylor Johnston (1820–1893) purchased in about 1856 and used in the music room of his residence at 8 Fifth Avenue.
1860 Sofa. American. Maple, gilt bronze. metmuseum
Exemplifying the Rococo Revival style, which was popular in America during the 1840s and 1850s, the sofa below combines curvilinear forms reminiscent of 18th-century France with the exuberant, naturalistic ornamentation of the mid-Victorian period.
Distinguished by a voluptuous serpentine crest with luxuriant, griffin-flanked bouquets, the central floral garland is supported by a Renaissance-style urn and paired dolphins.
1. Chinoiserie was once the most coveted fashion of the aristocracy
During the 17th and 18th centuries, Europeans became fascinated with Asian cultures and traditions. They loved to imitate or evoke Asian motifs in Western art, architecture, landscaping, furniture, and fashion.
China seemed a mysterious, far-away place and the lack of first-hand experiences only added to the mystique.
Chinoiserie derives from the French word chinois, meaning “Chinese”, or “after the Chinese taste”. It is a Western aesthetic inspired by Eastern design.
The fact remains that four thousand years ago, when we did not know how to read, they knew everything essentially useful of which we boast todayVoltaire
To immerse yourself in the Chinoiserie experience, optionally play the traditional East Asian music.
A folding screen was one of the most popular expressions of Chinoiserie, often decorated with beautiful art.
Themes included mythology, scenes of palace life, nature, and romance in Chinese literature—a young lady in love could take a curious peek hidden from behind a folding screen.
Chinese Folding Screen. 18th century. Wood, glass paper, Imperial Furniture Collection, Vienna. Credit SandsteinThe Toilette by François Boucher, 1742
2. Chinoiserie’s popularity grew with rising trade in the East
Rising trade with China and East Asia during the 17th and 18th centuries brought an influx of Chinese and Indian goods into Europe aboard ships from the English, Dutch, French, and Swedish East India Companies.
The European Factories in Canton by Thomas Allom, 1838
By the middle of the 19th century, the British East India Company had become the dominant player in East Asian trading, its rule extending across most of India, Burma, Malaya, Singapore, and British Hong Kong.
A fifth of the world’s population was under the trading influence of the British East India Company.
(British) East India House by Thomas Malton the Younger (1748-1804)
3. Chinoiserie began with tea drinking
Drinking tea was the height of fashion for ladies of good taste and required an appropriate chinoiserie mise en scène.
Tea drinking was a fundamental part of polite society; much of the interest in both Chinese export wares and chinoiserie rose from the desire to create appropriate settings for the ritual of tea drinkingBeevers
Tea Leaves by William McGregor Paxton, Boston, MA. metmuseum1743. Tea Service. Italian. Porcelain. metmuseum1762 Tea Caddy. British. Silver. metmuseum1730. Sugar Box. Austrian. Hard-paste porcelain. metmuseum1770 Tea Casket, British, Staffordshire. White enamel on copper painted in polychrome enamels. metmuseum
Tea and sugar were expensive commodities during the eighteenth century and this chest could be locked to secure its valuable contents.
Containing two canisters for tea (green and black) and a larger one for sugar, the pastoral scenes, and Italianate landscapes, combined with Rococo gilding against a pink ground, create an opulent effect.
1770 Tea Casket, British, Staffordshire. White enamel on copper painted in polychrome enamels. metmuseum1726 Pair of Tea Caddies. British. Silver. metmuseum
4. Aristocratic women were famous collectors of chinoiserie porcelain
Among them were Queen Mary, Queen Anne, Henrietta Howard, and the Duchess of Queensbury—all socially important women, whose homes served as examples of good taste and sociability.
Wealthy women helped define the prevailing vogue through their purchasing power. One story tells of a keen competition between Margaret, 2nd Duchess of Portland, and Elizabeth, Countess of Ilchester, for a Japanese blue and white plate.
Chinoiserie porcelain from Frankfurt c. 1700Faience with Chinese scenes. Nevers Manufactory. c. 1680
Reflecting the English factory’s focus on Asian porcelains as a primary source of inspiration, this plate with its skillfully composed chinoiserie decoration, is an ambitious work from the 1750s, the decade during which Bow first achieved commercially viable production.
Distinguished by the chinoiserie scenes painted by Charles-Nicolas Dodin, these elephant vases from c. 1760 are thought to have been commissioned by Mme. de Pompadour, chief mistress of Louis XV of France. They are among the rarest forms produced by the famous Sèvres manufactory in the suburbs of Paris.
Pair of Vases. Charles Nicolas Dodin, Sèvres, France, 1760. Walters Art Museum
5. Chinoiserie is related to the Rococo style
Both styles are characterized by exuberant decoration, a focus on materials, stylized nature, and subject matter depicting leisure and pleasure.
Chateau de Chantilly. The Apartments of the Princes of CondéThe Cabinet of chinoiserie. Nymphenburg Palace, Munich, Germany. Credit Yelkrokoyade1745 Nécessaire with watch. German. Gold and mother-of-pearl, lined with dark-red velvet. metmuseum1745 Nécessaire with watch. German. Gold and mother-of-pearl, lined with dark-red velvet. metmuseum1745 Nécessaire with watch. German. Gold and mother-of-pearl, lined with dark-red velvet. metmuseum1735 Wall clock. French. Étienne LeNoir. Soft-paste porcelain and partly gilded brass. metmuseum
Exotic chinoiserie accents in the pagoda-shaped outline of the tureen’s lid exemplify an interpretation popular in southern Germany.
1771 Tureen and stand. Silver, silver gilt. German, Augsburg. metmuseum
6. European monarchs gave special favor to Chinoiserie
King Louis XV of France and Britain’s King George IV thought Chinoiserie blended well with the rococo style.
Entire rooms, such as those at Château de Chantilly, were painted with chinoiserie compositions, and artists such as Antoine Watteau and others brought expert craftsmanship to the style.
Highly ornamental, yet elegant, Western interpretations of Eastern themes were fanciful expressions, often with exotic woods and marbles used to further the effect.
A room furnished in the Louis XV styleChinese Gallery at Her Majesty’s Palace at Brighton by John Nash, 1820
Built in 1670 at Versailles as a pleasure house for King Louis XIV’s mistress, the Trianon de Porcelaine was considered to be the first major example of chinoiserie. It was replaced by the Grand Trianon 17 years later.
Trainon de Porcelaine. Credit Hervé GREGOIRE (top right image)
Frederick the Great, King of Prussia had a Chinese House built in the gardens of his summer palace Sanssouci in Potsdam, Germany.
Garden architect Johann Gottfried Büring designed the pavilion in the style of Chinoiserie by blending Chinese architectural elements with ornamental rococo.
The Chinese House at Sanssouci, Johann Friedrich Nagel, 1790The Chinese House, designed by Johann Gottfried Büring between 1755 and 1764; a pavilion in the Chinoiserie style: a mixture of rococo elements coupled with Oriental architecture.Group of tea drinking Chinese (Johann Gottlieb Heymüller) Chinese Tea House Chinese House Sanssouci. Credit Steffenheilfort
7. Europeans manufactured imitations of Chinese lacquer furniture
Frequently decorated with ebony and ivory or Chinese motifs of pagodas and dragons, Europeans such as Thomas Chippendale helped popularize Chinoiserie furniture.
Chippendale’s design book The Gentleman and Cabinet-maker’s Director: Being a large Collection of the Most Elegant and Useful Designs of Household Furniture, In the Most Fashionable Taste provided a guide for intricate chinoiserie furniture and its decoration.
1776 Rolltop Desk. German. Oak, cherry, pine, mahogany, veneered with maple, burl woods, holly, hornbeam (all partially stained), tulipwood, mahogany, and other woods; mother-of-pearl; partially gilded and tooled leather; gilt bronze, iron, steel, brass, partially gold-lacquered brass. metmuseum1754 Harpsichord converted to a piano. French. Wood, paint, gilding, polychrome, gilded pewter, ebony, bone, felt. metmuseumChinoiserie cabinet. Museo Nacional de Artes Decorativas, Madrid, Spain. Credit Daderot.
8. Marco Polo was the first European to describe a Chinese garden
Marco Polo visited the summer palace of Kublai Khan at Xanadu in around 1275.
There is at this place a very fine marble Palace, the rooms of which are all gilt and painted with figures of men and beasts and birds, and with a variety of trees and flowers, all executed with such exquisite art that you regard them with delight and astonishment.Marco Polo
Chinese Garden by François Boucher, 1742
Evolving over three thousand years, the Chinese garden landscaping style became popular in the West during the 18th century.
Built in 1738, the Chinese House within the gardens of the English Palladian mansion at Stowe in Buckinghamshire, was the first of its kind in an English garden.
Chinese House, Stowe Landscaped Gardens, Buckinghamshire, England
Hundreds of Chinese and Japanese Gardens were built around the world to celebrate the naturalistic, organic beauty of their asymmetric design.
One admires the art with which this irregularity is carried out. Everything is in good taste, and so well arranged, that there is not a single view from which all the beauty can be seen; you have to see it piece by pieceJesuit priest Jean Denis Attiret, 1739
The Pagoda in Kew Gardens, London. Credit Marco FelhoferThe Chinese Garden of Friendship, Sydney, Australia. Credit WyncliffeDr. Sun Yat-Sen Garden, Vancouver, BC, Canada. Credit Damahevi
9. Wealthy gentlemen preferred Banyans to formal clothing
Made from expensive silk brocades, damasks, and printed cottons, banyans were types of dressing gown with a kimono-like form and Eastern origin. Worn with a matching waistcoat and cap or turban, they were so popular among wealthy men of the late 18th century that they posed for portraits wearing the banyan instead of formal clothing.
Joseph Sherburne (a wealthy Boston merchant wearing an elegant banyan) by John Singleton Copley, 1770Banyan. Second half of 18th century. Silk, wool, linen. metmusem
10. Chinoiserie enjoyed a renaissance in the 1920s and 1930s
Intimating the most elaborate past of the Chinese court, the Chinoiserie roundels of this Lanvin robe de style alternately resemble embroidered Manchu court badge motifs or the glinting scales of Mongol armor interpreted in Western embroidery.
Stressing tubular simplicity, Callot Soeurs used the reductive rubric of Art Deco to combine Chinoiserie with other styles, resulting in an intoxicating fusion of exoticisms.
“Queen of the Adriatic”, “City of Bridges”, “City of Canals”—whatever you call this beautiful city, you can be sure to find romance, for the name Venice is derived from the Indo-European root wen- meaning “love”.
Fleeing waves of Germanic and Hun invasions in the 5th century, refugees from the surrounding countryside sought sanctuary on a series of islands in a marshy lagoon between the Piave and Po Rivers.
The Venetian settlers dedicated the first church, San Giacomo, on the islet of Rialto, meaning “high shore”.
A Day in Venice by Fivos Valachis (The link contains an Amazon affiliate link, which means we may earn a small commission from qualifying purchases. Thanks for supporting our work).
The Grand Canal with the Rialto BridgeThe Grand Canal with the Rialto Bridge
Venice developed into a city state, that by the late 13th century, was the most prosperous in Europe.
With a strategic position at the head of the Adriatic Sea, Venice dominated Mediterranean trade with a fleet of 3,300 ships.
The wealthiest families vied with each other to build the grandest palaces and sponsor the greatest artists.
Da Mulla PalaceVendramin Palace
Pesaro PalaceThe Golden HouseVendramin Calergi Palace
But by the 15th century, a great darkness fell upon the city.
Devastated by plague and war with the Ottoman Empire, Venice went into a long period of decline.
San Georgio from Doges’ Palace by moonlight
As new trade routes across the great oceans were discovered, Venice lost its position as the center for international commerce.
Grand Canal and Doges’ Palace by moonlight
Ill-suited to ocean-going travel, Venice’s fleet of oared galleys couldn’t compete with the sailing ships of Portugal, France, England and the Netherlands.
Piazzetta and San Georgio by moonlight
By the 18th century, Venice was seen in a new light. It was considered the most elegant city in Europe—influencing art, architecture and literature.
And by the Victorian Era, a new form of transportation—the steam ship—brought travelers from far and wide to gaze upon its beauty.
Pigeons in St. Mark’s PlacePiazaetta and columns of San MarcoConcert in St. Mark’s PlaceColumns of St. Mark’s Church, Venice, ItalyOld Venetian courtyard
Before St. Mark’s and public hospitalThe Grand Canal
Closely spaced wooden piles made from water-resistant alder tree trunks support the buildings of Venice.
Driven through soft layers of sand and mud, the piles reach a much harder layer of compressed clay.
Submerged by water, wood does not decay as rapidly as on land, and most piles are still intact centuries later.
On the Grand CanalConcert in St. Mark’s PlaceSan Marina Canal, Venice, Italy
A court yard (Calle dell Angelo a San Martino)Interior ScalziInterior of the Doges’ Palace, with the Giant’s StaircaseRio di San Trovaso, Venice, ItalyRio della BotisellaSt. Mark’s Church and the clockInterior of St. Mark’s, Venice, ItalyView from the Campanile
More than 100 years ago, high above the banks of the Seine River in Rolleboise, France, Daniel Ridgway Knight set up his easel to paint working women in the fields, vineyards, and gardens surrounding the beautiful valley.
Today, if you were to sit and have lunch at the restaurant of Hotel Domain de la Corniche, you would be overlooking the same stretch of river depicted in several of Ridgway Knight’s paintings.
Hotel Domain de la Corniche
Born in Chambersburg, Pennsylvania in 1839, Knight trained in Paris under Gleyre at the École des Beaux-Arts. Gleyre taught a number of prominent artists, including Monet, Renoir, Sisley and Whistler.
After some years working under Meissonier, a painter of immensely detailed Napoleonic military scenes, Knight bought a house and studio in Poissy on the Seine.
Winning several awards at the Paris Salon, the Exposition Universelle, 1889, and the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts, Daniel Ridway Knight is best remembered for his soulful depictions of women going about their daily work in and around the Seine River valley—sometimes stopping to talk, to rest, and to dream.
A Garden above the Seine, Rolleboise by Daniel Ridgway Knight
A Field of Flowers by Daniel Ridgway Knight
Women Washing Clothes by a Stream by Daniel Ridgway Knight, 1898
Watering the Garden by Daniel Ridgway Knight, 1912
Two Women Fishing by Daniel Ridgway Knight
Three Women in a Landscape by Daniel Ridgway Knight, 1881
The Siesta by Daniel Ridgway Knight – 1882
The Sewing Circle by Daniel Ridgway Knight
The Seine at Vernon by Daniel Ridgway Knight
The Rose Garden by Daniel Ridgway Knight
The Meeting by Daniel Ridgway Knight, c. 1888
The Honeymoon Breakfast by Daniel Ridgway Knight
The Flower Boat by Daniel Ridgway Knight
The Grape Harvest by Daniel Ridgway Knight. Image courtesy of Rehs Galleries, Inc., NYC
The Dancing Lesson by Daniel Ridgway Knight
Madeleine in a wheat field by Daniel Ridgway Knight. Image courtesy of Rehs Galleries, Inc., NYC
The Conversation by Daniel Ridgway Knight
Spring Blossoms by Daniel Ridgway Knight. Image courtesy of Rehs Galleries, Inc., NYC
Reverie by Daniel Ridgway Knight, 1866
Picking Flowers by Daniel Ridgway Knight
On the Terrace by Daniel Ridgway Knight
Mending by Daniel Ridgway Knight
Julia on the Terrace by Daniel Ridgway Knight, 1909
In the garden by Daniel Ridgway Knight, 1898
In Her Garden by Daniel Ridgway Knight
Hailing the Ferry by Daniel Ridgway Knight, 1888
Girl by a Stream, Flanders by Daniel Ridgway Knight, 1890
Flower Girls by Daniel Ridgway Knight
Fishing by Daniel Ridgway Knight
Fishing by Daniel Ridgway Knight
Far Away Thoughts by Daniel Ridgway Knight
Daydreaming by Daniel Ridgway Knight
Daydreaming by Daniel Ridgway Knight
Contemplation by Daniel Ridgway Knight
Confidence by Daniel Ridgway Knight – circa 1899
Coffee in the Garden by Daniel Ridgway Knight
Chrysanthemums by Daniel Ridgway Knight, 1898. Image courtesy of Rehs Galleries, Inc., NYC
Brittany Girl Overlooking Stream by Daniel Ridgway Knight
Breakfast in the Fields by Daniel Ridgway Knight, 1884. Image courtesy of Rehs Galleries, Inc., NYC
Welcome to the magical world of antique dollhouses.
Early dollhouses were elaborate European cabinet-style “baby house” display cases.
Doll’s house from Petronella de la Court (Amsterdam 1670-1690) in the Centraal Museum, Utrecht – The Netherlands.
The 17th-century dollhouse of wealthy Dutch widow Petronella Oortman is of such historical significance that it resides permanently in the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam.
Dolls’ House of Petronella Oortman, c. 1700
Like other rich women in Amsterdam and the Hague, Petronella had a dollhouse built that she curated over many years, starting in 1686, and filling it with expensive decorative materials and miniatures.
The Comptoir (office) in the dollhouse of Petronella de la Court, Amsterdam 1670-1680
Petronella’s dollhouse was also painted by Dutch artist Jacob Appel in 1710.
Dollhouse of Petronella Ortman by Jacob Appel, c. 1710
Popular among 17th-century German, Dutch, and English nobility, these dollhouses were less about play than they were ornamental conversation pieces—often filled with real miniature silver and porcelain objet d’art.
Dolls’ House of Petronella Oortman, c. 1700
In fact, children were off-limits for these extravagant trophy collections for fear of them being damaged.
Incredible detail included tiny chandeliers, mirrors, and even portraits hung on walls. Doors had real hinges and connected adjoining rooms.
Alsatian Museum, Strasbourg, France. Credit Christina
Sara Rothé was another famous owner of dollhouses.
An 18th-century art collector from the Northern Netherlands, she made two dollhouses that were miniature copies of her two homes.
Frans Hals Museum dollhouse. Credit Sailko
Skilled at embroidery, she embroidered most of the cloth furnishings in the dollhouses.
Perfectly scaled replicas of bedspreads, wool rugs, upholstered chairs, and hardwood floors completed the interior décor.
Dollhouse of Sara Rothé (1699-1751, Amsterdam) now displayed in the Frans Hals Museum in Haarlem
Although initially handmade by individual craftsmen, following the industrial revolution, dollhouses were increasingly mass-produced, and as such, were more affordable.
Firms specializing in dollhouse manufacture began to spring up in Germany and England. German companies included Christian Hacker, Moritz Gottschalk, Elastolin, and Moritz Reichel.
Bäumler family doll house nuremberg, ca 1650-1700. Credit Sailko
Doll’s house from Colmar, Alsace, eastern France (German territory from 1871 – 1918). Credit Esther Westerveld
Bäumler family doll house Nuremberg, Germany ca 1650-1700. Credit Sailko
German firms were the leaders up until World War I, with their dollhouses regularly exported to the United States and Britain.
Bäumler family doll house Nuremberg, Germany ca 1650-1700. Credit Sailko
Bäumler family doll house Nuremberg, Germany ca 1650-1700. Credit Sailko
Alsatian Museum, Strasbourg, France (German territory from 1871 – 1918). Credit Anca Pandrea
Alsatian Museum, Strasbourg, France (German territory from 1871 – 1918). Credit Christina
Alsatian Museum, Strasbourg, France (German territory from 1871 – 1918). Credit Christina
English counterparts to the German firms were Silber & Fleming, Evans & Cartwright, and Lines Brothers.
Showcasing the very finest goods of the period, Queen Mary’s Doll’s House was built for Queen Mary, the wife of King George V in 1924.
At five feet tall, it contains an incredible collection of working miniatures: running water, toilets that flush, electric light switches, working elevators, and even a garage with cars that have running motors.
Writers Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (Sherlock Holmes) and Rudyard Kipling (The Jungle Book) contributed special books, written and bound in scale size.
Queen Mary’s Dolls’ House constructed for Queen Mary in 1924. Credit. Rob Sangster
American dollhouses were introduced by the Bliss Manufacturing Company towards the end of the 19th century. Firms like Roger Williams Toys, Tootsietoy, Schoenhut, and the Wisconsin Toy Co began to flourish in the early 20th century.
19th-century Dollhouse. Credit Joanbanjo2
19th-century Dollhouse. Credit Joanbanjo
Exterior of the Astolat Dollhouse Castle, built between 1976 and 1986 in USA. Credit Dr Michael and Lois Freeman
In 1894, famed art critic Gustave Geffroy described Berthe Morisot, Marie Bracquemond, and Mary Cassatt as “les trois grandes dames” (the three great ladies) of the Impressionist movement.
Born into a wealthy bourgeois family from Bourges, France, Berthe Morisot learnt how to paint at an early age, having private lessons along with her sisters.
As art students, Berthe and her sister Edma would spend hours in the Louvre copying the great works.
While marriage and family life ended Edma’s art career, Berthe continued to paint, and in 1864 at age 23, she exhibited at the prestigious Salon de Paris—the official, annual exhibition of the Académie des beaux-arts in Paris.
Then in 1874, she stopped exhibiting with the academy and joined the Impressionists, which included Paul Cézanne, Edgar Degas, Claude Monet, Camille Pissarro, Pierre-Auguste Renoir, and Alfred Sisley.
Regarded as a “virtuoso colorist”, Berthe created a sense of space and depth with color, painting what she saw and experienced in everyday life. But there is a message in her work—one that tells a story of the class and gender restrictions of the 19th century.
Focusing on family life, her portraits often feature her own daughter, Julie, from her marriage to Édouard Manet’s brother, Eugène.
Portrait of Julie (Berthe’s daughter) by Berthe Morisot, 1889
Behind the Blinds by Berthe Morisot, 1879
Lilacs at Maurecourt by Berthe Morisot, 1874Hide and Seek by Berthe Morisot, 1873
On a Bench by Berthe Morisot, 1889
Woman and Child on a Balcony by Berthe Morisot, 1872
Studying the Violin by Berthe Morisot, 1893
The Pink Dress by Berthe Morisot, c.1870
Young Girl with a Bird by Berthe Morisot, 1891
Young Woman Watering a Shrub by Berthe Morisot, 1876
The Basket Chair by Berthe Morisot, 1882
In the Dining Room by Berthe Morisot, 1875
Lucie Leon at the Piano by Berthe Morisot, 1892
The Cradle by Berthe Morisot, 1872
The Harbor at Lorient by Berthe Morisot, 1869
After Luncheon by Berthe Morisot, 1881
Psyché by Berthe Morisot, 1875
The Lake in the Bois de Boulogne by Berthe Morisot, 1879Eugene Manet and His Daughter in the Garden by Berthe Morisot, 1883Young Girl with Doll by Berthe Morisot, 1884
Woman Wearing Gloves ny Berthe Morisot, 1885
On the Veranda by Berthe Morisot, 1884
On the Lake by Berthe Morisot, 1884
Doll on a Porch by Berthe Morisot, 1884
Young Girl with Doll by Berthe Morisot, 1883
The Fable by Berthe Morisot, 1883On the Balcony of Eugene Manet’s Room at Bougival by Berthe Morisot, 1881
Young Woman Picking Oranges by Berthe Morisot, 1889
Pasie Sewing in the Garden by Berthe Morisot, 1882
Young Woman and Child, Avenue du Bois by Berthe Morisot, 1894
Imagine having such a large collection of porcelain antiques that you need a separate room to keep it all.
And imagine the same for silver, and you have some idea of the life of Wilhelmina von Hallwyl (1844 – 1930), sole heiress to a wealthy Swedish timber-merchant.
The Porcelain Room
The Silver Room
Sweden is dominated by forests—and timber was big business in the 19th century. Wood was needed for fuel, construction, the iron and steel industry, shipbuilding, and pulp and paper industries. It helped transform Sweden from an agrarian society into an industrialized nation.
1865 Portrait of Anna Fridrica Wilhelmina von Hallwyl at 21 years old
Married at the age of 20, Wilhelmina’s Swiss-born husband, Count Walther von Hallwyl (1839–1921), took over the lumber business from her father, allowing Wilhelmina time to indulge her passion for collecting art and antiques.
Wilhelmina was the consummate collector. From her travels around the world, she amassed enough artifacts to fill a house. In fact, she did fill a house—the Hallwyl’s own city mansion. Even the attic had to be converted into a gallery to house her paintings.
The Picture Gallery
Upon her death, Wilhelmina gave back to society—donating her entire house and its contents to the Swedish state. It took eight years to catalogue around 50,000 objects, covering 79 volumes in print.
Wilhelmina von Hallwyl
The house remains as it was when Wilhelmina and her family occupied it. The collections of art, antiques, furniture, textiles and a whole array of everyday household objects used by the family and servants, is just how she left it.
Let us enter the world of Wilhelmina as it was in 1865 …
She wore this dress for the oval portrait above and had been married only a few months at the time. Having traveled extensively with her parents, at 21, she already had a substantial collection of art and antiques.
The dress Wilhelmina was wearing for the portrait of 1865
Detail of the dress Wilhelmina was wearing for the portrait of 1865
Detail of the dress Wilhelmina was wearing for the portrait of 1865
Detail of the dress Wilhelmina was wearing for the portrait of 1865
Grand piano in the Hallwyl museum’s large salon. Built in New York in 1896 by Steinway & Sons. Case designed by Isak Gustaf Clason and crafted by the carpenter Carl Herman Benckert.
The Dining Room
The parlour room
The Smoking Room
A guest bedroom
Another bedroom
This bedroom even has en-suite facilities
A wash and brush-up
Time for tea, or perhaps snaps (same as German schnapps)
Would Wilhelmina have sat here to read or write a letter?
The kitchen
19th-century baking
The dumbwaiter
The vestibule
Ornate decoration in the hallway
Stained glass
The main bathroom
And now for some of Wilhelmina’s curios …
Late 1700s lion Sculpture from Luneville, France
Trusty Remington typewriter
A shaving kit
Brooch—gold with pearls, in the form of a bird’s nest on a branch with rich foliage of lobed leaves.
Gift to Walther von Hallwyl on his birthday January 26, 1857 from his parents.
Cufflinks with case of gold enamel and rose diamonds. The “W” and “E” initials are probably for Wilhelmina and their two daughters—Ebba and Ellen. The third daughter, Irma, probably wasn’t born at the time.
A small sample of Wilhelmina’s art gallery …
Portrait of a Two-Year Old Girl by Jan Cornelisz (1636)
Proposal by Axel Kulle. Wilhelm bought this painting directly from the artist in Paris in 1881
A Merry Company by Anthonie Palamedesz, 1633
For a complete look at the gallery and the rest of the museum, why not take a virtual tour.
Frederic Edwin Church loved to dream. He dreamed of mountains, waterfalls, and sunsets. He dreamed of exotic lands shrouded in mist, of waves crashing against craggy cliffs, of reflections in the stillness of dawn’s first light.
Church was a pupil of Thomas Cole, the founder of the Hudson River School of American landscape painters—an art movement influenced by romanticism.
Romanticism was a reaction to the Industrial Revolution and the Enlightenment that emphasized an emotional connection with nature. Romantic paintings used a luminous quality of light to convey idealized scenes depicting the richness and beauty of nature.
Church shows us the wild, untamed frontier landscapes of an unsettled America that were fast disappearing and the dramatic natural wonders he experienced on his travels around the world.
We are reminded of just how small we are in comparison with the magnificence of nature.
Morning in the Tropics by Frederic Edwin Church, 1858A Country Home by Frederic Edwin Church, 1854Landscape in the Adirondacks by Frederic Edwin Church
The Monastery of San Pedro by Frederic Edwin Church, 1879
Landscape in Greece by Frederic Edwin Church, 1873
View in Pittsford, Vt. by Frederic Edwin Church, 1848Twilight in the Adirondacks by Frederic Edwin ChurchThe River of Light by Frederic Edwin Church, 1877
Niagara Falls from the American Side by Frederic Edwin Church, 1867
The Natural Bridge, Virginia by Frederic Edwin Church, 1852
The Falls of Tequendama, Near Bogota, New Granada by Frederic Edwin Church, 1852
Coast Scene, Mount Desert by Frederic Edwin Church, 1863
Cotopaxi by Frederic Edwin Church, 1855
New England Scenery by Frederic Edwin Church, 1851
South American Landscape by Frederic Edwin Church, 1857
Scene on the Catskill Creek, New York by Frederic Edwin Church, 1847
View of Cotopaxi by Frederic Edwin Church, 1857
Syria by the Sea by Frederic Edwin Church, 1873
Konigsee, Bavaria by Frederic Edwin Church, 1868
The Parthenon by Frederic Edwin Church, 1871
The following content contains Amazon affiliate links, which means we may earn a small commission from qualifying purchases. Thanks for supporting our work.
Following on from our article on corsets, we turn our attention to the bustle.
We think the bustle epitomizes Victorian fashion during the last quarter of the 19th century. It’s particularly synonymous with the period of peace, prosperity, and progress known as the Belle Époque.
The bustle was celebrated in paintings by the Belle Époque artist Jean Béraud, by the fashion portraitist James Tissot, and by the pointillist artist Georges Seurat in his iconic work “A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte”.
La Patisserie Gloppe au Champs Elyssées by Jean-Georges Béraud – 1889The Ball on Shipboard by James Tissot, 1874A Sunday on La Grande Jatte by Georges Seurat, 1884
Out went the huge crinolines of the 1860’s …
1860’s fashion plate
… and in came a slimline version.
1887 Fashion Plate
The bustle was far more convenient for day-to-day activities … although some compromises were still necessary as Jean Béraud illustrates so aptly in his painting “Woman in Prayer”.
Woman in Prayer by Jean-Georges Béraud, 1877
And the effect it had on men ranged from admiring looks at the opera, to marriage proposals on bended knee.
Left: The Box by the Stalls by Jean-Georges Béraud – 1883. Right: An 1885 proposal caricature
Even today, the essence of the bustle has been used by top designers such as Vera Wang in her stunning wedding dresses.
Vera Wang wedding dress. Photo credit: Sarah Kate Photography on stylemepretty.com
When I design a wedding dress with a bustle, it has to be one the bride can dance in. I love the idea that something is practical and still looks great.Vera Wang
Crinolines and bustles were types of framework to give fullness to dresses and keep them from dragging.
Bustle shown overlaid for illustration purposes
Heavy fabric would weigh down the skirts of dresses and flatten them, causing a woman’s petticoated dress to lose its shape during everyday wear—merely from sitting down or moving about.
From around the 1870s to the late 1890s, the large bell-shaped crinolines were superseded by the bustle as the preferred way to create the desired fullness that was in vogue.
The overskirt of the late 1860s was now swept up toward the back with the bustle providing the needed support for the new draped shape.
This fullness was drawn up in ties for walking that created a fashionable “puff”.
In this painting from Belle Époque-era Paris, we see ladies crossing the street in rainy weather while holding their skirts up with one hand.
The bustle made it much easier to manage the fullness of skirts and keep them from dragging on muddy streets.
Boulevard Poissonniere in the Rain by Jean-Georges Béraud – 1885
Supporting this trendsetting puff was a variety of things such as horsehair, metal hoops and down.
More sophisticated designs would allow bustles to reach their maximum potential—looking like a full shelf at the back. Some even joked that the bustles could support an entire tea service!
1884-86. American. Silk. metmuseum_closeup
Some of the sculptural undergarments required to achieve the extreme bustle of the 1880s are shown here.
To support the heavier gowns, light and flexible frameworks were created using wire, cane, and whalebone, held together with canvas tapes or inserts inside of quilted channels.
Bustle from c. 1885, American, linen, metalBustle from 1871, British, cotton, metal. metmuseumBustle from 1870s, American. memuseum
Bustle from 1870s, American, metmuseumBustle from 1880s Europe. metmuseum1878. American. Linen, metal. metmuseum1880s. American. metmuseum1882 bustle. American. Steel, cotton. metmuseum1873 Bustle. Credit Wilhelm Storm, flickr
The Impressionist painter Frank Myers Boggs loved France.
He loved the quays and monuments along the Seine in Paris. He loved the old harbor and the pretty townhouses in Honfleur. He loved the marina, the fish market, the stepped streets, and the tranquil squares of Marseille.
Myers Boggs was one of several young American artists who crossed the stormy seas of the North Atlantic in the 19th century to live, breathe, and paint the “old world” that is France.
He used a somber tonal palette and restrained impressionist technique to capture marine, harbor, and street scenes.
If you love moody skies, if you love the way golden afternoon light falls on old stone buildings, if you love the pale light of misty mornings, the stillness of reflections and cities filled with spires, then you will love the work of Frank Myers Boggs.
Here are 30 Impressionist paintings to feed your soul today.
The Seine at Paris with the Pont du Carousel by Frank Myers Boggs – 1896Honfleur by Frank Myers BoggsPont St. Michel by Frank Myers BoggsMarket Day, Dreux by Frank Myers BoggsHonfleur, France by Frank Myers Boggs
Scene of a Street in front of the Church of Saint-Medard, Paris by Frank Myers BoggsThe Port of Marseille by Frank Myers BoggsThe Seine, Quay Henri IV, Paris by Frank Myers BoggsIn Port by Frank Myers BoggsGrand Opera House, Paris by Frank Myers Boggs
French Harbor Scene by Frank Myers BoggsThe Church in Normandie by Frank Myers BoggsParis, the Porte Saint-Denis by Frank Myers Boggs – 1905The Harbor at Honfleur by Frank Myers BoggsView of Paris by Frank Myers Boggs – 1900
View of Notre Dame by Frank Myers Boggs – 1898The Pont Carousel, Paris by Frank Myers Boggs, 1889Armistice Day, Paris, 1918 by Frank BoggsOn the Quai, Dieppe by Frank Myers Boggs, 1880The Seine at Paris by Frank Myers Boggs
The Moulin Rouge and the Rue Lepic as Seen from the Place Blanche by Frank Myers BoggsThe Seine and Notre Dame by Frank Myers BoggsOur Lady of the Double Bridge by Frank Boggs, 1900Le Quai de Valmy by Frank Boggs, 1905Paris Street Scene by Frank Boggs, 1893
Paris, the Seine, Quai Notre Dame by Frank Myers BoggsCathedral in Paris by Frank Myers BoggsDieppe by Frank Myers Boggs – 1881Street Scene in Paris by Frank Myers Boggs – 1878Quai at the Seine in the Paris Moonlight by Frank Myers Boggs
After an evening spent at the opera or the ball in a tight-laced corsetted gown, perhaps Victorian ladies were a little more than relieved to slip into something more comfortable when they arrived home.
Queen (magazine) of 1881, now known as Harper’s Bazaar, observed the growing popularity of dressing gowns:
It is so much the fashion for young ladies to meet in their rooms, after they have seemingly retired to rest, that very smart dressing-gowns are brought into requisition, and flannel is forsaken for more dressy materials.
Our first example is the quintessential dressing gown of the mid- to late-Victorian era, complete with paisley pattern, military-style cuffs, and cord belt. The teal color runs through the pattern, cord, and lining.
Dressing gown ca. 1875 American Wool, silk, metmuseumDressing gown ca. 1875 American Wool, silk, metmuseum (back)Dressing gown ca. 1875 American Wool, silk, metmuseum (detail showing lining)
Our next example was a popular style when it became acceptable to receive intimate guests at home in an informal manner. The fabric is more distinctive than the above paisley pattern and the form is more elegant. It was considered equivalent to a man’s banyan or smoking jacket.
Dressing Gown 1880-85 American Wool, Silk, metmuseum
Dressing Gown 1880-85 American Wool, Silk, metmuseum
Dressing Gown 1880-85 American Wool, Silk, metmuseum
Our third example is a sophisticated dressing gown of beautiful colors. The intricate back, with its horizontal ruffles, is reminiscent of the 1870s bustle. The complex back is sewn from four pieces starting at the shoulder seam, with a gradual flare to the hem.
Dressing gown 1865-75 American Wool, silk, metmuseum
Dressing gown 1865-75 American Wool, silk, metmuseum
Dressing gown 1865-75 American Wool, silk, metmuseum
Our last example is an expensive, custom-made wool garment which belonged to a fashionable woman. According to the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the evidence of high craftsmanship is in the skill, time, and extra material it would have taken to precisely place the stripe at the sleeve ends and match at the seams.
Devon is a county of England in the south-west corner of the British Isles.
The name Devon comes from a Celtic tribe called Dumnonii, meaning “deep valley dwellers”, that inhabited the area at about the time of the Roman invasion of Britain (AD 43).
Read more
In around AD 1000, the Anglo-Saxons partly absorbed Devon into one of their Kingdoms, called Wessex. At this time, Devon became a “shire”. Although not in common use today, the term “Devonshire” is often used for the light meal known as “Devonshire Cream Tea”.
Oddly enough, the seat of the Duke of Devonshire is held in Derbyshire at Chatsworth House and has no connection to the county of Devon.
The arrival of the railways in the 19th century secured Devon’s position as one of Britain’s favourite seaside resort destinations. The “English Riviera” spans several towns on the southern coast of Devon, which benefit from a mild climate, sandy beaches, and plenty of leisure attractions.
Join us as we tour the towns of late-19th-century Devon.
Town and hotels from Capstone, Ilfracombe
Capstone, from the arcade, Ilfracombe
Capstone steps, Ilfracombe
Shaldon Bridge in Teignmouth
Tavistock
HMS Impregnable, Devonport Dockyard
High Street, Exeter
The Tower, Newton Abbot
Abbey bridge, Tavistock
View from Torquay Road, Teignmouth
View from the Ness, Teignmouth
View from E. Cliff, Teignmouth, Devon
The Ness, Teignmouth
The den, Teignmouth
The den, Teignmouth
The beach, Teignmouth
Taddiport from Castle Hill, Torrington, Devon
Rothern Bridge, Torrington
High Street, Clovelly
Princess Gardens, Torquay
Natural Arch, Torquay
Landing place, Totnes, Devon
Guildhall Square, Tavistock
General view, Totnes
From Waldren Hill, Torquay
From the hill, Torquay
From Rock Walk, Torquay
Fore Street, Totnes
Cockington Village, Torquay
Cockington Church, Torquay
Castle Hill, Torrington
Babbacombe Beach, Torquay
Babbacombe Beach, Torquay
Approach to Babbacombe Beach, Torquay
Anstey’s Cove, Torquay
Lee
Brentor, Dartmoor
Glen Lyn, falls and upper bridge, Lynton and Lynmouth, Devon
Saltash Bridge, Plymouth
Swiss cottage, Lee
The following content contains Amazon affiliate links, which means we may earn a small commission from qualifying purchases. Thanks for supporting our work.
Like the song Fairleigh Well Olde England? Buy it on Amazon Music.
Self-portrait as a firewood gatherer walking along a frozen canal.
Cornelis Springer (1817-1891) specialised in the arrangement and accurate representation of town scenes. His paintings were in such high demand that he had a two-year waiting list.
Raised in a family of architects and building contractors, he learned early to appreciate the beautiful buildings of Amsterdam.
Learning perspective drawing from his brother Hendrick—a professional architect—he completed his studies at the Amsterdam Academy of Fine Arts under instruction from Kaspar Karsen, a famous townscape painter.
Cornelis Springer’s beautiful scenes depict people going about day-to-day life—gathering at the fish market, unloading horse-drawn carts, merchants selling goods, or businessmen in conversation outside elegant canalside buildings.
With a keen eye for the social and economic activities that drive a city, Springer brings to life the beauty of Dutch architecture.
Altstadtmarkt in Brunswijk by Cornelis Springer
Zuiderhavendijk, Enkhuizen by Cornelis Springer, 1868
A View of a Town along the Rhine by Cornelis Springer
Altstadtmarkt in Brunswijk by Cornelis Springer
A View of Franeker with the Zakkend Ragerschuisje by Cornelis Springer
Cheese market with the Weigh house in Enkhuizen by Cornelis Springer, 1867
Cornelis Springer, The Gemeenlandshuis and the Old Church, Delft by Cornelis Springer, 1877
Village View by Cornelis Springer
A View of the Delftse Vaart and Saint Laurens Church, Rotterdam by Cornelis Springer, 1840
Figures on a Market Square in a Dutch Town by Cornelis Springer, 1843
Study for View on Den Haag by Cornelis Springer
The town hall at Leiden by Cornelis Springer, 1870
The Orphanage On The Hooglandse Kerkgracht, Leiden by Cornelis Springer
City View at Hoorn by Cornelis Springer
Market Oudewater by Cornelis Springer
The bend in the Herengracht by Cornelis Springer, 1882
Walenkerk Haarlem by Cornelis Springer
View of Montelspran by Cornelis Springer
View on Enkhuizen by Cornelis Springer
Voorburgwal in Amsterdam by Cornelis Springer
Many Figures On The Market Square In Front Of The Martinikirche, Braunschweig by Cornelis Springer
St. Michael Church in Zwolle by Cornelis Springer, 1862
A view of the Staal Everspijp and the Grote Kerk in summer, Enkhuizen by Cornelis Springer, 1866
A View of the Delftse Vaart and Saint Laurens Church, Rotterdam by Cornelis Springer, 1840
View behind the Grote Kerk in Naarden by Cornelis Springer
Alfred Stevens was one of Belgium’s leading 19th-century artists who specialized in paintings of fashionable young women in elegant interiors.
Read more …
As a young boy, Alfred Stevens (1823 – 1906) was surrounded by art: his father was an art collector and his grandparents ran a cafe in Brussels that was a meeting place for artists and writers.
At age 14, he studied at the Académie Royale des Beaux-Arts in Brussels, and at 20 was admitted to the most prestigious art school in Paris—the École des Beaux-Arts.
By 1851, at the age of 28, three of his paintings were admitted to the Brussels Salon, the most exclusive art exhibition in Belgium. Two years later, he was awarded a medal at the Paris Salon—the most important art event in the world.
It was here, in Paris, that he would find fame and fortune painting elegant modern women.
Here are 20 exquisite paintings from Alfred Steven’s repertoire that show his meticulous attention to contemporary dress and decor.
Departing for the Promenade, by Alfred-Émile-Léopold Stevens, 1859
La Parisienne Japonaise by Alfred Stevens, 1871
Lady at a Window Feeding Birds by Alfred Stevens, 1859
Pleasant Letter by Alfred Stevens, 1860
The Lady in Pink by Alfred Stevens, 1867
In the Studio by Alfred Stevens, 1888
The Japanese Mask by Alfred Stevens, 1877
In the Country by Alfred Stevens, 1823-1906
After the Ball by Alfred Stevens, 1873
Autumn Flowers by Alfred Stevens, 1866
News from Afar by Alfred Stevens, 1865
The Letter by Alfred Stevens, 1823-1906
At Home by Alfred Stevens, 1823-1906
The Happy Mother by Alfred Stevens, 1823-1906
Déjà by Alfred Stevens, 1863
Pensive Woman Near a Window by Alfred Stevens, 1823-1906
La Parisienne, 1879 by Alfred Stevens, 1879
Portrait of Baroness du Mesnil Saint-Front by Alfred Stevens, 1886
Mother and Children by Alfred Stevens, 1882
The Blue Ribbon by Alfred Stevens, 1823-1906 Credit Giacasso
In a dusty old Parisian apartment in 2010, a startling discovery was made.
No one had set foot on the premises for 70 years.
Hidden, as if in a time capsule, was a portrait by the Italian artist Giovanni Boldini.
It was of Marthe de Florian, a French actress and demimondaine during the Belle Époque. She was known for having famous lovers including a string of French premiers—Georges Clemenceau, Pierre Waldeck-Rousseau, Paul Deschanel, and Gaston Doumergue.
The apartment belonged to de Florian’s granddaughter, who left Paris to live in the South of France at the outbreak of World War 2, and never returned.
Evidence of the painting’s authenticity lay in a love-letter and a biographical reference dating it to 1888, when the actress was 24.
Boldini is best known for his dazzling, elegant depictions of fashionable high society women.
A 1933 Time magazine article called Boldini the “Master of Swish”—one look at his striking, fluid brushstrokes explains why.
He was preeminently the artist of the Edwardian era, of the pompadour, the champagne supper and the ribbon-trimmed chemiseTime Magazine.
Born in Ferrara in 1842, the son of a painter of religious subjects, he moved to Florence to study painting when he was 20 and met the “Macchiaioli”—Italian precursors to Impressionism. It was their influence that set him on a course initially as a landscape artist, then as a portraitist.
On moving to London, he found fame painting society members including the Duchess of Westminster and Lady Holland.
From 1872, he lived in Paris, where he befriended Edgar Degas and became the most fashionable portraitist in Paris.
He lived to be 88, having married only two years earlier. At his wedding breakfast, he made a little speech:
It is not my fault if I am so old, it’s something which has happened to me all at once.
Vote for your favorites from the “master of swish” as you listen to The Swan by Charles-Camille Saint-Saëns.
Miss Bell by Giovanni Boldini, 1903.
Can’t see the music player or the Boldini paintings? Your ad blocker might be blocking them—try switching it off.
At the outbreak of the American Civil War, over half of America’s foreign–born population was British and Irish.
Many immigrants were escaping the famine in Ireland or poverty elsewhere or were lured by demand for skilled workers in the rapidly industrializing North.
You’d expect there to be at least some tea-drinking on the battlefields wouldn’t you?
If this is coffee, please bring me some tea; but if this is tea, please bring me some coffee.
—Abraham Lincoln.
Noncommissioned Officers Mess of Company D, 93d New York Infantry – Bealeton, VA, Aug 1863
Proclaiming Britain’s neutrality in the American Civil War in 1861 didn’t stop British subjects from enlisting in the Union and Confederate armies.
Many sought adventure, fame, and fortune—perhaps 50,000 British and Irish men and women joined the American conflict.
The price of tea had been falling steadily in Europe during the 19th century, especially when Indian tea started to flood the markets.
For Britain and Ireland, it meant that tea quickly became the everyday beverage of choice for all levels of society.
This food list from the Civil War indicated that tea was listed as a staple for both Union (left side) and Confederate soldiers.
In fact, Union blockades on coffee might have increased demand for tea in the south.
Credit: Battlefields.org
Anne Hertzler, a Professor of Human Nutrition, Foods and Exercise at Virginia Tech from 1980-2001, explained the likely reason for the rise of coffee as the beverage of choice for civil war soldiers and eventually the whole nation.
In 1832, President Andrew Jackson ordered coffee and sugar substituted for the daily liquor ration in the military.
By the time of the Civil War, coffee was earning a reputation on the battlefield as an important “fuel” that helped soldiers remain alert.
In his NYTimes article—How Coffee Fueled the civil War—Jon Grinspan said that soldiers wrote about coffee in their diaries more than practically anything else.
Did the Union’s better coffee provisions help it win the war?
In his 1888 memoir of military service, Hardtack and Coffee (contains Amazon affiliate link), Union Army soldier John Billings, a veteran of the 10th Massachusetts Volunteer Artillery, wrote:
What a Godsend it seemed to us at times! How often after being completely jaded by a night march . . . have I had a wash, if there was water to be had, made and drunk my pint or so of coffee and felt as fresh and invigorated as if just arisen from a night’s sound sleep!
Coffee was considered essential to the Union army. Whenever men stopped for a break, they gathered wood for small fires.
Out came the pot or “boiler” and a steaming cup of refreshing coffee could be brewed in less than 10 minutes by experienced veterans. Even prisoners were served coffee.
Serving out rations (coffee, bread & meat) to the exchanged prisoners on board the New York
But in the South, it was a different story. By 1862, coffee supplies in the south were exhausted.
Price per pound in 1861 was $3.00; in 1862, $1.50 to $4.00; in 1863, $5.00 to $30.00. By 1864, coffee was going for $12.00 to $60.00!
In the Memphis Daily Appeal newspaper of November, 1861, was printed a recipe for a coffee substitute.
Take sweet potatoes and after peeling them, cut them up into small pieces about the size of the joint in your little finger, dry them either in the sun or by the fire, (sun dried probably the best,) and then parch and grind the same as coffee. Take two-thirds of this to one-third of coffee to a making. Try it, not particularly for the economy, but for its superiority over any coffee you ever tasted.
After the war, returning soldiers continued their coffee craving, and before long, it had become the national beverage of choice.
And the rest is history, as the saying goes.
Whatever happened to tea?
Iced tea now makes up about 85% of tea consumption in the US and is especially popular in the southern states.
But yesterday a naked sod The dandies sneered from Rotten Row, And cantered o’er it to and fro: And see ’tis done! As though ’twere by a wizard’s rod A blazing arch of lucid glass Leaps like a fountain from the grass To meet the sun!
A quiet green but few days since, With cattle browsing in the shade: And here are lines of bright arcade In order raised! A palace as for fairy Prince, A rare pavilion, such as man Saw never since mankind began, And built and glazed!
A peaceful place it was but now, And lo! within its shining streets A multitude of nations meets; A countless throng I see beneath the crystal bow, And Gaul and German, Russ and Turk, Each with his native handiwork And busy tongue.
I felt a thrill of love and awe To mark the different garb of each, The changing tongue, the various speech Together blent: A thrill, methinks, like His who saw ‘All people dwelling upon earth Praising our God with solemn mirth And one consent.’
High Sovereign, in your Royal state, Captains, and chiefs, and councillors, Before the lofty palace doors Are open set,— Hush ere you pass the shining gate: Hush! ere the heaving curtain draws, And let the Royal pageant pause A moment yet.
People and prince a silence keep! Bow coronet and kingly crown. Helmet and plume, bow lowly down, The while the priest, Before the splendid portal step, (While still the wondrous banquet stays,) From Heaven supreme a blessing prays Upon the feast.
Then onwards let the triumph march; Then let the loud artillery roll, And trumpets ring, and joy-bells toll, And pass the gate. Pass underneath the shining arch, ‘Neath which the leafy elms are green; Ascend unto your throne, O Queen! And take your state.
Behold her in her Royal place; A gentle lady; and the hand That sways the sceptre of this land, How frail and weak! Soft is the voice, and fair the face: She breathes amen to prayer and hymn; No wonder that her eyes are dim, And pale her cheek.
This moment round her empire’s shores The winds of Austral winter sweep, And thousands lie in midnight sleep At rest to-day. Oh! awful is that crown of yours, Queen of innumerable realms Sitting beneath the budding elms Of English May!
A wondrous scepter ’tis to bear: Strange mystery of God which set Upon her brow yon coronet,— The foremost crown Of all the world, on one so fair! That chose her to it from her birth, And bade the sons of all the earth To her bow down.
The representatives of man Here from the far Antipodes, And from the subject Indian seas, In Congress meet; From Afric and from Hindustan, From Western continent and isle, The envoys of her empire pile Gifts at her feet;
Our brethren cross the Atlantic tides, Loading the gallant decks which once Roared a defiance to our guns, With peaceful store; Symbol of peace, their vessel rides!* O’er English waves float Star and Stripe, And firm their friendly anchors gripe The father shore!
From Rhine and Danube, Rhone and Seine, As rivers from their sources gush, The swelling floods of nations rush, And seaward pour: From coast to coast in friendly chain, With countless ships we bridge the straits, And angry ocean separates Europe no more.
From Mississippi and from Nile— From Baltic, Ganges, Bosphorous, In England’s ark assembled thus Are friend and guest. Look down the mighty sunlit aisle, And see the sumptuous banquet set, The brotherhood of nations met. Around the feast!
Along the dazzling colonnade, Far as the straining eye can gaze, Gleam cross and fountain, bell and vase, In vistas bright; And statues fair of nymph and maid, And steeds and pards and Amazons, Writhing and grappling in the bronze, In endless fight.
To deck the glorious roof and dome, To make the Queen a canopy, The peaceful hosts of industry Their standards bear. Yon are the works of Brahmin loom; On such a web of Persian thread The desert Arab bows his head And cries his prayer.
Look yonder where the engines toil: These England’s arms of conquest are, The trophies of her bloodless war: Brave weapons these. Victorians over wave and soil, With these she sails, she weaves, she tills, Pierces the everlasting hills And spans the seas.
The engine roars upon its race, The shuttle whirs the woof, The people hum from floor to roof, With Babel tongue. The fountain in the basin plays, The chanting organ echoes clear, An awful chorus ’tis to hear, A wondrous song!
Swell, organ, swell your trumpet blast, March, Queen and Royal pageant, march By splendid aisle and springing arch Of this fair Hall: And see! above the fabric vast, God’s boundless Heaven is bending blue, God’s peaceful sunlight’s beaming through, And shines o’er all.
