Candlesticks.

The ornaments of the altar in Christian churches are for the most part

simple in design. There are, however, many varieties of candlesticks,

varying in size and degree from the larger ones which hold the

Communion candles to the decorative seven-branched candelabra of

light and tasteful design. The more important specimens are the

massive candlesticks which are used in the chancel and in some of the

larger cathedrals in other parts of the building. Such ecclesiastical

bronzes are seldom obtainable, although there are some fine examples

in the Victoria and Albert Museum in this country, and in the chief

Continental museums. The donors of such objects spared no expense, and

the modellers and founders treated such work very elaborately. Flemish

and Spanish churches are especially rich in large candlesticks, and

many of the Continental cathedrals possess wonderful examples. The

prominence which has been given to candlesticks in public worship

dates back to a period long before the foundation of the Christian

Church, for the seven-branched candlestick was an important feature in

the Jewish ceremonial. When the Roman conquerors took possession of

Jerusalem, among the treasures taken from the Temple on the sack of

the city, they carried away the golden candlesticks from the altar.

So important was this sacred trophy that it was represented on the

triumphal arch of Titus, preserving to the artists of the future its

general characteristics of design.

The great bronze candlesticks in St Paul's Cathedral and in other

English churches are to be admired but not collected; nevertheless

there are some fine candlesticks in bronze and of polished brass

offered for sale in the curio shops, and from time to time brought

under the hammer in the London auction rooms. The illustration given in

Fig. 19 is a remarkable example which may be seen in the Victoria and

Albert Museum. A fine Venetian bronze candelabrum (one of a pair), now

in a private collection, is shown in Fig. 20.

Altar Brasses.

Most of the church plate so-called was of pewter and silver in early

times; in more modern days of silver, and sometimes of metal plated

with silver. There are, however, examples of metal chalices of

bronze, some of which have been found in Ireland. The altar brasses

in pre-Reformation days included brass censers and incense vessels,

very interesting examples of which are now in the Victoria and Albert

Museum, being illustrated in Fig. 21. Of vases and other decorative

altar brasses there are many. Some, probably, took their origin in

older customs and were symbolical; the vases nowadays are for the most

part used as receptacles for flowers.

[Illustration: FIG. 20.--VENETIAN CANDELABRUM (ONE OF A PAIR).]

Bordering on the secular vessels, yet associated with the altar, there

are the alms-dishes, of which there are a great number in private

collections of metal. They are mostly of brass, some quite plain,

others engraved and highly ornamental. Some little time ago there was a

special display of alms-dishes, two-score or more in number, exhibited

at the Kelvingrove Exhibition at Glasgow. Some were covered over

with scriptural pictorial designs, among the favourite being those

illustrating the old story of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden;

the episode of Samson and the lion; and the visit of the two spies

to the Promised Land, returning carrying a large bunch of grapes.

Such alms-dishes vary in size, seldom less than 12 in. in diameter,

but ranging up to 20 in. Sometimes the collector is puzzled to find

what he may regard as inappropriate mottoes on church vessels. On the

other hand, it is not an uncommon thing to meet with religious devices

or pious mottoes on platters and bowls which were obviously used as

domestic vessels. This fact is explained in that at one time there was

but little difference between secular and ecclesiastical plate, and the

vessels were often used indiscriminately for church purposes and for

the use of the household.

Metal Architectural Ornament.

The lectern is frequently of bronze or brass. The eagle with spread

wings or other designs adopted by the metal-workers gave the artist

plenty of scope. The altar rail and in a few instances the metal

screen and grille are composed of elaborately chased brass or

copper-work, sometimes cast, at others hammered. Perhaps one of the

greatest achievements of the coppersmith in connection with church

metal-work is the ball and cross of St. Paul's, surmounting the great

dome. It was made in the year 1821 by Benham and Froud, an old firm

of coppersmiths. An illustration of this gigantic piece of work is

given in Fig. 22. When viewed from beneath few would imagine that the

cross, although so high up, is 30 ft. in height, and that its weight is

upwards of one and a half tons. The occasional gilding of this triumph

of the coppersmith's art is in itself a costly procedure.

Memorial Brasses.

The visitor to the country church, as well as the larger cathedral,

finds much antiquarian interest in the tombs and monuments, and in the

memorial tablets of the illustrious dead the history of their lives may

often be read. In the older tombs the work of the sculptors in marble

is frequently enriched by the addition of appropriate tablets of brass,

sometimes inlaid with enamels. One of the most noted tombs is that in

the centre of the chapel of Henry VII. in Westminster Abbey, the tomb

itself being closely guarded by the massive railings, which are of

brass. The visitor to that chapel notes with interest the brass stall

plates so rich in enamels, on which are the arms and crests of the

knights who in times past occupied those stalls and hung their banners

over them.

[Illustration: FIG. 21.--BRONZE INCENSE BURNER AND INCENSE BOAT.

(_In the Victoria and Albert Museum._)]

It may be contended that tombs and monuments cannot be collected, but

those who visit such places may fill their notebooks with interesting

data, and they may carry away with them accurate records and

rubbings of the monumental tablets and the brasses on the tombs (for

instructions how to take rubbings, see Wrinkles, p. 393). Such rubbings

of old brasses can be kept in a portfolio or mounted and hung upon

walls. They form a record, too, of the engraver's art, which was

modified and altered to suit the change which went on in architectural

design and to some extent in social and religious customs. The variety

of brasses is seen when a good collection of rubbings is classified and

arranged according to style, period, or locality. Some districts yield

prolific returns. Throughout the counties of Gloucester, Somerset, and

Norfolk many may be obtained, the more interesting specimens being

secured from tombs dating from the thirteenth to the seventeenth

century. From such a series armorial representation as it became

less real and of smaller importance can be traced. The costumes of

the period, too, are very clearly shown, for in such a collection of

brasses the value of armour in war is seen to change. In the earlier

examples there is the chain mail of the cross-legged knights as seen on

the early brasses of the Crusaders, the mediæval armour of the Middle

Ages when it had reached its strength, and the brasses of the Stuart

days when the ornamental armour of that period had to a large extent

lost its utility.

The ecclesiastical brasses on the tombs of bishops and other church

dignitaries show the change which took place very gradually in the

vestments worn, and indicate the alteration in ecclesiastical ritual

in the cathedrals and churches at the time of the Reformation. The

dissolution of the monasteries and the sacrilege which took place in

the dismantled churches and religious houses caused valuable relics

to be sold for old metal, and it was then that many old monuments and

tombs lost their brasses. The influence of book knowledge and the

change which came about in the style of script after the introduction

of the printing-press is seen in the evolution of the lettering on

church brasses. Indeed, in some of the older ones the form of the

letters is the only indication left of the date of their engraving.

[Illustration: FIG. 22.--THE COPPER-GILT CROSS ON ST. PAUL'S CATHEDRAL.]

The engraver's art progressed with the art of the period in which he

lived, and in a collection of rubbings may be seen the gradual training

of the eye and hand until from meaningless pictures without background

or perspective the artist was able to engrave on metal a beautifully

realistic picture of the subject he had chosen. As a guide to a few

indications of the period to which brasses belong, it may be mentioned

that the decorative canopies on monumental brasses belong chiefly to

the ornate period of art. The embattled canopies and the change to the

decorative Gothic tell of the progress in ecclesiastical architecture

until it reached its height between the fourteenth and fifteenth

centuries, later brasses telling of its gradual decadence. Of the

variety of subject it would be impossible to refer, for at all ages

there have been many who would fit into niches between the extremes

of the early fighting men amidst the nobles and knights who fell in

battle, and those who apparently lived all their lives in the peaceful

rural surroundings of some quiet English village, dying within sight

of the old church where they had worshipped, and where they were

eventually buried.

"When some proud son of man returns to earth,

Unknown to glory, but upheld by birth,

The sculptor's art exhausts the pomp of woe,

And storied urns record who rests below;

When all is done, upon the tomb is seen,

Not what he was, but what he should have been."

Byron.

VIII

DOMESTIC

UTENSILS

CHAPTER VIII

DOMESTIC UTENSILS

The kitchen--The houseplace--Chimney and other

ornaments--Classified arrangement.

A collection of metal-work representative of domestic utensils as they

were fashioned in very early times, and as they were made in days so

far forgotten as to render the common objects of daily use curios, is

regarded, probably, as the most important branch of copper and brass,

from a collector's standpoint. The collector may be content with

gathering together a few examples of old domestic metal-work and using

them as ornamental reminders of olden time, decorating his entrance

hall or rooms furnished after the antique with the objects he gathers

together, or he may arrange them as in a museum gallery. The display

of curios is at all times a matter of taste, but it is one of some

importance, especially in a branch of collecting so conspicuous as

copper and brass. We can scarcely conceive of any real pleasure being

derived from such a hobby, or of such specimens being appreciated by

one's friends, when specimens so obviously out of place are shown in a

modern dining-room or drawing-room furnished in nouvre art. The Keeper

of the London Museum, now transferred to Stafford House from Kensington

Palace, has very appropriately arranged the antiquities of London in

their proper historical and chronological sequence, and has grouped

them so that the reference they bear to contemporary surroundings can

be understood by those who see them for the first time. The photograph

which we reproduce in Fig. 23 represents a corner in a well made up

seventeenth-century room, in which has been gathered together some

beautiful old oak furniture of that period. It is panelled with

oak which has been procured from old London houses of contemporary

date; the doorway is a genuine antique from Bromley-by-Bow, adding

to the appearance of the room, for its hinges and lock furniture are

splendid examples of the brasswork of that period. Some pieces of

Cromwellian armour, prominent among which are variously ornamented

helmets and breastplates, are arranged round the upper portion of the

room. Over an old oak chest is a beautiful brass skimmer, and on the

wall a seventeenth-century brass bed-warmer, with engraved cover. On

the sideboard is a huge key and a brass mortar. The lock furniture

and the drop handle on the sideboard, which are of brass, are worthy

of note. On the other side of the room there is a fine brass trivet

standing in front of the hearth, on which are andirons, and logs ready

for the firing; close by is a quaint old candlestick. Undoubtedly

curios displayed in such a way interest and instruct those who see

them, and a room so furnished enthuses collectors with the desire to

secure other objects of an appropriate character; this in itself is

an advantage in that a representative collection is of more general

interest than one containing many objects of a similar character.

[Illustration: FIG. 23.--SEVENTEENTH-CENTURY ROOM IN THE LONDON MUSEUM.]

The Kitchen.

Kitchen utensils and domestic appliances which the housewife of olden

time deemed necessary are of peculiar interest in that they help us to

recall the habits and customs of former generations. It is not always

easy to arrange a model kitchen in that there are many old utensils

of copper and brass which must have been used side by side as periods

overlapped, although some have a much older origin than others. It is

said that the kitchens of well-stocked old family mansions still yield

some curios when thoroughly examined, and that it is not at all an

uncommon thing to find there utensils the object of which has almost

been forgotten. They are relics of an older day, and utensils which a

modern cook would not deign to use. Such discoveries, however, are few

and far between, for the melting-pot and the cupidity of those anxious

to clear unnecessary encumbrances and perhaps make a little towards

refurnishing, has left but few objects of interest in the kitchen.

It is, however, there and in the old houseplace that we may look for

something of interest. Some will go on using old vessels long after

newer utensils have taken their place in the more advanced households,

and there are some cooks who use successfully saucepans and kettles

of almost antique pattern which the student of the cook's art in the

modern schools of cookery would find difficult to manipulate. They

have been taught how to make tasty dishes with aluminium vessels and

enamelled pans, whereas heavy and clumsy brass and copper utensils

served their grandparents. The cook's art is appreciated to-day as it

was in the past, and at all periods the domestic workshop has been

surrounded with a halo of romance. Shakespeare has rendered the caldron

of olden time memorable in "Macbeth." Of the caldron boiling in the

dark cave he makes the witches cry:

"Double, double toil and trouble,

Fire, burn; and caldron bubble."

[Illustration: FIG. 24.--BRONZE CALDRON.

(_In Trinity Hospital, Leicester._)]

The cooking-pot is the sustainer of life, in that it gives strength to

the weary and to the starving. To the poor dumb creatures, however,

it is the end of life, and in savagery human life has been sacrificed

to the gluttony of fellow-men. Wonderful stories are at times told of

great feasts and of the magnificence of the kitchens of olden time,

where the vessels and the cooking-pots were of extravagant size,

making up, perhaps, for the fewer culinary utensils, for in early days

the furnishings of the kitchen were few in number although massive

and strong. Many of the baronial halls of the Middle Ages, and the

homes of wealthy landowners in more recent days, have been the scene

of great feasts. Merrie England rejoiced on such occasions when the

roasting-jack and the spit contributed to the success of the feast,

and the caldron or cooking-pot boiled upon the open hearth. In some old

kitchens there are preserved ponderous bronze and copper pots, some so

large that we can scarcely imagine that they were made for actual use.

In the hall of Trinity Hospital at Leicester there is preserved a large

caldron of bell metal, holding upwards of sixty gallons, which has been

used as the cooking-pot of the institution from its foundation until

quite recent times. This quaint old relic, now venerated as a curio,

is locally called the Duke of Lancaster's porridge-pot, for it is said

that it was made to the order of Henry, Duke of Lancaster, in 1331 (see

Fig. 24). Not far removed from the corner where the old metal pot is

shown to visitors there is a massive nutmeg-grater, a kitchen relic of

olden time, which on the occasion of one of her visits to Leicester

Queen Elizabeth presented to the hospital. Many old castles have relics

of the feast to show visitors, and others no doubt could produce

equally interesting examples of the coppersmiths' or the founders' art

were they to search the vaults and cellars where disused metal-work was

in years gone by stowed away. Visitors to Warwick Castle are familiar

with "Guy's punchbowl," the remarkable metal caldron which is nearly

twice the size of that attributed to the Duke of Lancaster, for it

weighs, along with a fork said to have been used to handle the meat,

807 lb.

Most of these old vessels were cast, but some copper-work was hammered

by hand, and those which have been preserved to us testify to the

brawny arm of the smith and the strength of his blow when by hammer

and hand he wrought them. Such copper caldrons were often made in two

or more parts, and having been shaped on the block, were afterwards

riveted together. It is puzzling at times to understand local and

trade terms in that they frequently differ from the commonly accepted

names of cooking vessels. Thus, these wrought caldrons or pots were

frequently designated tripod kettles. A very fine example of such a

wrought copper kettle was recovered a short time ago from Whittlesey

Mere and is now in the Peterborough Museum. A century or more ago the

Mere was famous in Huntingdonshire and many water parties were held

there. The kettle recently found is thought to have been a relic of

those events, and to have been used on the margin of the lake.

The fine caldron of cast brass illustrated in Fig. 27 was found during

excavations in Water Lane, in London. It is peculiar in that it has

two-eared handles and projecting feet. It is very substantial, and may

be regarded as typical of the early metal caldrons, several of which

have been found in London. Another cooking vessel, smaller in size,

having a curved handle and being in good preservation, a domestic

relic of the seventeenth century, which was dug up in Milton Street,

Cripplegate, is illustrated in Fig. 28.

[Illustration: FIG. 25.--SEVENTEENTH-CENTURY BRASS PAN.

FIG. 26.--BRASS TRIPOD POT.]

[Illustration: FIG. 27.--CALDRON OF CAST BRASS.

FIG. 28.--BRASS COOKING VESSEL WITH CURVED HANDLE.]

Reference has been made to the baronial halls, and to the numerous

relics which have been lost to futurity. There are, however, some

well-known castles where, although the kitchens have been replenished

from time to time, the older forms of cooking vessels have been

perpetuated. Until recent days the kitchen arrangements at Windsor

Castle remained much as they had been for many years previous, and even

now copper and brass retain a favoured position and are very much in

evidence. Windsor has been the scene of much feasting, and many great

State events have put a strain even upon the domestic resources of that

famous Royal residence.

The great kitchen of the castle is supplemented by a vegetable kitchen,

a green kitchen, and a scullery, and around these rooms there is a

bright array of copper pans and cooking utensils, mostly bearing the

monogram of George IV, for it was in his reign that many new culinary

appointments were added. These vessels, large and small, were in

constant use during the reign of Queen Victoria. Her late Majesty was

averse to change. In her days oak out of Windsor Forest was burned

in the grate, and the spits and roasting-jacks and other kitchen

accessories were in keeping with the copper and brass pans and kettles.

Great changes have been made since the accession of George V, for Queen

Mary supervises the management of the Royal kitchens, and many modern

cooking vessels have been substituted for older ones.

The collector of copper and brass culinary utensils has seldom an

opportunity of adding the large bronze caldrons and relics of Royal

kitchens to his collection. He has to be content with exploring lesser

domains, and securing wherever possible the smaller cooking vessels

of days gone by. These are frequently quite as interesting as those

of larger size, and there is a wealth of copper still lying dormant

in antique shops, and in some instances in the scrap-heaps of the

old metal dealer. Without going any further back the saucepans of

the seventeenth century well reward the discoverer of such relics.

That century was a time when pious mottoes were carved upon the

lintel beam and when old coffers and other pieces of massive oak were

decorated with such sentiments. The brassfounders followed suit and

ornamented pots and pans, and enriched them with mottoes just as they

cast such inscriptions on bells and mortars. Two very interesting

seventeenth-century vessels are illustrated on p. 165. One of these,

Fig. 25, was discovered some years ago in Fetter Lane, and is now

in the Guildhall Museum. The other, Fig. 26, is a tripod pot, the

handle of which has a loop near the bowl. It is probably of early

seventeenth or late sixteenth-century workmanship. The brass skillet of

seventeenth-century make, illustrated in Fig. 29, may be seen by the

curious in the British Museum. There is no uncertainty about its date,

for it is marked 1684, and along the handle is the quaint motto "Pitty

the Pore." Collectors may be reminded that inscriptions are sometimes

stamped; at others engraved, and they are frequently met with on quite

unimportant vessels. The metal used for such utensils was chiefly of

brass, but often of latten, an alloy in which there was an admixture of

zinc, or of tin in what was known as white latten. As it has been

stated already, brass came into vogue late in the sixteenth century,

and soon became popular for kitchen utensils; latten, however, was a

favourite alloy for spoons and the smaller objects, especially for

porringers for mulling wine. Concurrent with the use of copper and its

modern alloys bronze appears to have been used in this country even as

late as the beginning of the seventeenth century, the cooking vessels

illustrated in Figs. 30 and 31 being bronze of this late type.

[Illustration: FIG. 29.--SKILLET (BRASS), THE HANDLE OF WHICH IS

ENGRAVED WITH THE MOTTO "PITTY THE PORE."]

[Illustration: FIGS. 30 AND 31.--BRONZE COOKING VESSELS, ATTRIBUTED TO

THE BEGINNING OF THE SEVENTEENTH CENTURY.

(_In the British Museum._)]

The skillet, which continued a favourite vessel, commonly called a

saucepan, originally had three short-curved feet, and the handle was

curved, too. It was a development of a still earlier cooking vessel;

its prototype of the sixteenth century having a globular body with

short-curved feet, and frequently two handles.

The twentieth-century collector, accustomed as he is to machine-and

factory-made goods of uniform finish and of regular shapes, is apt to

be a little bit disappointed with the copper curios roughly made and

badly formed. It would appear as if most of the collectable copper

goods were made after the days when the old guilds so carefully

controlled the making of copper and latten in Lothbury. When their

power of control waned, craftsmen who had been employed by guild

members worked for themselves, and there was but little supervision

over the metal wares made by the coppersmith, who was often a retailer

of his own wares. When the hardware dealer or copper man became an

established trader in the eighteenth century he would employ a

journeyman coppersmith in his little workshop, who would fashion the

utensils with a hammer on a wooden block, and afterwards planish

them by hand as he thought fit. In the making of such goods there

was great irregularity, and the dealer and his customer, too, were

dependent upon the whim of the craftsman. That was before the days of

machine-made goods. Instead of the brass or copper being pressed and

stamped by machinery and carefully finished the utensils were made in

a rough and ready way on the wooden block, and simply hammered in the

rounded cavities which had been made in it. Saucepans, stewpans, and

jelly moulds were beaten into shape, and then hollowed and dished. It

is said it was a healthful trade, for many of the old coppersmiths

had passed their threescore years and ten shaping kettles and deftly

fashioning from a sheet of brass even quite ornamental domestic

articles of utility; they would decorate by hand a brass chestnut

roaster with no other tools but a small hammer and a punch, and with

the same simple instruments they would work a fancy pattern on the

lid of a warming-pan. Some coppersmiths won fame in the fashioning

of furnace-pans, better known as washing coppers, and others would

undertake the roofing of houses and churches. One notable firm in

London, whose copper saucepans and cooking-pots had been sold for a

hundred years or more, achieved the zenith of their fame when they

produced that enormous piece of copper-work, the ball and cross of

St. Paul's Cathedral, which is referred to and illustrated in another

chapter.

[Illustration: FIGS. 32 AND 33.--COPPER WATER JUG AND WATER POT.]

[Illustration: FIG. 34.--COPPER WATER JUG AND COVER.

FIG. 35.--BRASS TWO-HANDLED WATER VESSEL.]

There is yet another reason given why so many of the old copper pots

and pans are irregular in shape and are often fitted with apparently

unsuitable handles. It is that most of these old vessels at one time

or another have undergone repairs, and were frequently treated by

unskilled workmen. Among the street cries of London one of the oldest

was: "Any pots or pans to mend?" The travelling tinker was a repairing

coppersmith, too, and much of his time was occupied in mending the

copper and brass cooking utensils used at the farmhouses and in the

villages through which he passed. His methods of dealing with the

vessels entrusted to him for repairs were not always the best, as

museum relics testify.

Drinking cups, tankards, and flagons constitute another very important

section of collectable curios. They were, however, chiefly made of

pewter in the days before glass and earthenware became general. Some

were undoubtedly of copper. This metal, however, was chiefly used

for large jugs in which water and other liquids were carried. Water

vessels vary in shape, although certain characteristics are frequently

noticeable. The typical English-made jug and water vessel, such as

those shown in Figs. 32, 33, 34, and 35, are very graceful in shape,

the handles being light and very suitable. They make remarkably welcome

additions to a collection of metal, and are appropriate ornaments on an

old oak sideboard.

The Houseplace.

It is not a far remove from the kitchen to the houseplace, and it is

there that some of the more decorative brasswork of eighteenth-century

workmanship is chiefly to be found. Just as copper and brass formed

a prominent feature in the equipment of the kitchen, so in the old

houseplace they were considered the best for ornamental purposes.

The polishing of the metal-work throughout the house in the good old

days must have been a considerable item in the duties of domestic

servants, but no doubt it well repaid the labour, for from the old

ornaments and usable curios of the houseplace which have come into

the hands of collectors, especially when housed in a reconstructed

eighteenth-century room, the effect is excellent. The metal-work of the

best parlour was not so extensive, although there were many beautifully

polished coal-vases and fender frets. Indeed, in both rooms mentioned

the chief attraction would appear to have centred on the fireplace.

[Illustration: FIG. 36.--A FINELY-PIERCED BRASS TRIVET, DATED 1668.]

[Illustration: FIG. 37.--BRASS-TOPPED TRIVET, WITH ADDITIONAL LEG STAY.

FIG. 38.--BRASS-TOPPED TRIVET, WITH TURNED WOOD HANDLE.]

The story of the evolution of the grate and the hearth and its

appointments is of extreme interest. The grate itself was at times

ornate with polished brass beads and canopies. The older type of

fireplace was mostly fitted with iron appointments, but even when

andirons were upon the hearth and logs of timber crackled as they

blazed up the wide old chimney, the dogs or chief ornaments of the

hearth were often of brass or bronze. When hob-grates and registers

came in fashion, ormolu and brass ornament contrasted with polished

steel. A typical parlour hob-grate of the eighteenth century would be

ornate with brasses on the hobs, a pierced brass fender on the stone

slab, and a polished brass ashes pan in front of the bars to hide

the cinders. The trivet or revolving stool, small or large, was in the

fender or on the hearth, and massive fire brasses (not irons) filled

the empty spaces.

The brass trivet, revived in modern times, was originally a

three-legged stool made of metal, on which a kettle or similar vessel

could be placed near to the fire. The convenience of being able to put

the trivet stool quite close up to the bars suggested to the maker of

such things the addition of hooks by which the trivet could be hung

upon the bar, thereby bringing it nearer to the heat. In later years

the trivet developed a handle for the convenience of moving it about,

and especially of hanging it upon the bars, and in the latest completed

form with turned wood handle, iron legs, and brass fretted top, the

trivet was regarded as an essential accompaniment to the fire-grate.

From the three-legged stool with hooks or handle there came a minor

development in the form of a light portable trivet without legs, which

could only be used when hung on the bars. These varieties presented the

worker in brass with an excellent opportunity of showing his decorative

skill, and brass trivet tops soon became very ornamental. Fig. 36

represents a finely-pierced brass trivet, with tall legs and pointed

feet and a turned wood handle. On the top of a baluster-shaped device,

supported by dolphins, Atlas is represented bearing on his shoulders

the globe. The date of the trivet is 1668, and on the top is also

engraved the owner's monogram. Another very interesting example comes

from Derbyshire, and is shown in Fig. 38. Yet another example is given

in Fig. 37, this being a more elaborate design. In the centre of the

plate an eagle is represented with outstretched wings. The construction

of this trivet is somewhat unusual in that it is strengthened with a

cross-bar; the feet are of spear-head shape. All three examples are to

be seen at South Kensington.

There have been many modern replicas of the beautiful old brass

helmet-shaped coal-boxes so common half a century ago. The earlier

types varied somewhat in shape, but always preserved their helmet-like

form, as illustrated in the example shown in Fig. 39. In the days when

these coal-boxes were fashionable, miniature pipkins were sold for

drawing-room use, and a little later oblong and oval boxes of polished

brass and copper were in common use; in some places the brass log boxes

taking their place, especially where wood was plentiful.

[Illustration: FIG. 39.--COPPER HELMET-SHAPED COAL-BOX.]

It is probable no domestic utensil or appliance has gained greater

notoriety than the copper and brass warming-pan, which so long held an

honoured place in the chimney corner. It was used nightly in winter

for warming beds in the often large and chilly rooms, both in the

homes of the wealthy and of the middle classes. One of these pans is

represented in Fig. 23 on the wall of the seventeenth-century room

already mentioned as being on view in the London Museum. Another very

handsome warming-pan, which is in the Victoria and Albert Museum, is

very exceptional in style. Many of the earlier examples are dated, and

sometimes engraved or embossed with pious or loyal sentiments, as

was the custom of the times. The Royal Albert Memorial Museum at Exeter

contains several interesting warming-pans; one, which is dated on the

lid 1622, is engraved: "I.R. GOD SAVE KING JAMES"; another, with an

iron handle, is of still earlier date, being stamped 1616 on the lid.

Brass foot-warmers were at one time in regular use; a very fine

example, shown in Fig. 40, is of octagonal shape, covered with repoussé

decoration, and fitted with a folding bail handle, facilitating its

removal from place to place. There have been many copper foot-warmers,

carriage warmers, and the like used in days before modern heating

arrangements were known. Some years ago little copper muff-warmers were

sold in the shops; but they were of no great novelty, for as far back

as the seventeenth century what were known as warming boxes were made

for keeping the hands warm on journeys when travelling by the very

cold and draughty stage coaches. These curious little boxes of brass

or copper were heated with a removable mass of iron, which could be

lifted out of the box, which hinged in the centre, by means of an iron

hook; just in the same way the old box irons were operated. In Figs.

41 and 42 one of these early boxes, which may be seen in the Guildhall

Museum, is illustrated. Thus in olden time the comfort of travellers

was attained. The old inns were welcome retreats after a stormy journey

by road, and the older inns of the coaching days often contain many

interesting relics of the days when the copper and brass objects we

now call curious and old were new. Those objects referred to in the

previous paragraphs by no means exhaust the list of houseplace curios

in metal, but they may serve to point out the great interest which

attaches to even common objects of everyday use when a few years have

passed by and changes have been brought about in everyday usages.

[Illustration: FIG. 40.--BRASS FOOT-WARMER WITH BAIL HANDLE.

(_In the Victoria and Albert Museum._)]

[Illustration: FIGS. 41 AND 42.--EARLY BRASS OR BRONZE HAND-WARMER,

SHOWN OPEN AND CLOSED.

(_In the Guildhall Museum._)]

Chimney and other Ornaments.

As it has been intimated already, the fireplace was a centre of

attraction in all old houses. It was customary on a winter's night to

draw up close to the fire, and in so doing it was only natural that

the chimney piece and those objects which rested thereon would be

constantly looked at. This probably gave makers the cue when designing

ornamental brasswork which could be used as household decoration. The

ornaments of those days were substantial, and the chimney ornaments

solid and lasting. It was a common thing to see a row of brass figures

or pairs of brass ornaments on the chimney-piece. Such designs as those

shown in Figs. 43 and 44 were popular. Our illustrations represent

one only of each fashion; the pairs, however, were usually designed

opposite hands, looking to right and left. Such ornaments were seen on

the kitchen mantelpieces of the well-to-do and on the hob-grates of

the houseplaces of the middle classes. This was the prevailing custom

from fifty to seventy years ago, and still earlier similar ornaments,

cruder in design, evidently modelled after the style of the Bow

pottery figures, were in use. In Lancashire and in the manufacturing

districts of the Black Country brass ornaments of similar and more

modern types have always been favoured, and they are still sold as

ornaments to well-to-do artisans and mechanics. The modern castings are

rougher and not so decorative or beautifully designed as the tooled

castings of earlier days. The peacock was a favourite bird and shared

with the pheasant popularity. These designs are easily recognizable

among the genuine antiques. There were larger animals, too, such as

the horse, an example of which is given in Fig. 45. This favourite

beast of burden was oftentimes represented as a dray horse; in more

sporting circles as a hack or a hunter. In agricultural districts the

wagoner, the huntsman, and dogs and hounds were chiefly favoured. They

were generally set on a base or plinth, an exceptionally good country

brass of the earlier type representing a shepherd with his typical

crook. Little statuettes represented politicians and historical and

even allegorical figures. Among the portrait brasses Napoleon was a

favourite subject in the days when his name was familiar in every

household. Izaac Walton, the exponent of the gentle art, was often

modelled in brass, and even Robinson Crusoe and his man Friday formed

the subject of a rare group. The Continents of America, Africa, and

Asia are rare and interesting allegorical groups. Other brasses show

traces of Chippendale influence, especially those in miniature which

represent familiar household objects, among which are wonderful little

models of circular tables and of the oval loo tables, like those then

seen in the best parlour. There are also miniature brass trivets and

stools and models of grandfather chairs.

Brass ornaments such as those described are not altogether confined to

chimney ornaments, for on a larger scale they were frequently used on

the old hob-grates, the polished brass or copper contrasting with the

shining blacklead put on with plenty of elbow grease. They were used,

too, as door porters and also as sideboard ornaments. The ornaments of

the early nineteenth century in metal were, however, almost entirely

associated with utilitarian purposes, the artist decorating the

commoner objects, giving special attention to the repoussé work and

engraving on those portions which would be in view when the dustpan,

warming-pan, hearth brush, or other object was hung up.

Classified Arrangement.

[Illustration: FIGS. 43 AND 44.--BRASS CHIMNEY ORNAMENTS (ONE EACH OF

PAIRS).]

[Illustration: FIG. 45.--BRASS HORSE, A CHIMNEY OR HOB-GRATE ORNAMENT.]

In addition to those articles mentioned in the foregoing paragraphs

there are many domestic utensils highly decorative, such as

candlesticks and lighting apparatus, referred to in other chapters in

this volume. These all come under the special notice of the collector

of copper and brasswork who turns his attention to domestic antiques.

Such collectable objects as already suggested should be arranged in

a room furnished in similar style to that prevailing at a time when

these metal curios were in daily use. If such a room is not available

an alternative method is to arrange the domestic curios so that by

comparison the progress made by makers as each succeeding generation

came and went can be seen and appreciated. Incidentally that method

is very interesting in that it reveals the periods at which art was

uppermost, and indicates those times when the utility of domestic

copper and brass was in the ascendant rather than their ornate

appearance. Popular taste was followed by the maker at all times, and

the more progressive manufacturers were ever on the look-out for some

slight improvement either in design or decoration--seldom, however,

making any radical change--so that the progress in metal-work was one

of development slowly unfolded.

IX

CANDLESTICKS

AND LAMPS

CHAPTER IX

CANDLESTICKS AND LAMPS

Fire-making apparatus--Candles and candlesticks--Oil lamps and

lanterns.

Artificial light and heat were among the first scientific discoveries

of primeval man. To harness the forces of Nature was undoubtedly a

great achievement, and at first would be viewed with alarm. The fire

which had been kindled from natural causes would be looked upon with

awe by the cave men or the dwellers in the forest. When they saw it

dying down they would very naturally make some effort to keep the

fire burning by adding fresh fuel. The time would come, however, when

lighting a fire by artificial means would be resorted to; and the

methods adopted in those far-off days involved the use of primitive

contrivances, some of which are described on the next page. The fire

burning under the camp kettle would in course of time suggest a flaming

torch, which could be carried about at will; and from the torch, which

burned all too quickly, came the discovery of oil lamps and the candle.

At first this was only a rushlight, used side by side with the cresset

torch; and then in later days came lamps and lanterns.

Fire-making Apparatus.

The collector of copper and brass looks with regret on the early

fire-making apparatus in that iron was the chief metal employed.

Nevertheless there are some objects associated with fire-making

manufactured in brass. There are some well-known collectors who

have specialized on fire-making appliances and early lamps. Among

fire-making appliances are those of the percussion type, commencing

with iron pyrites, flint, steel, and tinder. Some of the earlier tinder

boxes were made of brass, although the majority were of wood and tin;

many of the pistol-action tinder boxes which immediately followed the

earlier form were furnished with stands and candle-sockets, being

used for the purpose of lighting an early candle. Some of the brass

candle-stands and candle-sockets are beautifully engraved, and many

of the contrivances which were fired by the priming of gunpowder, the

flash igniting the tinder, are highly ornamental. That method, of

course, marked an advance. There are pistol-action tinder boxes from

Japan, highly ornamental, the cases being pierced and in some instances

decorated with raised silver and copper relief. From China and Central

Asia come tinder pouches, many of them having decorative brass mounts,

some being gilt on copper. Tinder was often carried about in tubes of

brass and copper, some of the best examples being very elaborately

engraved. In some small compartments are found; these were intended

for the flint and steel. A later type of mechanical fire-making

appliance, introduced by Richard Lorentz, in 1807, took the form of a

patented compression tube or fire syringe, the piston of which was of

brass. Chemical methods of lighting fires and striking lights have been

tried with more or less success, and among the collectable curios are

relics of these early attempts to produce fire and light by scientific

methods. The collector, while welcoming every curious object, has

generally to rely upon the objects which were in common use and made

in larger quantities. Of these commonly used appliances, however,

there are many varieties, and of the more perfected forms of lighting

requisites there is an abundant choice.

[Illustration: FIG. 46.--A TWO-TUBE CANDLE MOULD.]

[Illustration: FIG. 47.--TWO TYPES OF EARLY PRICKET CANDLESTICKS.]

Candles and Candlesticks.

Many are the legends and stories of the days when the flickering

light of a candle threw shadows across the ceiling and partly lighted

and partly obscured the table and floor. Ghostly, too, they seemed

as the embers of the fire died on the hearth. The provision of

artificial light for use during the long winter evenings has always

been one of the domestic cares, and the women of the household were

in early days mindful of the coming winter during the summer and

autumn months. Among their domestic duties was that of gathering

and drying rushes and dipping them in fat. The primitive rushlights

gave an uncertain glimmer, and the moulding of candles with cotton

wicks would be welcomed as an advance. Candles were home-made until

comparatively modern times, and the candle mould was an essential

in every household. It was frequently of brass, and varied in size

and in the number of moulds, the one shown in Fig. 46 having only two

tubes. While the custom of making candles at home continued long in

country districts, in towns candle-making became a trade, and, as was

the custom in those days, the moulders of candles assembled together

in certain well-known thoroughfares. In London, Candlewick Street, the

name of which has since been corrupted into Cannon Street, was their

rendezvous.

The store of candles for immediate use was kept close at hand in the

candle box, placed against the wall in some convenient position. The

boxes were of wood and japanned tin; others were of brass, some being

very ornamental and covered over with engravings. Such candle boxes are

to be found in the curio shops; several fine examples may frequently be

seen near St. James's Park Station in London, where there are several

curio dealers who specialize on old copper and brass, the neighbourhood

being quite a happy hunting ground for the collector of metal.

[Illustration: FIG. 48.--CANDELABRUM OF EARLY TYPE (CENTRAL FIGURE),

AND TWO OIL LAMPS.

(_In Washington Museum._)]

The evolution of the candlestick was slow at first. The old

rushlight-holders were made by the country smith, and very clumsy they

were on their heavy wooden stands. The first idea seems to have been

to stick the candle on a spike, oftentimes such spikes being placed

conveniently on the wall. Then came the "sticks" on stands which could

be moved about the room, in some cases with a sliding holder, the

height of which could be regulated. Gradually, however, the candlestick

for table use and the candlestick with the dished base, which became

common as the type of the chamber candlestick, came into being. With

the progress made and the general acceptance of the two types, the

pillar candlestick and the chamber candlestick, the artist in metal

began to turn his attention to perfecting their forms and decorating

them.

Many remarkable candlesticks in bronze are met with among

ecclesiastical brasses, some of which are referred to in Chapter VII.

Of the domestic candlesticks there are many early examples, some with

beautifully twisted columns and later fluted examples. The pricket

candlestick--that is, a candlestick with a spike on which a candle was

firmly placed--eventually gave way to the more convenient socket, and

a flange at the top of the column held any candle grease which might

run down the sides of the candle. The pricket candlesticks of early

twelfth-century make illustrated in Fig. 47 may be referred to as

examples of the pricket form, their chief attractions being found in

the richly enamelled decoration. In Fig. 48 we are able to illustrate a

very interesting candelabrum now in the National Museum at Washington

City. It is made up literally of two candlesticks attached to a very

simple pillar bracket on which they slide up and down, the addition of

a metal reflector suggesting later developments in candlesticks and

lamps. In the later days both brass and silver candlesticks, especially

the tall lights used on mantelpiece or on sideboard, were ornamented in

keeping with the plate of the period, and were eventually classed among

the more decorative appointments of the home.

When candles were made of tallow the wicks burned black and charred

and a constant snuffing was necessary. This brought about the use

of snuffers of polished steel and of brass, and a little later of

snuffer trays, the snuffers and their accompanying trays forming a

most interesting addition to the collection of metal. Candlesticks are

still used, but the candles are of superior quality and burn steady

and bright. Some are very decorative, too, especially the painted

candlesticks which with their ornamental shades are attached to pianos,

and are used as wall lights or as additional lights upon the table.

The days of brass candlesticks, snuffers, and trays have, however,

long been numbered, and most of these relics of old-world lights have

passed into the region of curios. Here and there they may be seen in

their once accustomed place, but more as ornament than for actual

use. In a well-known hotel, at one time an old coaching house famous

for its copper and brass wares, the candlesticks in those early days

a necessity are now placed in pairs on the bedroom mantelpieces as

mementoes of the past. They are not intended for use, for the electric

switch is at hand, and the newer light has taken the place of the wax

candle (see Fig. 49).

[Illustration: FIG. 49.--GROUP OF RARE CANDLESTICKS, ALMS-DISH, AND

EWERS.

(_In the Victoria and Albert Museum._)]

The lines which some years ago were printed in connection with a

concert given in aid of the Glasgow Candlemakers and Tallow workers are

appropriate:

"The light of other days is faded,

The reign of tallow's past;

Magnesium and the limelight

Have vanquished 'dips' at last.

And the old lamplighter, too,

Must shortly disappear,

Making way for electric light,

With its garish flash so 'queer.'"

Oil Lamps and Lanterns.

Much might be written of oil lamps and lanterns, of which there are

many interesting curios. They are varied, too, for they cover a large

field reaching from almost prehistoric times to the present day. Many

lamps of metal and bronze have survived and are found in our museums

side by side with the still earlier examples of terra-cotta and crude

pottery. There is a very interesting collection of early lamps in the

Guildhall Museum, one of the most attractive examples being a Roman

lamp of bronze, a portion of the central oil space being covered. The

bronze lamp illustrated in Fig. 50 which may be seen in the London

Museum, is claimed by the authorities to be unique in London finds,

and is probably the finest example of a Roman lamp discovered in

England. The collector finds his most interesting examples in lamps

which have been made in this country the outcome of the candle and

of the candle lamp which was gradually evolved. Many of these early

candle lamps were adaptations of old candlesticks; it would appear

that the idea of enclosing a candle in a horn lantern and thereby

securing greater steadiness on account of its being protected from the

wind and draughts, which had already been adopted, suggested a glass

cup or protection to the candle on the table. It is quite likely that

the first experiments were made with a broken cup of porcelain with

the bottom knocked out, for the earliest examples seem to have taken

that form, the cup-like vessels being gradually confined more and more

at the top and the bottom. The idea of a candle-clock occurred to

seventeenth-century candlestick makers, who marked the edges of the

lamp on the framework so that as the candles burned low they marked the

hours. The burning would be more or less irregular, but the marks on

the candle-clocks would be some guide, and served their purpose in days

when the time of day was of less moment than it is now.

Oil, which had early been the chief lighting medium, was once more in

the ascendant when in the eighteenth century oil lamps gradually took

the place of candles. Fig. 48 represents a handsome pair of old oil

lamps, their beautifully shaped vase containers being reminiscent of

the urns and vases at that time ornamenting the mahogany sideboard.

It is said that many such lamps were made in England and sent over to

America before the War of Independence, and that in the homesteads of

the old plantations such relics have been treasured. The examples shown

in the accompanying illustrations are now in the United States National

Museum at Washington.

In the days when the watchman called the time of the night

street-lighting was unknown. Lanterns were carried in the hand and the

links-boys were in attendance.

[Illustration: FIG. 50.--EARLY BRONZE LAMP.

(_The London Museum, Stafford House._)]

In Fig 51 is shown a brass lantern (open and closed) which is now the

property of the Sunderland Public Libraries and Art Gallery Committee,

a very interesting specimen of an eighteenth-century collapsible

lantern of brass and horn. It measures 6-1/4 in. high and is 3-3/8

in. square. Such lanterns were very common in the eighteenth century,

and indeed in still more recent times in country places where they

were very necessary before country roads were improved and rural

thoroughfares lighted.

We must, however, fain pass over street-lighting for the lanterns

which have been copied so many times in more recent days. _Apropos_

of lanterns of copper carried by the wary traveller and of the copper

lightning conductor on the church steeple, an indispensable feature

still, the following lines are quoted:

"In the olden time, along the street,

A glimmering lantern led the feet

When on a midnight stroll;

But now we catch, when night is night,

A piece of lightning from the sky

And stick it on a pole."

[Illustration: FIG. 51.--OLD BRASS LANTERN.

(_In the Sunderland Museum._)]

X

BELLS AND

BELL-METAL

CASTINGS

CHAPTER X

BELLS AND BELL-METAL CASTINGS

The founders' secrets--Great bells of historic fame--The uses of

bells--Old mortars.

The metal of which bells are made differs only from that used for other

copper wares in its alloy. The ancients, however, made many mysteries

about the constituents of the metal by which they were able to produce

such beautiful notes and musical sounds. The modern bellfounder uses

about 75 parts of copper and 25 parts of tin, varying it sometimes by

a mixture of zinc and lead, and in that he differs little from the

bellfounder of old, except that the older craftsman made a secret of

his alloy and sometimes added a small quantity of other metals. The

theory is that a large percentage of copper gives a deep tone, whereas

the greater addition of zinc and tin gives a sharper ring.

The Founders' Secrets.

A knowledge of metals and of their qualities is a desirable

accomplishment which all metal-workers and founders should possess, and

it was doubtless because some of the early bellfounders intuitively,

or as the result of accidental experiment, discovered the true

properties of the alloys they used that they were able to excel in the

craft. There are secrets associated with the mixing of the metal, too,

especially that of heating the molten metal to the correct temperature

at the most critical moment of running it into the mould. Much depends

also upon tuning the bells by turning and reducing their thicknesses

at the right place in the bell's cone. The accuracy of such details

is essential, otherwise those mellow sounds for which many of the old

bells are noted would be absent. It is true that the rich mellowness

and musical notes so noticeable in some peals are due to some extent

to age, the exact influence of which is not fully understood. The

bellfounder has always regarded his work from a lofty standard, and has

recorded the accomplishment of any great work by the inscriptions he

has caused to be cast upon the surface of the bell. Such data is often

accompanied by the name and trademark of the founder, the Bellfounders'

arms being frequently added. Sometimes such inscriptions are dated; at

others the lettering is sufficient to denote the date of the work.

The making of great bells was always regarded as an event of some

importance. Most of those which have obtained historic fame have

either been associated with some public use or have been cast for

ecclesiastical purposes. Such events were often attended by kings

and queens and great ecclesiastics, who threw into the melting-pot

contributions of silver and gold, inscriptions upon the bells

themselves often recording the special object of their manufacture.

The difficulties in the way of casting bells a distance away from the

tower where they were to be hung often induced the founders to cast

them on the spot; indeed, as late as 1762 the clock bell of Canterbury

was recast in the Cathedral yard.

Great Bells of Historic Fame.

There are many great bells of historic fame, and others which have

gained notoriety from their great size. The claim to the possession

of the largest bell was formerly made by the Chinese, but the palm is

usually accorded to the Great Bell of Moscow, which measures 19 ft. in

height and 64 ft. in circumference. In our own country there are the

Great Bell of St. Paul's, weighing five tons; "Great Tom" of Lincoln,

of similar weight; "Peter" of York, weighing ten tons; and "Big Ben" of

Westminster, scaling fourteen tons.

Some old churches and cathedrals are noted more for their beautiful

chimes than for the size and weight of their larger bells. At Mechlin

there are forty-four bells in the carillon, and in Antwerp Cathedral

the chimes are played on sixty-five bells, the oldest in the set, named

"Horrida," being dated 1316, but the bell which is said to be the best

loved of all by the ringers is stamped "Carolas," having been given by

Charles V.

There are bells of lesser size which have gained popularity, some from

their former associations; others perhaps, more so because of their

present location or ownership. Sometimes bells have been removed

from old churches and after having changed hands several times have

found a resting-place in the possession of laymen; often in museums,

it is true, but not always so: as an instance there is the fine old

bell in the possession of the Grocers' Company, cast in 1463 for the

Church of All Hallows, Staining, where it hung for many years. The bell

illustrated in Fig. 52, now in the Victoria and Albert Museum, is of

more recent date, having been cast in Exeter in 1670 by John Pennington.

Bells have frequently been brought to this country as trophies of war.

At the Tower there are several fine examples of Eastern workmanship,

and there are others now in the United Service Museum at Whitehall.

The Uses of Bells.

The older bells have seen varied service; they have been hung in church

towers and in public places; they have sounded the note of alarm,

and given the signal for historic assemblies; they have rung the

death-knell of illustrious persons, and in rural England have summoned

many generations of worshippers to Divine Service.

The bells, the loud clanging of which can be heard afar, are, however,

the outcome of a gradual process of development. The evolution from the

handbell to the turret bell was doubtless slow.

The simple handbell in its early stages was only a slight advance

beyond the bells hung round the necks of the leaders of the flock,

which were made by the village smith. Such primitive, and not always

musical, bells were used from the earliest times to summon servants and

workers in the field and tenderers of the flock. The practice dates

from Biblical days, for it was an early Eastern custom for sheiks and

patriarchs from their tent doors to summon their followers, or give the

danger signal, by means of a bell.

Bible records tell of bells of gold suspended from the robes of

priests, and of their use in temple worship. From that time onward

they have been associated with religious ceremonials. In later

times the early Christians employed bells of copper and brass and

consecrated them to their use. Thus musical peals, rung collectively or

individually, have sounded for all kinds of sacred rites. The bell--a

mere handbell--was soon fixed over a doorway, or in some convenient

place where it could with greater ease be rung by a cord. Then came the

suggestion of larger bells, afterwards covered over, and finally hung

in steeple or tower, like the campanile (a tower separated from the

church) so often met with in Italy.

The church bell is said to have been introduced here by Paulinus, the

Bishop of Mona, in A.D. 400. The next record of importance is the

historical account of the Venerable Bede, who describes bells hung

in towers--that was in A.D. 670. Some two hundred years after Bede's

days a peal was rung for the first time in England, in the Abbey of

Crowland. The pioneers of bell-ringing upon bells tuned in harmony were

the ringers who produced such charming results with the bells of King's

College, Cambridge.

The bells of churches were rung for ecclesiastical and for national

and parochial purposes. There was the vesper bell for evensong, and

there was the curfew bell which rang in obedience to the "lights out"

enactments of Norman days (see _Couvre de feu_, p. 113).

Of the minor uses of bells there are many. In Tudor days small bells

were familiar objects in hunting. They formed part of the equipment of

the hawk or falcon. Of these we read in Shakespeare's works--of the

"'larum bell and of sweet bells jangled out of tune." In _Othello_

there is a record of the "snorting citizen with his bell."

[Illustration: FIG. 52.--BELL CAST BY JOHN PENNINGTON AT EXETER IN

1670.]

[Illustration: FIG. 53.--GROUP OF BELL-METAL MORTARS.

(_In the British Museum._)]

Bellmen were the heralds of news in country towns, and the importance

of their office was made clear by the "Oyez! Oyez!" by which they

prefixed their tale. The ancient watchman clanged his bell and the

light in the lantern slung at his waist flickered as he sounded the

call. This is mentioned in an old ballad, the first verse of which

reads:

"Time, master, calls your bellman to his task,

To see your doors and windows are all fast."

Numerous examples of curious bells are to be seen in our museums.

In the Welsh Museum at Cardiff there is an old Celtic bell from

Llangwynodl, shown side by side with an electrotype of the famous bell

of St. Patrick. There is rather a sad note in the story of the fate of

the old division bell of the Irish House of Commons, which, when the

Parliament was abolished, was sold for use in a Dublin theatre as a

call bell, eventually to be resold as old metal. That curio would at

this juncture have been regarded as an historical relic of some value.

The restoration of bells sometimes leads to mistakes when it is found

that the inscriptions upon them appear to indicate an older date

than would be judged to be correct from their appearance. Of such

restoration work an instance may be given of the peal of twelve bells

recently placed in the tower of St. Mary's Church, which has become the

cathedral of the new diocese of Chelmsford. The bells were dedicated in

the presence of ringers from a large number of towns and villages in

Essex, a county noted for its bell-towers and bells. The peal of ten

replaces one cast in 1777, and the old inscriptions have been placed on

the new bells. One reads:

"Tho' much against us may be said,

To speak for ourselves we are not afraid."

Perhaps one of the most pleasing thoughts associated with bells is that

their earliest use has been perpetuated throughout the ages. The sheep

bell hung round the neck of the bellwether in Eastern lands sounding so

sweetly in the days of the Psalmist of old, finds its replica on the

downlands of the Southern counties and on Salisbury Plain to-day, for

there and in many other parts of rural England the tinkling jingle of

the sheep bells may be heard.

Bells are not without their rivals, for gongs have been used in Eastern

countries for years, and now they are popular elsewhere. They were

originally a disc of beaten metal with upturned rim, although in some

countries they took the place of drums in warfare, as well as playing

a part in religious services. The circular gong is associated with

China, Japan, and Java. The Burmese gong is of triangular form, and

by way of contrast is made of polished metal, whereas those of the

first-mentioned countries usually show hammer marks. Many of the old

gongs were exceedingly musical, and when struck with a leather-covered

wooden mallet were capable of producing a variety of sounds. Gongs old

and new vary in size and, consequently, in depth of tone and volume

of sound. Among the Eastern curios there are some highly decorative

examples, especially among the smaller table gongs, the stands of which

were often enriched by decorative ornament with inlays and enamels.

Old Mortars.

On account of being made of the same kind of alloy, bronze mortars are

referred to in this chapter. They were usually cast by the bellfounders

from the metal they used for bells, and many of them when struck give

forth sonorous and deep-toned sounds. These mortars were moulded and

often decorated with fanciful designs, frequently with the arms or

initials of the prospective owners, others being dated. Those shown in

Fig. 53 are representative types.

Many of the early mortars appear to have been imported into this

country. The Dutch founders made many in the sixteenth and seventeenth

centuries, some being especially handsome and of large size. Others

still more ornate were of Italian, Portuguese, and Spanish origin.

In course of time the use of bell-metal was discarded, and brass

mortars, cast and afterwards turned in a lathe, came into vogue. These

gradually became little used, and when pestles and mortars were needed

in the domestic kitchen, more modern types of marble and composition

were introduced. To-day, these once necessary domestic appliances are

relegated to the chimney-piece as honoured ornaments in the kitchen;

the older and more valuable bell-metal mortars being given more

prominent positions upon sideboard or cabinet. Such is the story of the

bellfounders, whose art remains among modern crafts.

XI

CIVIC

EMBLEMS

AND

WEIGHTS

AND

MEASURES

CHAPTER XI

CIVIC EMBLEMS AND WEIGHTS AND MEASURES

The ancient horn--The badge of office--Weighing

instruments--Measures in Exeter Museum--Our standards.

The sounding of brass and the tinkling of cymbals have heralded in

many State pageants. Civic pomp and splendour have been enriched by

brilliant uniforms, and the sunlight has flashed on many a thrilling

event in national history. In the relics of former glories we find

emblems of the doings of the past, and amidst ruined buildings or

those halls now shorn of much of their former grandeur--their original

purpose forgotten, or, perchance, misunderstood--the collector seeks

symbols of office and hoards them when found as mere curios.

In this chapter such civic emblems and prosaic weights and measures

are grouped. A curious combination some may think. Very appropriate,

however, when we note the close connection which once existed between

those old corporations and guilds who rejoiced in emblems of office and

enjoyed the custody of standards of weights and measures, fulfilling

the duties which had been thrust upon them by powers and authorities

only too willing to depute to private bodies necessary work for which

they had no equipment and no organization.

The Ancient Horn.

Civil authority and even State control could, in days gone by, only

be sustained by plenty of pomp and show. The populace were awed by

giant insignia and much parade of power to enforce the authority held.

In days before there were newspapers to make announcements, and no

printing presses to print posters and proclamations, the calling of

a public meeting at which declarations could be made or decisions

arrived at, was a matter of no small importance. The sounding horn

had been used from primitive times to call together the people, and

the gatherings of the folk mote were heralded in and assembled by a

loud blast on the "moot horn." The moot or meeting of the people of

a village or hamlet began in Anglo-Saxon times, when such assemblies

were held in the open air. Later came the moot hall, which preceded the

guildhall of days when traders and merchants were incorporated into

fraternal guilds. The horn was the signal for calling such assemblies

commonly in use in old towns, and such relics of the past are now

preserved with care--emblems of altered times to those who are familiar

with them. In Fig. 55 is shown the moot horn of Winchester, a beautiful

example of ancient metal-work. There is a similar horn at Dover, which

is sounded still according to custom at the election of the mayor.

[Illustration: FIG. 54.--AN EIGHTEENTH-CENTURY FLAGSTAFF HEAD OF BRASS,

ORIGINALLY GILT.]

[Illustration: FIG. 55.--THE WINCHESTER MOOT HORN.

(_In the Guildhall Museum, Winchester._)]

The moot horn is not quite lost in modern procedure, for the heralds

march in Royal processions and precede the proclamation of regal and

civic state as of yore, on those rare occasions calling a halt from

everyday occupations by the trumpet's blast.

The Badge of Office.

The mace is with us to-day as the chief emblem of office. Without it

no civil gathering of importance in London would be complete, and

when robbed of its presence no law can be enacted at Westminster. The

"bauble" Cromwell caused to be removed was a symbol of historic and

ancient fame, deep-rooted in the minds of even stern Puritans. It had

to be banished ere the Parliament was dissolved!

The mace is truly the lineal and direct sign of power and authority,

for it was the ancient battle-axe which could deal the deadly blow that

was first held up before the sovereign, and in brass or gilt the tawdry

symbol took its place and has ever since retained its significance.

In lesser degree the staff or stave of office has remained an ensign of

authority. The heads of such staves are often decorative and surmounted

by some appropriate emblem or well-known sign of office.

The flagstaff head shown in Fig. 54 is of eighteenth-century date;

its very beautiful openwork ornament was probably of gilt. It is an

excellent example of English workmanship of that period.

Weighing Instruments.

The Founders' Company exercised an oversight over weighing instruments

and weights and had difficulties to contend with, for there were many

irregularities and not a few differences in the standards used in

various localities. The scales of traders of olden time were far from

accurate, and there was abundant need of standard weights and measures

such as were kept in some of the old country towns. Winchester and

Exeter are two places where care has been taken of the old standards,

and in both of these towns ancient standards may be seen. Similar

standards formerly kept in other towns have been scattered, and not

infrequently old specimens--obviously standards from the inscriptions

upon them--are met with in private collections.

[Illustration: FIG. 56.--THE WINCHESTER BUSHEL (STANDARD MEASURE).]

[Illustration: FIG. 57.--OLD MEASURES BASED ON THE WINCHESTER STANDARD.

(_Sketched by permission of the Corporation of the City of

Winchester._)]

Those now in the Winchester Museum extend over a considerable period,

ranging in antiquity from the reign of Henry III to Elizabeth. The

original bushel which became the standard on which other measures were

based is still preserved in Winchester. In the reign of Henry VII, one

William Nele was commissioned to make further copies, on which the sum

of fifty pounds was expended. The transaction was recorded in the State

papers of 1486 as follows: "To William Nele, gunn founder and brasier

of London, upon makyng of diverse measures and weights accordinge to

the olde Standarde of Englande, to be sent into several shires and

cities of Englande, accordinge to the King's commandment, and by the

advice of the Counsaal at diverse tymes." The ancient bronze bushel

of great historic interest is illustrated in Fig. 56. Among the other

standards kept with the "bushel" in the Winchester Museum are those

shown in Fig. 57--all measures based on similar standards. Tudor

examples are also still in the possession of the local authorities at

Norwich, Salisbury, Northampton, Southampton, and Exeter. Fig. 58 is

another example of a pint measure, dated 1601, the crowned initials

"E.R." upon it, of course, indicating "ELIZABETH REGINA." A later

Winchester pint, dated 1704, is shown in Fig. 59.

Measures in Exeter Museum.

When it was enacted in the reign of Henry VII that certain towns

should hold copies of the ancient standards, Exeter was the city

chosen wherein were deposited the standards for the Shire of Devon.

They are now on view in the Royal Albert Memorial Museum in Exeter,

supplemented by other standards legalized by Queen Elizabeth, and by

more recent copies of authorized standards. There are five standards,

dated 1799, consisting of the Winchester bushel, peck, and half-peck,

and standard coal measure of peck and half-peck. A bronze standard of

the time of William and Mary is engraved "FOR THE CITTY AND COVNTY OF

EXON 1689;" and a standard gallon, embossed with crown and monogram, is

engraved "E.R. ELIZABETH REGINA, 1601;". There are also standard wine

measures; one engraved on one side "CITY OF EXETER 1797" and on the

reverse "HALF PINT. WINE," and another on the reverse, "GILL. WINE."

An exceptionally interesting piece is a standard ale gallon of the

time of the Commonwealth, engraved "AN ALE GALLON SIZED AND SEALED IN

THE TOWER OF LONDON BY ME JOHN REYNOLDS OF THE MYNT. ANO. 1653." Among

the standard weights included in this interesting exhibit is a 14 lb.

bronze weight of the time of Henry VII, embossed with portcullis and

rose, and engraved "HENRIC SEPTIM." It was found some years ago among

old metal at a store in Exeter, the manner of its discovery indicating

the possibility of further finds of a similar nature in other towns.

The little Troy weights are exceptionally well preserved; the weights

according to their engraving are 32 oz., 64 oz., 128 oz., and 256 oz.

On the largest specimen the legend runs: "ANO. DO. EL. REG. XXX. 1588."

and on the upper edge, "CCLVI.", the smaller weights being similarly

indicated. These were all used as the standards at Exeter until the

year 1824. Another interesting specimen is the standard yard and ell

bed used in Exeter for testing the rods used as cloth measures, the

groove on the standard on the engraved side being one yard, that on

the reverse one ell (=45 inches). The inscription on the standard yard

reads: "CIVITAS EXON CHRISTOPHER COKE ESQ. MAYOR. WILLIAM BOLITHO

RECEIVER 1693." In the same museum there are also six brass stamping

blocks formerly in use at the Exeter Custom House in connection with

old Exeter trades.

Mediæval London yields the collector many choice pieces. Beautiful

little scale beams of bronze and brass have been found in or near

London Wall. Scales of antiquity, too, have sometimes been in the

possession of old families for centuries almost without their knowing

or appreciating their value. Not long ago some beautiful little

scales made of brass, which must have been made more than two hundred

years ago, were picked up on an old barrow where the man who bought

"odd things" had it for sale and thought it to be one of the almost

valueless curios in the remains of sundries he had bought from the

caretaker of an empty house. In the Guildhall Museum there are scales

and weights of types usual in the fifteenth, sixteenth, and seventeenth

centuries. One of these is decorated with a band of stars, another of

triangular shape is stamped with a merchant's mark--that also was found

on the site of London Wall. Another remarkably interesting curio is an

octagonal weight evidently answering the purpose of a baker's weight,

and perhaps as an advertisement, too, for it is engraved, "WEIGHT OF A

QUARTERN LOAF, SOLD BY JAMES BULL, 124, LEADENHALL STREET."

Our Standards.

[Illustration: FIG. 58.--A PINT MEASURE OF THE REIGN OF ELIZABETH.

FIG. 59.--A WINCHESTER PINT OF THE DAYS OF QUEEN ANNE.]

[Illustration: FIG 60.--OLD FRENCH WEIGHTS.

(_In the British Museum._)]

In this connection it may be pointed out that a very pleasing

collection can inexpensively be made out of old money changers'

weights, both English and foreign. They were chiefly used with the

pocket scales at one time carried about by traders as a precaution

against the numerous clipped and light-weight coins in circulation.

Among these little weights are those which were used for testing what

are now obsolete gold coins, such as angel, guinea, half-guinea, and

seven-shilling piece.

Some of the old Roman bell weights are interesting; they took their

shape from more ancient weights in the form of a pagan deity, probably

Mercury, who was looked upon as a god of scales and weights. In some

collections larger Continental weights are met with; those illustrated

in Fig. 60 representing three French weights preserved in the British

Museum.

When examining old weights and measures we often wonder at the origin

of such curious tables of weight formulated on somewhat perplexing

standards, ridiculed as long obsolete by supporters of the metric

systems. They would sweep them away; but to do so would snap one more

link with the historic past, and perhaps cause us to forget the very

simple origin of so many of our so-called complicated systems, the

outcome of a slowly developing commerce--very different now to the

days when our standards were formulated. The baseline of our weights

and measures is to be found in a single grain of corn, such as would

seem to be Nature's gift--the staff of life! It was a natural standard

for agriculturists, who would be the first to use it, to adopt. Not

only was the grain of corn the standard of measurement and weight,

but a given number gave the weight value to the penny sterling. The

grain retained its prominent position in our calculations long after

standards had been fixed, for in the reign of Henry VII it was enacted

that the bushel measure should contain eight gallons of wheat, and

that the gallon should weigh eight pounds, the pound to be of twelve

ounces Troy, each ounce equal to twenty silver pennies, every one of

which should be of weight equivalent to thirty-two grains of dry wheat.

It will be remembered that a still earlier standard--that of the Roman

Empire--was based on barleycorns, of which there were twenty-four

to the ounce, a measurement adopted at Troyes, in France, having

been brought from Cairo during the Crusades. Thus in this simple

story we see the origin of Troy weight which in after years was used

concurrently with the later _avoirdupois_ (goods by weight), the

standard adopted for heavy wares.

XII

BRONZES

AND

THEIR

REPLICAS

CHAPTER XII

BRONZES AND THEIR REPLICAS

Early figure modelling--Statues in public places--Replicas in

miniature.

The art of sculpture was practised by the ancients, and long before the

beautiful bronzes for which the artists of Greece and Rome were famous

carvers of wood, and sculptors of stone and marble, had cut inscribed,

and fashioned human figures, animals, and fabulous creatures according

to their whims and fancies. In moulds cut in stone the early casters in

metal produced the objects which we roughly class as bronze, and they

are preserved to-day as reminders of those who lived before history

was written. When the early Bronze Age had passed away and the use of

iron was understood, the art of sculpture in stone was practised by

the Egyptians and by other Eastern nations. Then came the beautiful

metal-work of Ancient Greece; the statues, trophies, and groups,

produced in those days when Greece excelled in the fine arts, have

acquired a fame which has never been exceeded by sculptors or workers

in metals in modern days. The Italians of a later period showed their

religious emotions in the metallic works of art they produced in early

mediæval days; and still later French modellers have excelled in human

expression.

Many of the great works of the old masters in bronze are unique, and

they are retained as great treasures in the national museums where they

have found lasting homes. For the benefit of connoisseurs of art many

of the great works have been copied, and in the Victoria and Albert

Museum at South Kensington and in other places there are replicas in

metal and in other materials, faithful copies of the original bronzes

which are so rare. The educational value of a gallery of ancient art,

whether expressed in marble, bronze, stone, or other materials, is

considerable; it not only tends to the appreciation of modern art as

represented by the statues and monuments in our parks and gardens,

and in those smaller works which adorn public buildings and private

mansions, but it leads to the appreciation of the lesser replicas

of great works, such as artistic groups, figures, and bronzes which

have been copied in miniature. Many of the most important works of

the modeller and caster of bronze groups and figures are familiar to

students of art and collectors of curios, in that so many of these

important studies have been reproduced or copied; sometimes the copies

are equally as beautiful as the original, although on a smaller scale,

and many of them have quite an antique appearance, for they are by no

means modern, such works of art having been reproduced very many years

ago.

[Illustration: FIG. 61.--BRONZE TIGER, BY ANTOINE LOUIS BARYE.]

Early Figure Modelling.

The human figure in its most perfectly known form was early made the

model from which artists sculptured stone and moulded figures. Even

some of the crude attempts of native races have evidently been intended

to represent human beings with whom they associated or races they held

in fear, but they were not always successful. Bronze statues cast in

moulds were known in Egypt, and throughout later periods most of the

civilized races have employed methods by which they have been able

with more or less accuracy to reproduce in other substances of a more

lasting character the perishable flesh and blood of the human race. In

a similar way the personified deities have been perpetuated in bronze

and many of them are simply idolized humanity. Sometimes these statues

have been very large, far beyond what is generally known as life-size.

It must be remembered, however, that many of these colossal statues

when raised to a great height are by no means out of proportion to the

buildings on which they were placed, and assumed a normal size when

viewed from below. It is said that one of the most striking colossal

figures was that of Minerva, crowning the summit of the Acropolis. The

largest statue seems to be that of Nero, which rose 150 ft. In more

modern times statues have been brought down to normal size. Visitors

to Rome, however, recognise what a wonderful achievement it must have

been to place that immense statue of St. Peter in position. The artists

of old were indeed clever, and not only have they justly been accorded

fame for the size and beautiful proportions of their statues, but many

of the ancient bronzes have gained their greatest notoriety from the

great beauty with which the sculptors must have idealized their models.

Many of the antiques are almost perfect in form, and we are forced to

wonder what kind of men and women their models were.

Classic Models.

The classic bronzes were almost invariably conceptions drawn from

imagination, but the beautiful forms of the athletes and Greek maidens

helped the artist in his estimate of the deities he personified. In

those bronzes we see the magic touch of the master hand, and perhaps of

the belief in the mystic attributes so cleverly designed. Thus we have

figures of Hercules, Mars, Venus, and many others, which can be copied,

and now and then by some stroke of good luck a genuine antique is added

to the collector's museum.

Statues in Public Places.

[Illustration: FIG. 62.--BRONZE LION, BY BARYE.]

During the last half-century simple statues erected to the memories

of noted politicians and military men in public parks, streets, and

open places, have been added to by more realistic groups. It would be

beyond the scope of this work to attempt categorical descriptions of

such bronzes to be seen in the public places of our great cities, and

it would be still more difficult to rightly classify them either in

their order of merit or of the appropriateness of their selection. It

seems justly fit that those who have been associated with the metallic

art should be commemorated in copper and brass. To Pittsburg belongs

the honour of having remembered the father of the art of hammering

into shape the metals. In that city, on a massive pedestal, stands a

colossal bronze figure of Tubal Cain, who, in his brief life's history

given in Genesis, is spoken of as an "artificer in brass." He fittingly

heads the list of metallurgists and scientists, to many of whom

monuments have been erected.

The use of bronze in monuments is not confined to figures of great

men, for bronze and brass ornament often adds to the magnificence of a

national memorial. As examples of the use of bronze for that purpose

mention may be made of the bronze lions, after Landseer, at the four

corners of Nelson's Column in Trafalgar Square. The use of bronze,

as adding to the adornment or appearance of an antiquity in stone,

is exemplified in the two bronze sphinxes at the base of Cleopatra's

Needle on the Thames Embankment.

The bronzes of comparatively modern days are mostly the work of the

founder, cast after the sculptor has done his work. Some of the early

examples of Etruscan and Egyptian art consisted of bronze or brass

hammered into form by hand, or made of plates riveted together. Others

appear to have been beaten or embossed into high relief in a mould.

Some of the cleverest castings of bronze, however, are found in the

work of Eastern nations, the best examples being idols and temple

ornaments (see Chapter XIV).

Replicas in Miniature.

The so-called miniatures range from important reproductions for

household and gallery ornament to the quite miniature bronzes which

adorn the mantelpiece or cabinet. Many of the statues and groups of

ancient and modern forms have been copied. There is, however, another

school of art which to many is very attractive. Just as pictures of

animal life are appreciated by many, so the sculptures and bronzes

of well-known animal artists have been justly appreciated. In France

there are the works of Antoine Louis Barye, who was born in Paris in

1795. It is said that Barye discovered his real bent from watching the

wild beasts in the Jardin des Plantes. Some of his great works were

exhibited early in the nineteenth century, and his beautiful models

have been much copied. Three of the most popular are shown in Figs.

61, 62, and 63. There is the tiger which he exhibited in 1830, and the

lion and the beautifully formed stag. Such works of art are worthy of

a place in any collection of metal, for they represent an important

French school. Of men who have made names for themselves there are many

whose statues are found in private collections. A very favourite one

is that of Robert Burns, whose colossal statue was erected at Ayr on

the occasion of the one hundred and fiftieth anniversary of the poet's

birth. Burns is reported to have said on his deathbed: "They'll think

mair o' me a hundred years after I am dead," a truism none will deny.

[Illustration: FIG. 63.--BRONZE STAG, BY BARYE.]

XIII

ORIENTAL

BRONZES

AND

BRASSES

CHAPTER XIII

ORIENTAL BRONZES AND BRASSES

Countries of origin--How some Oriental curios are derived--A

wealth of metal on view--Various Indian wares--Chinese and

Japanese art.

Under the somewhat generic term "Oriental" we class those numerous

bronzes and other art treasures which come to us from the East and the

Far East. Early in the mediæval days Eastern influence dominated the

craftsmen of Europe, and many of those who took part in the Crusades,

and later in adventurous journeys into the northern part of Africa,

bordering upon the Great Sea, brought back to their Western homes

curios which were undoubtedly Oriental in their design.

Countries of Origin.

A collection of copper and brass to be at all representative must be

varied and cosmopolitan in selection. Such a collection should include

vessels of utility and ornamental objects which show the aims of the

artist who designed them. Incidentally, too, such objects exhibit the

sameness of purpose existing in many lands; although the methods of

domestic procedure and the ways of living vary until their common

origin is scarcely recognizable. In such a collection of domestic

curios the influence of Saracenic art is seen in the ewers and basins

and similar vessels which come from the lands where the wild Arab

tribes lived for centuries in an almost barbarous state on the edge of

the Syrian desert. Many of these quaint hammered copper vessels are of

barbaric beauty, such as, for instance, the coffee-pot shown in Fig. 64

and the basin in Fig. 65.

There are some pleasing customs savouring of patriarchal days still

practised by Arab races. Such, for instance, when the sheik has

finished his morning meal he throws a stone into his brass or copper

coffee-pot as a sign to his followers to strike camp.

"Awake, for morning, in the bowl of night,

Has flung the stone which puts the stars to flight,

And, ho! the hunter of the East has caught the Sultan's

turritt in a noose of light."

[Illustration: FIG. 64.--COFFEE-POT OF HAMMERED COPPER FROM SYRIA.]

The Arab metal-work is generally covered over with characteristic

designs and distinctive styles. Equally characteristic is the finely

engraved ornament on many small brass objects made by Arab craftsmen.

This is exemplified in the small and beautifully engraved brass writing

boxes which were once a feature among the educated scribes of Arab

fame. One such case is to be seen in the British Museum, the work of

Mahmud, son of Souker, of Bagdad, made in 1281. The style is said

by experts to combine the art motives of Mesapotamia and Egypt,

which in the thirteenth century very naturally met in Syria. Another

distinctive style is noticeable in the art of the metal-workers of

the Mameluke dynasty of Egypt; their arabesques showed more realistic

foliage than the Arab decorations of an earlier date.

Antiquaries always turn quite naturally to Egypt, that land with such

a great past, when seeking for inspiration from the great monuments

which are masterpieces of art--in bronze and stone. These they find

there it is true, but the more important pieces of metal-work of that

early period are found in Assyria, from whence came ponderous gates of

brass, covered with the remains of delicate tracery and inscriptions.

Such works of ancient art are rightly given places of prominence in

our museums; the private collector, however, is generally content

with the lesser bronze antiquities of Egypt which he can _collect_.

These include mirrors and many small articles for the toilet and some

delightful domestic bronzes. Among them are charming little ewers with

long projecting spouts and curiously wrought curved handles ornamented

with masks and shells.

The curios which reach us from Cairo are mostly in strict accordance

with Egyptian characteristics. The earlier examples are representative

of the art of Northern Egypt as it was expressed by the metal-workers

between the thirteenth and eighteenth centuries, throughout which there

does not appear to have been any great divergence of style, although

when objects known to have been made during the earlier part of

that period, and others fashioned during the later, the progress and

development, although it had been slow, is very noticeable. There are

also some traces of outside influences. In Fig. 10 there is an early

lamp of brass in the form of a bird, inlaid with copper, an example

placed in the thirteenth century. Quite different is the late example

(eighteenth century) given in Fig. 64, which is a coffee-pot with

a bucket handle and another small handle at the back; the spout is

roughly worked with corrugations and quatrefoils, on the five bosses

being the marks adopted by the owner of the shop in Cairo where it was

used.

Reference has already been made to the influence of Saracenic art

upon metal-workers in places where the Saracens came in contact with

the craftsmen. As indicative of this feature the fine large brass

basin illustrated in Fig. 65 is shown. Some portions of the bowl have

evidently been filled in with silver. There are other objects such as

bowls, dishes, and ewers showing similar decorations, many of which may

be seen along with this example in the Victoria and Albert Museum.

The Saracens seem to have had some influence upon what are usually

regarded as European articles; thus in a collection of old bronze

mortars there are sometimes examples from countries in the South of

Europe which show in their designs these characteristics. The mortar

had, of course, a very general use, and was needed everywhere in days

when so many compounds were prepared by hand labour.

[Illustration: FIG. 65.--SARACENIC DECORATED BRASS BASIN.

(_In the Victoria and Albert Museum._)]

Persian art is peculiarly specialistic in its treatment. The designs

used by the metal-workers in that country from quite early days were

emblematic and of an all-over conventional type, often interwoven with

scenes. Even many of the common vessels, like bowls and covers and

saucers of brass, are cleverly chased with hunting scenes and floral

attributes, many of the cups being covered with arabesque ornament.

Some of the brass egg-shaped hooker bases are chased in relief; the

mounts of the rose-water ewers--which are often of china, with metal

linings for holding ice--are frequently decorative. In many instances

the vessels are ornamented with coloured inlays, giving them peculiar

colour effects. Damascus--always an important seat of metal-work--has

supplied collectors from many countries with the beautifully incised

ornament produced by filling in the cut spaces with fine gold or silver

wire beaten into the brass and then polished. So important has this

mode of giving relief become that damascened metal stands alone as an

art, seen at its best in the wonderful armour of the later period,

when the utility of plate armour was giving way to the ornament which

embellished the State armour--the "dress suits" of the regimentals of

the Stuart days.

How some Oriental Curios are Derived.

It is useful at times to consider how the curios we collect have

gradually accumulated, and thus to ascertain how they have been secured

in the past; and from that we are enabled to form some estimate of

further supplies, for the law of supply and demand regulates to some

extent the market value of curios; it has something to do with the

direction taken by curio-hunters.

Many curios have come into this country as the result of war and loot.

Wars in the Far East have served the collector, and many choice bits

of metal-work have changed hands at nominal sums after the return of

troops employed in minor wars and punitive expeditions. Our vast Indian

Empire, however, supplies many beautiful objects in metal, both ancient

and of comparatively recent days, but even those are so quaint and so

unlike the common objects of British make with which we are familiar

that they are welcomed and find a fitting place among antique copper

and brass.

To understand the curios which may be bought in Eastern bazaars,

and more conveniently in the numerous stores and shops where Indian

curios are sold, it is well to become acquainted with a really good

representative collection, such as that which may be examined in the

Indian Museum at South Kensington. In several galleries, arranged in

cases according to the districts from which the specimens have been

gathered, are to be found metal-work ranging from the sixteenth century

to the present day. Although some of these are exceptional pieces,

by far the larger number are helpful to the collector of even modest

means in that they represent Indian curios which may be collected at

trifling cost. Such objects, however, are unfortunately too often

intermixed with modern castings and copies offered unblushingly by

the dealer to the unwary. Among such curios from Indian bazaars,

purchased by travellers to the less frequented districts, are very

many cooking utensils. Some of these, although not very old, are

quaint and unlike modern European vessels, for the native cooks have

been slow to accept any change in their methods of cooking and do not

take kindly to the use of Western types of culinary appliances. The

Indian cook clings tenaciously to copper vessels, and notwithstanding

attempts to introduce vessels of tin, aluminium, and enamelled ware,

the old "chattie" is again and again brought out in preference. Most

of the vessels are of primitive types, but they serve the purpose

and the material is good and lasting. The native workers understand

the requirements of Indian men and women, and can shape and hammer

together just what they have for generations regarded as "the best."

Clever indeed have been the native braziers in the past--and they still

are--for they possess in addition to knowledge of coppersmithing an

excellent knowledge of the composition and working qualities of the

materials they employ. They understand something of the chemistry of

metals, and are careful when melting copper in the furnace or over the

fire not to overheat it, or to allow the metal to perish in processes

of manufacture.

A Wealth of Metal on View.

The collection of Asiatic metal-work where specimens from

different countries, made at various periods, can be compared is,

_par excellence_, that in the Indian Museum (the best examples of

richly wrought damascened armour and arms are found in the Wallace

Collection and at the Tower). The visitor on entering is at once

absorbed in admiring Indian curiosities, especially the products of

native craftsmen. In the vestibule are many remarkable exhibits, the

work of Nepal metal-workers. Most of them were gifts to King George

and Queen Mary when they visited India on the occasion of the great

Coronation Durbar at Delhi. Some of the larger pieces were the gift

of the Maharajah and Prime Minister of Nepal. Very wonderful is their

workmanship, especially that of the brass groups so true to life.

One of these represents a hunting elephant, fully equipped, with

attendants; others, too, are associated with sports and hunting scenes.

There are emblems of demons and the evil spirits which are so fully

believed in by native dwellers on the borders of the forest.

Temple vessels are abundant, and among them are monsters and other

fabulous creatures, and numbers of masks, notably those representing

the fierce Dragpo fiend Tamdin (see Chapter XIV). There are some fine

temple sets, and two magnificent conventional lions (temple guardians).

There is also a very interesting brass group of natives occupied in

various ways, one, for instance, carrying a package on his shoulder

illustrating the method of relieving the weight of the bundle by a

forehead strap, by which means natives are enabled to sustain the

strain.

[Illustration: FIG. 66.--JAPANESE KETTLE (_YUWAKASHI_).]

[Illustration: FIG. 67.--PAIR OF VASES OF RED-BROWN COPPER, RELIEVED

WITH BLACK LAC, FROM MORADABAD.

(_In the author's collection._)]

So intricate are many of these cleverly modelled groups that it is

not always easy to understand how they have been cast. Especially

remarkable is the founding of the figure groups produced by the natives

of the Patan district of Nepal. In most cases they accomplished their

task by the _circe perdu_ process (see Glossary), which enables them to

cast even the most delicate groups.

Some very interesting wares in metal are obtained from Moradabad;

they are smooth and beautifully finished, made of brass, and partly

tinned. The more decorative pieces are of the early nineteenth

century, and include such objects as plates, water-jars, tumblers,

and sugar-pots and covers. From Lucknow some fine trays are secured;

and many beautiful brass ewers, bowls, and basins have been obtained

from Haidarabad, where not only comparatively modern but early

eighteenth-century brasswork is to be found. Some of these have a

pleasing effect when polished, the design or pattern upon them being

inlaid with copper on a brass foundation and then polished.

Various Indian Wares.

There is an Indian ware known as _bidri_, beautifully damascened

in gold on a brass and copper base, chiefly made in the villages

round Lucknow and Deccan from the seventeenth century onwards. The

peculiarity of these objects is that they are distinctly black and

white, the metal consisting of an alloy of zinc, copper, and lead

afterwards damascened with silver which is finally blackened by

pickling. A favourite curio is a Betel-nut box and cover; there are

also spice boxes and objects intended for the base of a water-pipe.

Many of the choice curios from Kashmir in Northern India are mostly

of a dark red-brown copper, and are frequently incised and inlaid

with lac. Among them are domestic vessels, the most commonly met with

being the coffee-pot (_Kafijosh_). In one famous collection there

is a curious boat-shaped alms-bowl of copper, chased with a running

ornament, a design frequently employed in the eighteenth century. There

are some interesting Mogul brasses, among which are washhand basins. In

these, too, the decorations are frequently filled in with black lac.

Very different are the brass and copper objects from the Punjab. Some

of pure copper are inlaid with black lac, others are of copper-gilt,

looking in the sunlight like burnished gold. Some are of brass; among

the older objects of special interest being charcoal burners of fine

brass with dome-shaped covers. From the Punjab come copper toilet

boxes, which are usually fitted with locks terminating in the form of

a conventional lotus. One of the most curious treasures in the Indian

Museum secured from that district is a "black" cup, made of a metal

composed of quicksilver and copper, a metallic compound supposed to

give a digestive virtue to any liquid drank out of it.

The variety of metal objects from Nepal is considerable. There are

articles of home decoration and usefulness, including charming toilet

sundries. Among the lamps are many weird forms, a favourite being a

lamp designed like a peacock's tail supported by a lion. There are

inkpots of symbolical forms with figures of Ganasa, the Hindoo god of

wisdom. There are also many decorative water-bottles and vases and

beautifully formed tazzas; as well as charming toilet boxes with raised

diaper ornament and conventional patterns.

From Madras come bowls and water-bottles and many delightful trinket

boxes, some shaped like fishes, others of bird-like forms. Some of

these were intended for use as receptacles for antimony salve, which is

so much used in India for the eyes. Among the more modern curios made

during the latter half of the nineteenth century are spun and turned

brasswork, especially vases and bowls. Travancore is also famous for

its artists in metal, and especially for their beautiful decorative

brass pots with curious spouts and drinking cups.

The little bullock bells are characteristic of many parts of India,

some being prettily ornamented and of sweet tinkling sounds. From

Southern India there are Betel-nut cutters of unusual forms, and quite

a variety of metal bowls, some being shaped like a pumpkin. From the

same district come highly decorative copper plaques and brass salvers

as well as water vessels.

The lamps from India are of equal interest to those met with among

the antiquities of similar types from other countries. Those of more

recent date, the work of baptized natives, have for the chief ornament

emblems of the Christian religion instead of those associated with idol

worship; although in some instances the cross is flanked on either

side with the sun and moon, reminding us of the more ancient pagan

religions.

Many parts of India are noted for beautiful inlaid lac, much of which

is extremely decorative; the vases illustrated in Fig. 67 came from

Moradabad; they are of red-brown copper relieved with black lac.

Haidarabad is also noted for such wares, in some instances red as

well as black lac being used in the decorations, which are chiefly of

conventional form.

The brasswork of Benares is well known, and it is still one of the

most important features in present-day Oriental bazaars and shops. The

modern work, however, rarely comes up to the old, for in olden time

great care was taken in producing varied forms and correct ornament

in decoration, the chief features of the Benares brasswork being the

series of ten incarnations of Vishnu, represented so often on trays,

bowls, and smaller vessels, such, for instance, as spice boxes and

perfume holders, and receptacles for pulverized sandal-wood.

The native princes of India have always been accustomed to State

ceremonial, and among the curious objects from that country are symbols

of office, some of the maces being beautifully damascened with gold.

The ceremonial and State swords formerly carried by the princes are

museum curios of value, especially those around which the memories

of historical events cluster, such as the gauntlet-sword of brass,

the hilt in the form of a tiger's head, which formerly belonged to

Ruggoneth Sookul, who saved Captain Gordon's life during the Indian

Mutiny in 1857.

As it has been suggested wars with Oriental potentates and the

annexation of lands which had previously been under British protection

have from time to time enriched national as well as private

collections. Many of the trophies of war are unique and do not exist in

duplicate. In the Indian Museum there are many such objects, notably

the one-time regalia of the Kings of Burma; at South Kensington, too,

there is a massive bowl of brass on which is engraved in picture

characters the story of the history of China as related by Confucius,

and transcribed by his pupil Tso, five hundred years before the

Christian era.

Lamaistic temple curios are referred to in another chapter. These,

however, do not exhaust the metal-work from Thibet. Indeed, many of

the minor objects, especially those of a domestic character, are very

pleasing. The vessels used in making tea in Thibet differ from those

in China--the home of tea-drinking--in that the process of preparing

"the cup that cheers but not inebriates" is different. The ladies of

Thibet take the tea-leaves and grind them dry until they are of the

consistency of a fine powder, using a brass mortar for the purpose.

They then put the powdered tea into a kettle, and allow it to boil for

about five minutes. The liquid is afterwards poured through a strainer

into a tea-urn, and a little butter and barley flour are added. This

compound, after being vigorously churned up, is poured from the urn

of wrought copper into teapots, where it is allowed to settle before

it is served up in small brass bowls. Ladles are used for the purpose

of taking the tea from the urn, for it has no tap, being simply a

two-handled jar with a cover.

Some interesting curios are derived from Ceylon, especially those

utensils made by the Sinhalese, who, it will be remembered, emigrated

there from Bengal in the sixth century. The chief copper-workers in the

island are the Veddahs, an aboriginal tribe of the interior closely

allied to the Sinhalese. Their work includes copper and brass on which

is very beautiful repoussé decoration. Buddhist influence has always

been strong in Ceylon, and it is conspicuous in much of the decoration

of the more important metal-work.

Ceylon casters have turned out some fine bells and many heavy bronze

lamps. The lesser objects, which are varied, include brass boxes in

which the lime for Betel chewing was kept. Some of these are circular,

and others are pear-shaped, many being incised and inlaid with the more

precious metals. Betel-nut cutters, similar to those from other parts

of India, are among the collectable curios, those from Ceylon being

especially interesting, for they frequently take the form of animals or

of winged flying females. The objects enumerated do not by any means

exhaust the metal curios from India and Ceylon, but they are among

the chief features observable in a large collection, in the gathering

together of which many small trinkets and perhaps unique sundries will

be secured.

Chinese and Japanese Art.

To many the curios from China and Japan are more familiar than those

from India and British Asiatic possessions. The pottery and porcelain

of China have long been used in this country, and during recent

years other objects of a curious and antiquarian nature have been

imported in large quantities from both these ancient countries. In

shops and bazaars the metallic wares of China and Japan have been

much popularized too. That China has a great past and possessed a

civilization hundreds of years before similar conditions appertained

in Europe is well known. Collectors of the antique go back in their

search after specimens of bronze and other metals to those produced by

the artists of China in the Han Dynasty, which dates from B.C. 216. In

records of that period, concurrent with accounts of pottery, there are

well authenticated details of the metal cooking vessels then in common

use. There were utilitarian bronzes and many beautiful vases, some of

almost the same designs as the concurrent pottery. There were cooking

utensils not at all unlike the mediæval bronze pots of modern Europe;

their handles, however, were more decorative, often taking the form of

a dragon's head. The feet of these ancient cooking-pots were often like

lions' claws or eagles' talons. Among other relics of that period are

quadrangular wine jars, some of the rarer types being decorated with

fishes, in the drawing of which the Chinese artists of the Han Dynasty

were very clever. They used such decorations appropriately, too for

this was the ornament they chose on fish kettles.

A peculiarity of the metal-work of the Han period was the dark red

copper which seems to have been used concurrently with bronze. When

we note that some of the pottery was beautifully formed we can

quite understand that the bronzes were equally well shaped, for the

metal-workers would not be behind the potters in their craftmanship.

Some of the rarer bronze tazzas are also well shaped and have been

carefully moulded.

The chief curios coming into the hands of collectors are of a somewhat

later date than the Han Dynasty; but China moves on slowly, and there

does not appear to have been much advance or change for many centuries.

The metal-work made during what we term mediæval days in Europe was

often copied from familiar objects made of other materials. There is a

bronze vase made in the Sung Dynasty, fashioned in imitation of an old

jar tied up with rope, the ring handles being technically described as

"conventional heads applique"; this vessel measures 14-1/4 in. diameter

at the shoulder and stands 9-1/2 in. high. It is difficult to trace

where such pieces come from; it is, however, well known that many

have been looted from the temples; others, probably imitating older

examples, are mainly of nineteenth-century workmanship.

[Illustration: FIG. 68.--BRONZE FIGURE (ONE OF A PAIR) INLAID WITH

SILVER AND GOLD.

(_In the author's collection._)]

The metal-work which comes from Japan has reached us in great variety.

There has been no need for the traveller or collector to search the

island for curios to bring over to this country, for the commercial

instincts of a new race of Japanese merchants have poured out a

wealth of antiques, collected from the native villages; with these and

modern imitations they have gladly supplied the demand of the Western

world. In this way attention has been called to the products of that

country where craftsmen have gone on hammering copper and brass, and

inlaying the metal in highly decorated patterns in silver and gold for

so many years.

Reference has already been made to the rare temple pieces and sets

which have been looted or purchased from Asiatic countries, so many

of which are of rare cloissonné enamels. Some of these of Japanese

origin are mentioned in Chapter XIV. Of the minor bronzes, replicas of

temple relics, there are many beautiful koros or incense burners. Other

bronzes serve the purpose of ornament in the Western countries to which

they have found their way. In Fig. 68 is shown a beautiful bronze. The

sacred carp is inlaid with gold and silver and is exceptionally well

finished. The pair, of which it is one, came from Japan about thirty

years ago, and are of much finer workmanship than many of the more

modern replicas.

Household requisites as well as ornamental treasures have been made

with care by hammer and engraving tool into things of beauty as well

as usefulness. The household requirements of the Japanese are limited

in number, but in the entertainment of her friends the Japanese lady

is able to cause envy among her Western sisters because of the beauty

of her kettles and brazier. The kettle shown in Fig. 66 is one of

a toilet set of hammered brass, engraved with badges and foliage.

It was probably produced early in the nineteenth century, before

Western commercial ideas began to invade the workshops of Old Japan.

In conjunction with such kettles (the Japanese name of a kettle is

_yuwakashi_) metal bowls were used, the water being poured over the

hands of the fair Japanese and her guests by attendants, who also held

the bowl to catch the dropping water.

In Old Japan there was much patience as well as skill, and the methods

adopted by the artists of those days would be too tedious and expensive

now when the merchants buy and sell and compete in Western markets.

The processes by which the beautiful bronze objects were moulded took

time, and the incising and inlays could never be paid for in proper

proportion to the labour expended on them. The metals of which Japanese

bronzes were made consisted of curious alloys, the composition of

which was long kept a secret. One of their finest brasses is known as

_sinchu_, consisting of ten parts of copper and five of zinc. Another

very beautiful copper is called _shadko_, in which splendid hues are

imparted by the treatment of acids; in this alloy there is one part of

gold to ten of copper, to which is attributable the splendid colouring

of the so-called bronze. Older methods, however, are gradually giving

way to more economic production on Western plans and formulæ, so that

in time perhaps the Eastern and Oriental influence and characteristics

of Asiatic bronzes, so charming and so much appreciated by collectors,

may diminish if not disappear altogether.

XIV

IDOLS

AND

TEMPLE

RELICS

[Illustration: INDIAN IDOLS.

FIG. 69.--AMIDA.

FIG. 70.--A "BLUE" TARA.

FIG. 71.--AMITAYUS.

FIG. 72.--VAJRA DHARMA.

FIG. 73.--AMITAYUS.]

CHAPTER XIV

IDOLS AND TEMPLE RELICS

Varied shrines and many idols--Indian idols--Temple vases and

ornaments.

There are some who hold it to be a wicked thing to loot the temple of

a heathen deity, and regard it as sacrilege to ruthlessly tear down

the idol from its shrine. Others glory in an opportunity of proving

the powerlessness of the man-created idol to save the temple from ruin

and desecration. Yet there are many who recognize in these idols of

wood, stone, and metal, emblems and symbols of ancient faiths in which

there may be a greater reality, and, for all we can tell, potency, to

those who look beyond the mere shrine, than appears at first sight.

Notwithstanding all that, the multiplicity of gods and the number

of so-called deities make many sceptical about the worship of their

devotees, and there are few who feel much compunction when adding such

objects as metal idols to their curios--when they are able to secure

them honestly.

Varied Shrines and Many Idols.

Needless to say the faiths of those who worship "unknown gods," from

whatever source they may have come, differ. The very uncertainty of the

religions, which admit of varied deities, has fostered the increase of

ceremonies and the change in rites, which, added to local folk-lore and

myths which have gained in the telling, have caused new idols to be

set up. It was so in pagan Greece and Rome, and it is the same in some

parts of the world to-day. To these causes we may attribute the number

of idols of different types, or the same idols represented with other

attributes, which the collector of metal meets with. There is a strange

fascination about the stories of pagan and heathen deities and their

influence over men, and to obtain the full interest and delight from

such a specialized collection the collector must become a student of

Eastern and other religions and priestcraft.

The temples in which religious rites have been, and in some instances

are still, observed, vary in importance just as the associations

around the cathedrals and ruined abbeys in our own land differ from

those almost absent in the more recently erected churches. The wealthy

Indian, not unnaturally, employed artificers in brass to make models

of the great shrines, and some of these rare works of metallic art are

to be seen in the Indian Museum. Several are of eighteenth-century

workmanship, among them beautifully modelled temples of Krishna.

Incidentally it may be mentioned that secular buildings have been

reproduced too; notably there is a very fine model of the Palace of the

Winds at Jaypore, Rajputana, which was presented by the Maharajah of

Jaypore.

[Illustration: FIG. 74.--JAPANESE PRICKET CANDLESTICK IN THE FORM OF

CRANE AND TORTOISE.

(_In the Victoria and Albert Museum._)]

Some may regard the collection of idols as a curious hobby; others

possibly see in them only art treasures to be valued for their

intrinsic worth, for many idols are enriched with precious stones and

jewels and are overlaid with gold and silver. Such objects occupy

a different place from the cruder idols of wood and stone, cut and

carved by savage races. We can well understand that the refined worker

in metals spared no pains to make his idol or fetish beautiful and

something to be admired.

Indian Idols.

Of Indian idols there are many: Buddha is so widely held in esteem that

it is no wonder that so many representations, varying in size, have

been produced. The favourite position, known as the "Witness" attitude,

is that with which collectors are most familiar.

Indian idols are of many forms, among the commoner varieties being

those of Vishnu, Lakshmi the wife of Vishnu, and Siva. Many images of

copper, afterwards gilt, come from Thibet and Nepal. The curiosities

associated with the Lamaist worship have become familiar of late years.

One of the representations of Amida, holding in her hand the teppattsu,

is shown in Fig. 69. A "blue" Tara is illustrated in Fig. 70; Amitayus

is shown in Fig. 71; and Fig. 72 represents Vajra Dharma holding the

dorge. In Fig. 73 Amitayus is again shown holding the reliquary and

wearing a jewelled collar. An interesting Lamaist altar ornament is a

copper skull bowl, used as a receptacle for the sacred beer or wine

of life. There are also Thibetian holy water jugs, beautifully inlaid

with silver. In the Victoria and Albert Museum may be seen a colossal

Buddha (Daibutsu) of sixteenth-century workmanship, which came from a

Japanese temple. Appropriately placed close to it is a massive pair

of lanterns of bronze, which were originally a gift to the temple of

Miyoshino-tenjin by the feudal lord of the district. Most of these

temple relics--idols and ornaments--were made of a special alloy known

in Japan as _Kara kane_, which means Chinese metal, from which it may

be inferred that this alloy was known and employed in China before it

came into general use in Japan.

Temple Vases and Ornaments.

The mystical beliefs of China are chiefly Buddhism, Confucianism, and

Taoism, to which should be added ancestor worship, and in connection

with all of them there are special objects of veneration, which we

group together under the somewhat generic term of "temple relics."

[Illustration: FIG. 75.--JAPANESE RITUAL VASE.

FIG. 76.--SMALL TWO-HANDLED RITUAL VASE.

FIG. 77.--CIRCULAR VASE ON STAND.]