1792 Grand Piano, London, UK. Maker John Broadwood (1732–1812) Mahogany, oak, curly maple, ivory, ebony, brass. Credit: Mr. and Mrs. Jerome C. Neuhoff, 1957 via Metropolitan Museum New York City, U.S.A. metmuseum.org books2read.com/suziloveMusicPiano
1788 Armchair or bergère en cabriolet. Part of a set by Jean-Baptiste-Claude Sené (French, 1748–1803). Made for Marie Antoinette, Queen of France, for her Cabinet de Toilette in Palace of Saint-Cloud, France. Carved, painted and gilded walnut; modern cotton twill embroidered in silk. Made for Marie-Antoinette’s dressing room at the château de Saint Cloud. The queen’s initials are carved on the top rail.
The Palace of St. Cloud belongs to the Duke of Orleans, is situated on the declivity of a mountain washed by the Seine. . . . The view from the house is delightful. By Harry Peckham, A Tour through Holland and Part of France
Louis XVI purchased the country residence of the duc d’Orléans a few miles west of Paris for Marie-Antoinette in 1785. Being in need of renovation, the palace was enlarged and altered for the queen, and many pieces of furniture were commissioned from Jean-Baptiste-Claude Sené. A member of an important dynasty of Parisian chairmakers, Sené had been appointed menuisier to the Crown in 1784.
A 1788 description of this set, four matching armchairs and a stool, shows that it was for one of Marie-Antoinette’s private rooms at Saint-Cloud, her Cabinet Particulier. Frame of the daybed embellished with carving of ivy and garlands of roses, ionic capitals on the short legs and Egyptian female half-figures on tapering supports. These figures express the queen’s taste for ornaments from ancient Egyptian art, well before Napoléon’s North African campaign made it fashionable. The bergère, or armchairs, has a medallion on top with Marie-Antoinette’s initials framed by myrtle branches and roses. The matching screen has classical female figures on its feet and top rail.
The 1789 inventory of Saint-Cloud records the entire suite in the queen’s Cabinet de Toilette, or dressing room. The set is upholstered in white cotton twill, embroidered with a small floral ornament in silk. Known to have worked on needlepoint projects all her life, Marie-Antoinette did the embroidery herself. The colorful floral embroidery on the light cotton ground conveys a sense of summer, the season Marie-Antoinette preferred to spend at Saint-Cloud. via Epigraph. Peckham 1788, p. 199.
Between 1820 and 1840 textile printers began to produce designs that were based on the woven silk dress fabrics of the 1750’s. Designs showing curving trails of lace or ribbons between bouquets of flowers became as popular in the 1830s as they had been in the 18th century.
Roller Printed Cotton.
The pattern on printed cotton was made with an engraved metal roller and additional colors were built up by wooden surface roller. Roller printing on textiles was introduced in the late 18th century and at first used mainly for small-patterned dress fabrics. By the 1830s, roller printing was highly mechanized process and had largely replaced block printing for fashionable furnishings.
Materials and Making
The development of roller printing coincided with a radical transformation in the dyestuffs available for printing on cotton. Until the beginning of the 19th century printing had been based on the use of vegetable dyes. In Britain, France and Germany new chemical processes were developed and mineral colors produced that transformed the palette of colors available to the printer and made combinations such as shades of pink and orange possible.
Design and Designing
The false trails of lace and bouquets of flowers in the fabric are inspired by the patterns of woven silks from nearly a century earlier. Changing taste made this design suitable for furnishing a room in the 1830s, while the 18th-century silk that was its inspiration would have been intended for a woman’s gown.
Time
The styles considered fashionable in 1830s furnishings were widely diverse. Among the more recognisable historical references were Rococo, Elizabethan and Gothic. A design such as this seems to be relying on novelty of effect for its success.
Information via Curator of Victoria and Albert Museum, London, UK. collections.vam.ac.u Victoria and Albert Museum, London, UK.
1750-155 ca. Writing Cabinet, Probably by Michael Kimmel, Germany. Veneered in kingwood, marquetry of mother-of-pearl, ivory and brass on pine, stained alder or birch. Mounted in gilt brass and with giltwood, carving of cypher of Augustus III. via suzilove.com Victoria and Albert Museum, London, UK. collections.vam.ac.uk.
Music history from the 17th, 18th, and 19th Centuries. Pianos, pianofortes, harps, viols, violins played during Jane Austen’s times. Musical Instruments were so important in most of the more affluent households in history that large industries grew all around the world to manufacture instruments, musical accessories, and to print sheet music. Musical instruction and encouragement could be found everywhere and both young ladies and gentlemen were encouraged to have musical appreciation. And of course, playing music was on the list of social requirements for all young ladies desirous of becoming a wife and homemaker.
London became Europe’s leading centre for the manufacture of scientific instruments and this led to the manufacture of more musical instruments as well as factories developed and rail transport helped the faster distribution of goods to regional areas. One of the first places that music was used to tell stories and to share enjoyment was in Christmas music. Because music was such an integral part of households, music was always a feature in Magazines. There were advertisements everywhere for musical instruments for sale, for sheet music, and for music lessons. And of course, of most interest to the ladies were the hundreds of fashion plates included in magazines where people were depicted with their musical instruments.
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1795 ca. Ormolu Mounted and Brass Inlaid Mahogany Traveling Desk, Russian. #GeorgianEra #Russia #History #Antiques books2read.com/SuziLoveWritingTools
Continue reading →Music history from the 17th, 18th, and 19th Centuries. Pianos, pianofortes, harps, viols, violins played during Jane Austen’s times. Musical Instruments were so important in most of the more affluent households in history that large industries grew all around the world to manufacture instruments, musical accessories, and to print sheet music. Musical instruction and encouragement could be found everywhere and both young ladies and gentlemen were encouraged to have musical appreciation. And of course, playing music was on the list of social requirements for all young ladies desirous of becoming a wife and homemaker.
London became Europe’s leading centre for the manufacture of scientific instruments and this led to the manufacture of more musical instruments as well as factories developed and rail transport helped the faster distribution of goods to regional areas. One of the first places that music was used to tell stories and to share enjoyment was in Christmas music. Because music was such an integral part of households, music was always a feature in Magazines. There were advertisements everywhere for musical instruments for sale, for sheet music, and for music lessons. And of course, of most interest to the ladies were the hundreds of fashion plates included in magazines where people were depicted with their musical instruments.
books2read.com/suziloveMusicGeneral
books2read.com/suziloveMusicPiano
books2read.com/suziloveMusicViolins
1820 ca. Metamorphic Mahogany Writing Table, English. via suzilove.com and 1st Dibs Auctions 1stdibs.com
18th Century Gustavian Sofa with Bow Carving. via 1st Dibs Auctions.
