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CHATS ON OLD
COPPER AND BRASS
BOOKS FOR COLLECTORS
With Frontispieces and many Illustrations.
- CHATS ON ENGLISH CHINA.
- By Arthur Hayden.
- CHATS ON OLD FURNITURE.
- By Arthur Hayden.
- CHATS ON OLD PRINTS.
- (How to collect and value Old Engravings.)
- By Arthur Hayden.
- CHATS ON COSTUME.
- By G. Woolliscroft Rhead.
- CHATS ON OLD LACE AND NEEDLEWORK.
- By E. L. Lowes.
- CHATS ON ORIENTAL CHINA.
- By J. F. Blacker.
- CHATS ON OLD MINIATURES.
- By J. J. Foster, F.S.A.
- CHATS ON ENGLISH EARTHENWARE.
- (Companion volume to "Chats on English China.")
- By Arthur Hayden.
- CHATS ON AUTOGRAPHS.
- By A. M. Broadley.
- CHATS ON PEWTER.
- By H. J. L. I. Massé, M.A.
- CHATS ON POSTAGE STAMPS.
- By Fred. J. Melville.
- CHATS ON OLD JEWELLERY AND TRINKETS.
- By MacIver Percival.
- CHATS ON COTTAGE AND FARMHOUSE FURNITURE.
- (Companion volume to "Chats on Old Furniture.")
- By Arthur Hayden.
- CHATS ON OLD COINS.
- By Fred. W. Burgess.
- CHATS ON OLD COPPER AND BRASS.
- By Fred. W. Burgess.
- CHATS ON HOUSEHOLD CURIOS.
- By Fred. W. Burgess.
- CHATS ON OLD SILVER.
- By Arthur Hayden.
- CHATS ON JAPANESE PRINTS.
- By Arthur Davison Ficke.
- CHATS ON MILITARY CURIOS.
- By Stanley C. Johnson.
- CHATS ON OLD CLOCKS AND WATCHES.
- By Arthur Hayden.
- CHATS ON ROYAL COPENHAGEN PORCELAIN.
- By Arthur Hayden.
- CHATS ON OLD SHEFFIELD PLATE.
- (Companion volume to "Chats on Old Silver.")
- By Arthur Hayden.
- CHATS ON OLD ENGLISH DRAWINGS.
- By Randall Davies.
- CHATS ON WEDGWOOD WARE.
- By Harry Barnard.
- BYE PATHS OF CURIO COLLECTING.
- By Arthur Hayden.
- With Frontispiece and 72 Full page Illustrations.
LONDON: T. FISHER UNWIN, LTD.
NEW YORK: F. A. STOKES COMPANY.
FIG. 1.—FINE COPPER EWER.
(In the Victoria and Albert Museum, South Kensington.)
Chats on Old
Copper and Brass
BY
FRED. W. BURGESS AUTHOR OF "CHATS ON OLD COINS," ETC.
WITH FRONTISPIECE AND ILLUSTRATIONS FROM PHOTOGRAPHS AND WASH DRAWINGS
T. FISHER UNWIN LTD
LONDON: ADELPHI TERRACE
First Published 1914
Second Impression 1925
(All rights reserved)
PREFACE
The collection of old metal may at first sight appear a somewhat unattractive hobby; a moment's reflection, however, brings to mind the wonderful art treasures of metal in our museums, gathered together from many parts of the world; not necessarily of the precious metals, for many of the most cunningly contrived objects of antiquarian research are of copper in one or more of its numerous forms of alloy.
Copper is the basis of so many alloys of which metallic curios are formed, that in its combination with other metals it gives the collector an almost inexhaustible field of research. It was the metal of the ancients, which in combination with tin gave them that useful metal with which to fashion weapons of offence and defence, and later, as the Bronze Age advanced, utilitarian objects of household economy.
Collectors find the Age of Metals unfolding as they arrange their collections with orderly sequence, and thereby trace the progress of artificers throughout the periods which have intervened since the first bronze celt was moulded to the present day. Although this is the Age of Iron and the numerous materials which metallurgical research and scientific skill have produced, copper, and brass in its varied forms, are still prominent, and the almost inexhaustible supply of copper with which Nature has provided us is still being drawn from.
In this work the curios and artistic objects of use and ornament which have come down to us, contributed by craftsmen of many ages and of many countries, are passed in review. The object of so doing has been to awaken still greater interest—if that is possible—in the collection of copper and brass, and to preserve to futurity metal objects from which the utilitarian purpose of their manufacture is fast waning—if not already gone.
Although the rarest and most costly objects are to be found in museums and the galleries of the wealthy, there are many still in the homes of the people, and there are many who seek and obtain pleasure and delight from the collection of the curious and the beautiful who cannot afford the unique specimens which are so costly. To such this book should appeal, for the descriptions and the illustrations have been drawn from many sources, and their selection has by no means been confined to the rarer types.
The illustrations are reproductions of photographs which have been willingly furnished by owners of collections and museum authorities. A large number, too, have been specially drawn for this work by my daughter, Miss Ethel Burgess.
I gratefully acknowledge the kindness of those who have allowed me to make use of objects in their collections. I would especially bear testimony to the courtesy of the Directors of the British Museum who have authorized their printers, The University Press, Oxford, to furnish blocks of some of the most interesting metal objects in the Galleries. The Director of the Victoria and Albert Museum has granted facilities for the reproduction of some of the beautiful metal-work at South Kensington.
My thanks are especially due to Mr. Guy Laking, M.V.O., F.S.A., who, although in the midst of the removal of the London Museum from Kensington Palace to its new home at Stafford House, has kindly supplied several photographs of scarce metal objects. Special drawings have been made of several representative objects in the Guildhall Museum, through the courtesy of the Curator.
Permission has been granted to reproduce photographs and illustrations of objects in several of the more important provincial Museums, and in several instances some very interesting information has been given by the Curators. Among others I should like to give the names of Mr. F. R. Rowley, Curator of the Royal Albert Memorial Museum at Exeter; Mr. T. Sheppard, F.G.S., F.S.A.Scot., Curator of the Municipal Museum, Hull; Dr. Hoyle, Director of the National Museum of Wales, Cardiff; Mr. J. A. Charlton Deas, F.R.Hist.S., Director of the Museum and Art Gallery, Sunderland; Mr. Thos. Midgley, F.R.Met.S., Chadwick Museum, Bolton; Mr. R. Rathbun, Assistant Secretary of the United States National Museum, Washington; and the Town Clerk of Winchester.
I am further indebted to Messrs. Glendining & Co., Ltd., who have given me permission to reproduce some beautiful Oriental metal-work which has recently passed under the hammer in their London Galleries; also to Messrs. Herbert Benham & Co., for a drawing of the copper ball and cross of St. Paul's; and to Mr. Amor, of St. James's, S.W., The Edward Gallery, of King Street, S.W., and Mr. Chas. Wayte, of Edenbridge, who have given me photographs of rare pieces of art metal-work.
I have endeavoured to refrain from technicalities or dry descriptions; but some of the chapters have necessarily a touch of the workshop and the foundry about them. I can assure my readers, however, that the "metallic ring" is inseparable from copper and brass, and that the pleasures of possession will be added to by the better understanding it will impart to those who collect and admire similar objects to those referred to in this work.
FRED. W. BURGESS.
London, 1914.
CONTENTS
PAGE
PREFACE
7GLOSSARY
23CHAPTER I
THE METAL AND ITS ALLOYS
Ancient bronze—The bronzes of Greece, Rome, and Eastern nations—Copper for enamels—The brass of commerce—Bell metal—The sources of copper—The making of brass—Copper as an alloy—The characteristics of metal.
35CHAPTER II
THE HUNTING GROUND
In buried cities—Turned up by the plough—Among Saxon and Norman remains—In hidden chambers—In local museums—Dealers' shops—The engraver's art.
51CHAPTER III
PREHISTORIC BRONZES.
The dawn of progress—London relics—The beauty of ancient art—The useful bronzes, the prototypes of later brasses—The forger at work.
63CHAPTER IV
GREEK AND ROMAN CURIOS
Grecian bronzes—Relics of Roman occupation—Interesting toilet requisites—Artificial lighting—Statues and monuments—Romano-British art—A well-staged exhibit.
77CHAPTER V
MEDIÆVAL ANTIQUITIES
Domestic brasswork—Metal signs and badges—Ornamental trinkets—Arms and armour.
93CHAPTER VI
LATER METAL-WORK
The influence of the Guilds—Architectural metal-work—The door knocker—Interior metal-work.
111CHAPTER VII
CHURCH BRASSWORK
Candlesticks—Altar brasses—Metal architectural ornament—Memorial brasses.
133CHAPTER VIII
DOMESTIC UTENSILS
The kitchen—The houseplace—Chimney and other ornaments—Classified arrangement.
153CHAPTER IX
CANDLESTICKS AND LAMPS
Fire-making apparatus—Candles and candlesticks—Oil lamps and lanterns.
193CHAPTER X
BELLS AND BELL-METAL CASTINGS
The founders' secrets—Great bells of historic fame—The uses of bells—Old mortars.
215CHAPTER XI
CIVIC EMBLEMS AND WEIGHTS AND MEASURES
The ancient horn—The badge of office—Weighing instruments—Measures in Exeter Museum—Our standards.
229CHAPTER XII
BRONZES AND THEIR REPLICAS
Early figure modelling—Statues in public places—Replicas in miniature.
247CHAPTER 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.
261CHAPTER XIV
IDOLS AND TEMPLE RELICS
Varied shrines and many idols—Indian idols—Temple vases and ornaments.
289CHAPTER XV
NATIVE METAL-WORK
Outside influences—Benin bronzes—Other African curios.
303CHAPTER XVI
CONTINENTAL COPPER AND BRASS
Italian bronzes—French art—Dutch brasswork—German metal-work.
313CHAPTER XVII
SUNDIALS, CLOCKS, AND BRASS INSTRUMENTS
The mystery of dialling—Some old dials—Antique clocks—Old watches—The weather—Scientific instruments.
327CHAPTER XVIII
ENAMELS ON COPPER
Processes of enamelling—Chinese and Japanese enamels—British enamels.
347CHAPTER XIX
MISCELLANEOUS METAL CURIOS
Tobacco-boxes and pipe-stoppers—Snuff-boxes—Handles and handle-plates—Horse-trappings—War relics—Tiny curios—Replicas.
361CHAPTER XX
WRINKLES FOR COLLECTORS
Cleaning copper and brass—Lacquering metal—Polishing brass—Restoring antique finishes—Using the burnisher—Brass rubbings.
385INDEX
395ILLUSTRATIONS
FIG.
1.
FINE COPPER EWER
FrontispiecePAGE
2.
(1) BRONZE BUCKLER FROM THE THAMES VALLEY
393.
(2) ANOTHER BUCKLER FROM ABERYSTWYTH
394.
PART OF THE HOARD OF IMPLEMENTS OF THE LATE BRONZE AGE, FOUND IN KING'S CO., IRELAND
555.
(1) BRONZE CALDRON
676.
(2) URN OF THE LATER BRONZE AGE
677.
BRONZE SAUCEPAN WITH FOLIATED HANDLE
858.
EWER OF HAMMERED COPPER
859.
LAMP OF CAST BRONZE
8510.
LAMP OF BRASS INLAID WITH COPPER
8511.
BRASS AQUAMANILE (SEVENTEENTH CENTURY)
9912.
BRASS
COUVRE DE FEU, A RARE EARLY PIECE
11313.
COPPER VANE ON BILLINGSGATE FISH MARKET
11914.
THE CITY DRAGON AS A WEATHER-VANE
11915.
COPPER COCK VANE, ONE OF FOUR ON SMITHFIELD MARKET
11916.
BRONZE KNOCKER OF THE ARMORIAL TYPE
12917.
BRASS DROP KNOCKER IN THE FORM OF A DOLPHIN
12918.
BRASS WELL BUCKET
12919.
CURIOUS DOUBLE CANDLESTICK
13520.
VENETIAN CANDELABRUM (ONE OF A PAIR)
14121.
BRONZE INCENSE BURNER AND INCENSE BOAT
14522.
THE COPPER-GILT CROSS ON ST. PAUL'S CATHEDRAL
14923.
SEVENTEENTH-CENTURY ROOM IN THE LONDON MUSEUM
15724.
BRONZE CALDRON IN TRINITY HOSPITAL, LEICESTER
16125.
SEVENTEENTH-CENTURY BRASS PAN
16526.
BRASS TRIPOD POT
16527.
CALDRON OF CAST BRASS
16528.
BRASS COOKING VESSEL WITH CURVED HANDLE
16529.
SKILLET (BRASS), THE HANDLE OF WHICH IS ENGRAVED WITH THE MOTTO "PITTY THE PORE"
16930 AND 31. BRONZE COOKING VESSELS, ATTRIBUTED TO THE BEGINNING OF THE SEVENTEENTH CENTURY
16932 AND 33. COPPER WATER JUG AND WATER POT
17334.
COPPER WATER JUG AND COVER
17335.
BRASS TWO-HANDLED WATER VESSEL
17336.
A FINELY-PIERCED BRASS TRIVET, DATED 1668
17737.
BRASS-TOPPED TRIVET, WITH ADDITIONAL LEG STAY
17738.
BRASS-TOPPED TRIVET, WITH TURNED WOOD HANDLE
17739.
COPPER HELMET-SHAPED COAL-BOX
18140.
BRASS FOOT-WARMER WITH BAIL HANDLE
18541 AND 42. EARLY BRASS OR BRONZE HAND-WARMER,
SHOWN OPEN AND CLOSED
18543 AND 44. BRASS CHIMNEY ORNAMENTS (ONE EACH OF PAIRS)
18945.
BRASS HORSE, A CHIMNEY OR HOB-GRATE ORNAMENT
18946.
A TWO-TUBE CANDLE MOULD
19747.
TWO TYPES OF EARLY PRICKET CANDLESTICKS
19748.
PAIR OF CANDELABRUM OF EARLY TYPE (CENTRAL FIGURE) AND TWO OLD OIL LAMPS
20149.
GROUP OF RARE CANDLESTICKS, ALMS-DISH, AND EWERS
20550.
EARLY BRONZE LAMP
20951.
OLD BRASS LANTERN
21352.
BELL CAST BY JOHN PENNINGTON AT EXETER IN 1670
22353.
GROUP OF BELL-METAL MORTARS
22354.
AN EIGHTEENTH-CENTURY FLAGSTAFF HEAD OF BRASS, ORIGINALLY GILT
23355.
THE WINCHESTER MOOT HORN
23356.
THE WINCHESTER BUSHEL (STANDARD MEASURE)
23757.
OLD MEASURES BASED ON THE WINCHESTER STANDARD
23758.
A PINT MEASURE OF THE REIGN OF ELIZABETH
24359.
A WINCHESTER PINT OF THE DAYS OF QUEEN ANNE
24360.
OLD FRENCH WEIGHTS
24361.
BRONZE TIGER, BY ANTOINE LOUIS BARYE
25162.
BRONZE LION, BY BARYE
25563.
BRONZE STAG, BY BARYE
25964.
COFFEE-POT OF HAMMERED COPPER FROM SYRIA
26565.
SARACENIC DECORATED BRASS BASIN
26966.
JAPANESE KETTLE (
YUWAKASHI)
27567.
PAIR OF VASES OF RED-BROWN COPPER, RELIEVED WITH BLACK LAC, FROM MORADABAD
27568.
BRONZE FIGURE (ONE OF A PAIR) INLAID WITH SILVER AND GOLD
28569.
AMIDA (INDIAN IDOL)
29170.
A "BLUE" TARA (INDIAN IDOL)
29171.
AMITAYUS (INDIAN IDOL)
29172.
VAJRA DHARMA (INDIAN IDOL)
29173.
AMITAYUS (INDIAN IDOL)
29174.
JAPANESE PRICKET CANDLESTICK IN THE FORM OF CRANE AND TORTOISE
29575.
JAPANESE RITUAL VASE
29976.
SMALL TWO-HANDLED RITUAL VASE
29977.
CIRCULAR VASE ON STAND
29978.
BRONZE OVIFORM EWER
31579.
BRASS EWER WITH ARTISTIC HANDLE
31580.
DUTCH ORNAMENTAL BRASS CISTERN
32381.
FRENCH EWER OR TANKARD WITH FANCY HANDLE
32382.
FRENCH EWER WITH GROTESQUE MOUTH (SIXTEENTH CENTURY)
32383.
EARLY DIALS—ON THE LEFT AN ARMILLARY DIAL; IN THE CENTRE PILLAR DIAL; AND ON THE RIGHT A RING DIAL
33184.
CURIOUS OLD MICROSCOPE, MADE IN 1780
33185.
ENGRAVED POCKET CLOCK
33786.
A HANDSOME BRONZE BAROMETER
34387.
BOWL OF THE MING PERIOD
35388.
BOX OF PEKIN ENAMEL
35389.
MING BOWL
35390.
FINE ALTAR SET OF CLOISONNÉ ENAMELS (CH'IEN LUNG PERIOD)
35991.
COLLECTION OF BRASS AMULETS (HARNESS BRASSES)
371GLOSSARY
The collectable brasses (other than domestic kitchen brass and copper-work which is dealt with in Chapter VIII) belonging to the later period of art, and chiefly associated with the builder's furnishing and cabinetmaker's craft, include quite a variety of interesting objects. In the days before Victorian times, when art almost died out, the coppersmith and the brazier produced some beautiful objects for the ornamentation and furnishing of the home, many of which have been handed down to us, and form valuable additions to a collection of metal. This period, as it has been already intimated, has been very much copied, especially just before the artists of the later Edwardian days struck out new lines and founded a school which has been called that of the "nouvre art." Now and then there have been attempts to blend the old with the new, and the collector of the genuine antique desiring purity of style in his specimens should not neglect any opportunities he may have of examining and comparing the various styles. The arrangements for lighting and heating houses were until quite recently inefficient. There was, however, still greater neglect in providing for the comfort of the attenders at churches, which were frequently cold and chilly. Attempts were made by individuals to remedy this, and among the curios associated with heating purposes are hand-warmers and foot-warmers. The earlier types of hand-warmers, or chaufferettes, were spherical metal boxes or balls, in the interior of which, by an arrangement of chains or rings, a cup containing a red-hot ball of metal or a piece of charcoal could be retained in an upright position. These portable warming stoves were also used in many houses and on many occasions. Reference is made to such warmers in Chapter XV, where a Dutch foot-warmer is illustrated. It is said that it was a common practice years ago for a servant man or maid to follow a lady when attending church, carrying a charcoal burner and placing it upon the floor at the lady's feet, then gracefully retiring into some less conspicuous part of the building until the service was over. In the days when streets were badly lighted lanterns were commonly hung outside houses and in entrance halls, some reference to the more portable types being given in Chapter IX.
FIG. 78.—BRONZE OVIFORM EWER.
FIG. 79.—BRASS EWER WITH ARTISTIC HANDLE.
GLOSSARY
Astrolabe.—The astrolabe is an instrument which was largely used in taking the altitude of the sun or stars at sea. It was well known to the Greeks, and takes its names from two Greek words, meaning a star and to take. Perfected by the Arabs, the instrument was introduced into Europe about the tenth century. It is said that the most famous examples are to be seen in the museums at Madrid and Florence. There is one in the British Museum, which was made for Henry, Prince of Wales, in 1574.
Barrow.—Mounds in which bronze celts, knives, spear-heads, and food receptacles are found along with the remains of chieftains and others of the prehistoric peoples once inhabiting this country. The term "barrow" originally denoted a "little hill." Round barrows are the most common form, although some are oval and some of the "long barrow" type. The methods of burial differed, but in most instances implements of stone or bronze as well as vessels of pottery and some trinkets belonging to the dead were usually placed near to the body.
Betel-Nut Boxes.—The beautifully ornate boxes, chiefly found in India, made for holding the betel-nut and the shell lime used by the natives who chew the leaves and nut of the areca palm.
Bidri Metal.—The metal objects known as bidri are made of an alloy of copper-zinc and lead, damascened with silver, showing a peculiarly striking contrast in black and white. The villages round Lucknow are famous for this curious and effective inlaid metal work.
Brass.—An alloy of copper and zinc. Early brass was copper mixed with calamine melted in a crucible. The ancient form of alloyed metal employed by the Romans was copper and tin, which, although frequently termed "brass" is more correctly defined as bronze (see Bronze). The greater the proportion of zinc the lighter the colour; but the addition of an extra quantity of zinc reduced the tenacity and ductility of the metal.
Brasses.—The term brasses is applied (in antiquarian and curio metallurgy) to the monumental brasses which as early as the first half of the thirteenth century replaced the older effigies, such as those of the Crusaders, which may be seen in the Temple Church, in London. The brasses, of which many rubbings have been taken, include the large brasses, covering nearly the whole of their tomb flag, and the small brasses on which were engraved emblems, escutcheons, and inscriptions, inset into large slabs of marble or stone, ornamenting rather than constituting the covering of tombs.
Brazier.—Primarily a pan for holding burning coals. The brazier was in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries a domestic appliance for keeping hot dishes for the table, some very interesting examples of an ornamental character, doubtless used for that purpose, being referred to in Chapter VIII. The brazier, so called to-day, is a tripod open fire chiefly used out of doors in some open space.
Bronze.—The bronze of the ancients consisted chiefly of pure copper and an alloy of tin. In those very early days the compounding and mixing of the metals must have been done largely by experience and "rule of thumb." It was before the days of metallurgical research and before the chemistry of metals was understood. As yet there was no formula. Curiously enough the proper nomenclature of metals has never been formulated, and "bronze" is the term still applied in a very haphazard way to various alloys.
Quite recently a very able lecture was delivered by Dr. Rosenhain, of the National Physical Laboratory, on the "Nomenclature of Alloys" at a meeting of the Birmingham Section of the Institute of Metals. Every one, he told us, described metals "at his own sweet will," and for the most part by misleading terms. He suggested in reference to copper-bronze alloys that "copper-zinc" might denote an alloy with more copper than zinc in it, and "zinc-copper" when the former metal was present in a greater degree. He thought "tin-copper" would serve as a fairly wide definition of modern bronze. In such bronzes aluminium is now generally added. Other scientists have suggested the definition of bronze by chemical numerals, thereby indicating their contents with more exactitude. At present, however, the term bronze is very elastic.
Buckler.—The old English name bocler denoted a shield with a boss. It was worn on the left arm; used in the Middle Ages to parry blows rather than intended to act as a cover for the body like the larger and more cumbrous shields.
Chattie or Chatty.—A porous earthenware vessel used in India for cooling water and other purposes.
Chaufferette.—A spherical metal vessel in the interior of which was a small chain, from which was suspended a cup in which could be placed a piece of red-hot metal or charcoal. It was usually a hand-warmer; some chaufferettes, however, were larger, almost like small stoves. The name is derived from a table stove or small furnace, literally a cylindrical box of sheet-iron, the word coming from the French chauffer, to heat.
Circe-Perdu Process.—The Japanese have been wonderfully clever in their manipulation of metals, especially considering the very primitive appliances they used in the early days. Some of their most remarkably intricate bronzes were fashioned and modelled in wax, delicately tooled, hardened a little, and then covered over with layers of fine clay until the mould became strong enough. The clay mould when dried was heated until the wax ran out, leaving a smooth and beautifully finished mould in which the bronze metal could be poured, the clay being broken away when it was cold. Great skill and at the same time much patience were needed to produce such charming effects. The bronzes of old Japan were frequently inlaid with fine and delicate tracery in silver and gold. Up to comparatively recent times beautifully modelled ornaments were fashioned by such laborious processes, and even now by more modern methods much labour is expended on their production.
Counters.—Counters have been used in card games from quite early times. They were frequently of engraved metal. In the reign of James I., we are told by Horace Walpole, one Nicholas Hilliard was licensed for twelve years to engrave card counters on which was the Royal portrait. In later reigns similar counters were so engraved. Those of the time of Queen Anne bore a great resemblance to the obverse of the then current coins. Sets of counters were frequently supplied in metal boxes, the exteriors of which were often decorated by engravings. It should be clearly understood that metal card-counters—old and modern—are quite distinct from commercial counters or jettons.
Couvre de Feu.—The French term, literally, cover of the fire, became the name of the metal shield or cover with which the fire was shut down in the days of the Norman kings. From the same root term the English curfew is derived. It was the curfew bell that sounded the signal for the couvre de feu to be brought out and lights and fires to be extinguished. These metal plates, so frequently engraved all over, are among the rarities of domestic curios (see p. 113).
Damascene.—The process of inlaying steel or other metal work with silver or gold beaten into the incised metal. To damascene (also spelled damasken) was a process first emanating from Damascus—hence its name.
Dialling.—A dial plate is made by fixing to a flat surface a stile or gnomon, which forms with the horizon an angle equal to the latitude of the place in which it is to be used. When the gnomon is in position a line is drawn upon the surface of the plate so that the shadow of the stile falls exactly upon it at noonday, the plane through the stile and the sun coinciding with the meridian. It cannot be too clearly understood by users of old sundials that dial plates used in any other latitude than that for which they were constructed must necessarily be inaccurate.
Ember Tongs.—These little tongs were formerly used to take up the hot embers from among the ashes of a dying fire. They were constantly in use in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, many being decorative, the handles often being fashioned to serve the purpose of a pipe stopper.
Enamels.—The enamels applied to copper or brass are glass coloured with oxides of metals, producing blue, green, violet, red, and other shades. These when fused adhere to the metal surface and are very lasting. Various processes have been adopted, especially in the fine arts. The principal older processes are champlevé, cloisonné, and Limoges. In the first named the spaces to be filled in with enamels are cut into the metal foundation; then, when the enamels have been fired, they are rubbed down and polished. The cloisonné process, chiefly practised in the East, consists of small cells or cloisons formed of wire filled with the requisite colours. Limoges enamels, the finest period of which is placed in the sixteenth century, were formed by a ground of enamel painted over, chiefly with classical subjects.
Opaque enamels on, usually, a convex copper disc or plate, were the work of later craftsmen. At Battersea and Bilston in England, towards the close of the eighteenth century, many small boxes and trinkets (see p. 356) were produced. The enamels of recent date applied to utilitarian objects and cooking vessels are seldom fixed upon a ground-work of copper—iron or steel being the usual base. In jewelry and small trinkets enamelling on copper is still practised, many such objects being of Oriental origin.
Fibula.—A small brooch or buckle. Many of the beautifully fashioned fibulæ have been found among the remains of Roman London, a large number being on view in the Guildhall Museum.
Gipciere.—A kind of pouch formerly worn at the girdle, an early type of purse. The name is sometimes spelled gipser.
Hookah.—The name given to the bottle through which tobacco smoke is passed. In smoking with a hookah the smoke is cooled by being made to pass through water.
Latten.—The name is primarily derived from the nature of the material—thin sheets. The brass or latten brass was formerly used chiefly for making church utensils. Black latten consists of milled sheets of brass, composed of copper and zinc; roll latten, of metal polished on both sides; and white latten of brass and tin.
Meander.—A term applied to the decorations on Japanese and other bronzes. To wind, to twist, meandering like the winding river Maeander, in Phrygia, from which the proverbial term is derived.
Mirrors of Bronze.—The bronze mirrors of the Romans were given their reflective power by using an alloy of antimony and lead, a combined metal which took a highly reflective polish; the backs, handles, and frames were of bronze.
Mortars.—Mortars such as those referred to on p. 226 with accompanying pestles, were commonly in domestic use from the sixteenth to the eighteenth centuries. In later years they were employed chiefly in the preparation of drugs, but more recently they have been superseded by the modern way of preparing spices and other compounds by machinery. The form of the vessel may be described as an inverted bell, the substances therein being pounded or rubbed with the pestle.
Patina.—A term expressive of the colour or encrustation which is imparted to works of art by age. It is used chiefly in reference to the beautiful green formation which covers ancient bronzes, shading from light green to deep brown. This crustation consists of basic copper carbonate, the result of exposure to the air. It is chiefly found on bronzes, the alloy of which is mostly of tin and very little zinc. The patina or patine is also the name given by the Romans to a shallow basin used for domestic purposes.
Pilgrims' Signs.—The symbols or signs worn by pilgrims when visiting one or other of the famous shrines in this country in mediæval days were distinct from the crests or badges of wealthy patrons which were at one time worn pretty generally as indicating on whose service the journey they were making was being performed. Pilgrims' signs were worn on the outward journey chiefly as protective amulets; on the return journey mostly as proof of the pilgrimage, such signs being purchased at or near the shrines to which homage had been paid. The chief shrines in this country were those of St. Thomas à Becket at Canterbury, and Walsingham Priory in Norfolk, where Our Lady of Walsingham was held in high repute.
Weather-Vane.—The vane denotes any flat surface attached to an axis and moved by the wind, usually applied to some elevated object for the purpose of telling which way the wind blows. A strip of metal cut to some fanciful form and placed upon a perpendicular axis around which it moves easily.
I
THE
METAL
AND ITS
ALLOYS
CHAPTER I
THE METAL AND ITS ALLOYS
Ancient bronze—The bronzes of Greece, Rome, and Eastern nations—Copper for enamels—The brass of commerce—Bell metal—The sources of copper—The making of brass—Copper as an alloy—The characteristics of metals.
The coppersmith has taken a prominent place among the craftsmen of all nations, and at all periods, and in not a few instances he has been acknowledged as an artist of no mean order. The material upon which he has worked has been copper and its alloys and compounds. From this metal have been produced many valuable antiques, and among the work of the coppersmith of more recent days there are objects of intense interest and of great beauty. In this work many collectable objects have been classified, and in the different groups of metal-work referred to attention is drawn to these beautiful and sometimes quaint reminders of past generations, and also to some of the most notable non-collectable metal-work which may be seen and admired in museums and art galleries, and to a few of the copper monuments, memorials, and historic relics which are gazed at by the curious, oftentimes without thought of the materials of which they are composed.
Ancient Bronze.
The raw material, copper, smelted and beaten or poured from a crucible into moulds, was in more ancient times used in its unalloyed purity—and it is still used in that state. It was, however, soon discovered that copper might be improved for many purposes by mixing with it other metals possessing different properties. The prehistoric peoples who lived in Britain, and in other countries within reach, soon added tin, which was found in Cornwall quite near to the surface, and was from early times sold to Phœnician traders, thereby producing bronze. It is of this metal that most of the much valued curios of the so-called Bronze Age are made. Those who fashioned them were clever manipulators of the alloyed metal, and by processes now little understood were able to temper tools and weapons and to give them keen-cutting edges. Our museums are full of spear-heads, celts, axes, and palstaves of bronze, which were cast in moulds of stone cut to the required shapes by those primitive workers in metal, who used simple crucibles in which it was melted.
FIG. 2 (1).—BRONZE BUCKLER FROM THE THAMES VALLEY. FIG. 3 (2).—ANOTHER BUCKLER FROM ABERYSTWYTH.
(In the British Museum.)
The prehistoric bronzes, some examples of which are referred to in another chapter, are the earliest collectable curios formed of metal. They include implements of war and of the chase and some domestic utensils and cooking vessels. To these useful objects must be added ornaments and trinkets of bronze, so many of which have been found in the barrows and burying-places of prehistoric races.
The knowledge of bronze appears to have been widespread. It was understood by those who dwelt in this country, by the inhabitants of European countries, by Eastern nations, and by the Egyptians, who left such wonderful monuments behind them, giving evidence that they knew how to impart a knife-like edge to their tools of bronze.
Bronzes of Greece and Rome and Eastern Nations.
The ancient bronze of prehistoric days must not be confused with the metals or compounds of copper and its alloys which enabled the Greeks to produce such wonderful statues. They learned to impart hardness to copper, and wrought much delicate handiwork, much of which has perished; but enough has been spared to confirm classic history and to enable us to realize something of their conceptions of the old gods and personified hopes and aspirations. In like manner the wonderful bronzes of China and Old Japan were wrought; the metal-worker's art in those countries goes back many centuries. Some of the more delicately chiselled figures and groups were first modelled in wax upon an iron core, the mould being then formed of soft clay. When the clay was baked the wax melted, and running away through prepared outlets, left a smooth cavity into which the bronze was afterwards poured. When the metal was cold the clay would easily be broken away, and the object, at the moulding of which we often marvel, made perfect. In course of time such bronzes have been coated over with a beautiful patina of green, that natural finish which age can alone impart. It is in that state so many of the bronzes of Grecian sculptors are found, and it is covered with patina of many delightful shades that we buy the metallic curios from China and Japan.
Copper for Enamels.
In the days when so many beautiful ecclesiastical ornaments were fashioned, copper was the foundation used by mediæval artists as the base of their exquisite enamels. These beautiful objects are especially referred to in Chapter XVIII, where reference is also made to the enamels of Eastern countries, in the making of which brass was frequently used as the foundation. Copper has been found suitable as the groundwork upon which super-finishes have given that superiority and attractiveness associated with many of the fine arts. It was suitable for gilding over and for decorating with precious stones. Copper was also frequently used by painters, its smooth surface being regarded as an excellent material on which to work. As an example, some of the religious pictures, especially miniatures, were painted on copper, instead of on wood panels.
The Brass of Commerce.
Many speak of brass as a metal apart from copper, yet the brass of commerce, worked up in many forms, is only a composite metal of which copper is the basis. The popularity of pure copper as the material from which household utensils and many constructional objects of use and ornament were made in the past continued unabated until metallurgical chemists discovered how, by using an alloy of zinc, the metal we call brass could be cast, rolled, and otherwise manipulated. Among the advantages claimed for brass is that it has a harder surface and is more resisting than copper. From the days of Queen Elizabeth onward it was much favoured for domestic vessels, and even at the present time it is used to some extent; there has, however, always been a concurrent use of copper.
Bell Metal and Other Alloys.
There is yet another important alloy, which from its chief use takes the name of bell-metal; its companion alloy is gun-metal. In the mixing of these metals special alloys are aimed at according to the object in view, that is to say, the ingredients vary, but, broadly defined, the copper and its alloy tin used in bell-metal are in the proportion of three to one. The metal was in the past used for those much employed articles of commercial and domestic use, mortars, in addition to the founding of bells. Bell-metal was also the material of which weights and measures (especially the standards kept in many of the old cities) were chiefly made (see illustrations and references thereto in Chapters X and XI).
The Sources from which Copper is Derived.
Copper seems to have been very widely distributed all over the world, a fact that has contributed to its general use. At one time a local metal employed in a pure state and in conjunction with alloys, chiefly where it was mined, it is now brought to the metal-founder from other parts of the world. Although vast quantities of copper are now imported into England, it was from British mines that the supply was drawn in days gone by. The Britons understood its use, no doubt finding it out by accident, just as the natives of many other countries have done. Copper, as evidenced by the marvellous Benin bronzes, was known in Central Africa long ago. The mines at Mansfield, in Germany, are the oldest in Europe, and there workers have been digging up copper for seven centuries.
The collector of old metal objects naturally takes the greater interest in well authenticated specimens known to have been fashioned in districts once famous for their copper mines. Unfortunately, the Cornish mines produce little ore now. When the Romans worked them they obtained copper quite near to the surface; but such easily mined ores have long been cleared.
Copper smelting was carried on in Cumberland and Northumberland in days gone by. In the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries copper was smelted in Yorkshire and Lancashire. Then we read of the reopening of old Cornish mines and of furnaces being erected in Bristol. The mines of Anglesea are less known, although they were once very active. South Wales has for many years past been closely identified with copper smelting, and rolling mills were established in Swansea as early as 1720; and although the better knowledge of metallic chemistry enables manufacturers to produce copper more economically than in days gone by, the old principle of crushing, calcining, roasting, and washing the ore, although improved by modern machinery, is still adhered to.
As with many other industries, the invention of the steam-engine was a boon to the owners of copper mines in Cornwall, many being flooded towards the end of the eighteenth century. With the steam-engine to work them, pumps were put in operation, mines were cleared, and for a time at any rate ore was procured and renewed activity was visible in many British centres. In those days many of the things we now regard as curios were being made. As with many other raw materials the value of copper steadily advanced, for as trade and commerce grew, immense quantities were used up for sheathing ships' bottoms, roofing buildings, for engravers' plates, and for the rolls used in the printing of calicoes. Other sources of supply have been found, for the chain extending from Land's End to Dartmoor no longer serves. The famous Parys Mines are no more, and it is from foreign countries the supply comes. Some of our Colonies have proved rich in ores, such, for instance, as South Australia, where it is said an early settler examining the burrow of a wombat found the green mineral, that incident leading to the opening of mines yielding vast quantities of copper ore.
The Making of Brass.
The brass of commerce, rolled in sheets, drawn in rods and wire, and cast in ingots ready for the founder, is, as it has been stated, a composite metal, very well suited to many purposes. During the sixteenth century much progress was made in metal-founding. The Worshipful Company of Founders was busy. Many "battery" works were set up in England, and there brass was hammered or battered into shape. Thus brass-workers were engaged in making useful pots and pans, now in their much worn state eagerly sought after by the collector. Some worked with the ladle and crucible, others with the hammer and anvil or wood block.
The earlier brass was composed of copper mixed with calamine melted in a crucible, a process which continued until the more modern form of melting metallic zinc with copper was understood. Champion's process, by which this newer method was carried out, was kept secret for some time, but about the middle of the eighteenth century it was generally understood and the process of stamping brass became a common one in the Birmingham district.
Copper as an Alloy.
Copper, the base of so many alloys, has itself been found a useful alloy of most workable metals, not only in modern times but in years gone by. It is one of the best hardening agents in aluminium, the newer metal which is to some extent displacing copper and brass cooking pots and much ornamental metal-work. According to an expert, aluminium is tasteless, and possesses all the advantages of copper without its drawbacks. That being so, perhaps even vessels of brass, such as may still be seen in kitchens, may soon become obsolete and pass shortly into the rôle of the museum curio. Incidentally it may be mentioned that aluminium is not altogether a new metal, neither is its use confined to civilized countries, where metallurgists have proved its advantages; for the natives of the Philippines, Borneo, and other islands in the Pacific have long used it as an independent metal, and also for the purposes of ornamenting other materials. Many of the copper and brass curios brought into this country, the products of native smiths, working far from civilized lands, are partly made of aluminium, alloyed chiefly with native copper. The natives of Borneo melt it in fireclay crucibles over a coke fire, and are very clever at producing some remarkably fine pieces of metal-work, using different metals for the same object; thus some of their daggers have brass hilts and aluminium blades. The metal-worker has frequently introduced aluminium in the decoration of copper and brass gongs, some of the older examples from Japan being extremely decorative.
The Characteristics of the Metals.
Some collectors very wisely follow up their researches after new treasures by investigating the methods of their production, and they even visit modern works where similar methods, although more advanced, are going on. Very interesting indeed is it to watch the molten metal as it is mixed and poured into moulds and made into pigs. To see the great rolling mills through which the bars are passed, and to watch the hammering and drawing by the steam-hammer and powerful machinery, is an education which enhances the interest there is in the possession of finished goods—old and new.
It is said the brassfounder's requirements to-day are much the same as they have always been, although perhaps there are more iron moulds used and greater care is taken in their preparation. The mould must have a good surface and be composed of the right kind of iron. The best metal for the purpose appears to be one high in silica and low in combined carbon, thus securing a soft iron which will not crack when the molten metal strikes it. The science of metals is constantly being added to, and the research of chemists of recent years has done much towards improving the skill of present-day artists, most of whom, however, readily give praise to the almost intuitive skill of the artists of olden time.
The fashioning of copper and brass follows the preparation of the metal; there are many reasons why copper and its compounds and alloys have been so generally employed, one of the principal being that the ductility of copper has made it welcome wherever the hammer has been brought into play. The possibility of hammering out brass and copper, and especially the latter, is seen in the extreme fineness to which copper wire can be drawn. Hood uses the similitude when speaking of how travel improves the mind, and tells of the gradual narrowing of copper and brass as they become finer and finer, likening those who have not travelled to the narrowed metal. Collectors of curios show characteristic traits, twofold in application. There are some who get more broad-minded the farther they travel, the more museums they inspect, and the wider their knowledge of the antiquities they admire. Others, specialists for the most part, get into very narrow grooves, confining their hobbies to some one class of goods, not always the most interesting in public estimation; then they wonder how it is that their hobbies are not appreciated by their friends! Surely the greatest delight is in a representative collection, such as the hobby under review, which shows all the possibilities of copper and brass in their varied treatment. In the examples which have come down to us from the Ancients, in those schemes of decoration which mark clearly the work of the artists of some one country or period, and in those general collectable objects which have been brought together from everywhere, there is a liberal education:
"Some minds improve by travel; others, rather,
Resemble copper wire, or brass,
Which gets the narrower by going farther."
II
THE
HUNTING
GROUND
CHAPTER II
THE HUNTING GROUND
In buried cities—Turned up by the plough—Among Saxon and Norman remains—In hidden chambers—In local museums—Dealers' shops—The engraver's art.
The multiplicity of collectable objects needed to supply collectors makes the uninitiated wonder where all these antiques come from. Countless numbers of beautiful objects have found their way into the melting-pot in the past, and what once was old has in some new form become once more a useful article, in its turn to be discarded and perhaps melted up and recast.
In Buried Cities.
The curios which have been preserved for centuries beneath the soil are often of priceless value, telling of the habits of peoples of whom history has told us little. Celts, knives, spear-heads, and food receptacles are discovered on the sites of prehistoric camping-grounds. The delicately tooled bronzes from buried cities like Pompeii and Herculaneum come to us with almost a living force in this twentieth century. As we gaze at the wonderful beauty of their forms and the charming patina of green with which they are covered, we can almost imagine what they looked like in the hands of patrons of art in the far-off times when they were first fashioned. Our own country is full of ruins of ancient cities far below the present roadways. When the Romans built Bath it was in a hollow much deeper than the level of the modern city, and it is in these lower levels that relics of Roman Bath are found.
There is a ring of sadness in the desolation of such ancient cities as Verulamium, Cirencester, Kenchester, and similarly deserted locations where modern excavations have been going on recently. It seems curious how the very sites of such once famous places have been lost, but not strange when we remember that more recently occupied towns are but grass mounds—to-day explorers are cutting into the turf-covered mounds of Old Sarum to ascertain where its chief buildings stood. The finds on these ancient sites are varied; many of them are metallic, and although of trifling intrinsic value are prized as being authentic curios.
FIG. 4.—PART OF THE HOARD OF IMPLEMENTS OF THE LATE BRONZE AGE, FOUND IN KING'S CO., IRELAND.
(In the British Museum.)
Turned up by the Plough.
The plough has played an important part in history, and collectors owe much to that useful implement. It has been the means of bringing to light many vessels which have been buried for centuries, for although land has been ploughed many seasons, a deeper ploughshare or more frequent ploughing on the same spot has brought nearer to the surface a copper vessel or an earthen jar, full of antiquarian interest. The field and the forest, and even the deserted mines, have brought to collectors of old metal many interesting relics. Until quite recently there was an old bronze caldron on view in the window of a dealer in antiques in Chester. It was the prototype of many similar vessels that have been made in later days in different parts of the country, the model on which the more modern pots or camp-kettles of the gipsies and the three-legged pots commonly suspended over the cottage hearth, until comparatively modern times, have been fashioned. It is worthy of note that the principle adopted by those early metal-workers is still observed in the more scientific construction of cooking vessels to-day. The form of the caldron was such that by applying heat under the centre the flames spread and leapt up the sides, curling as they travelled, following the lines fashioned by the coppersmiths, and heating the contents of the vessel equally. Such ancient caldrons, sometimes much worn and at others in fairly good condition, have been preserved by Mother Earth until discovered in modern times.
Among Saxon and Norman Remains.
The Saxons and Normans used metal, and the brawny arms of the smiths, and later the founders, fashioned the cooking-pots made in their day. Many metal curios, much battered by fallen masonry, have been found among the ruins of Norman castles and in some cases of the still earlier Saxon dwellings. The discoveries of curios of those periods are by no means frequent, and it would appear as if we must now be content with storing carefully those relics already discovered. Modern restorations and excavations have brought many valuable antiquities to light, and authorities have been very careful to preserve them in county or local museums.
In Hidden Chambers.
The splendour of mediæval days when feasting in the great hall of the baron or overlord has been revealed by many noted finds. The great kitchens of those mansions were full of copper and brass, and it is from such supplies that many of the best authenticated specimens have come. Some are historical; even bronze caldrons and more modest-looking saucepans have been made to the order of some mediæval chieftain or baron.
The life of the common people of this country varied little between the days of the Norman Conquest and those of the Tudor sovereigns who held court in the houses of the nobility. The dress, costume, and rough splendour of the Elizabethan age had its effect, however, on the homes of courtiers and eventually of the common people. When the stormy times of the Civil War came there was a rude breaking up of the old order of things, and in Cromwellian days some preparation for the new which was to come. After the battlefield came the destruction of stronghold and mansion by order of the Parliament. Some escaped, and within the last century not a few domestic curios have been found during the restoration and rebuilding of old houses dating from the time of the Commonwealth. Priests' cells and secret chambers, sliding panels and concealed cupboards, and other hidden places were the rule rather than the exception at the time of the Civil War. In some of these long-forgotten places of concealment some very interesting domestic objects in copper and brass have been found during rebuilding and restoration.
In Local Museums.
It is a moot point whether the frequent change in the ownership of curios which goes on every day, as evidenced by the auction sales, stirs up the curiosity of the collector and awakens his interest in his hobby to a greater extent than when such curios are placed on view in local museums. The fact remains that, notwithstanding the constant circulation of curios, many find a permanent home in museums. Not only do the national collections in the British Museum, and the Victoria and Albert Museum at South Kensington grow rapidly, but in almost every town of note there are local and great district museums. This latter class is instanced in the Welsh National Museum at Cardiff. There are two typical local museums in London—the Guildhall Museum and the London Museum, which has just found a new home at Stafford House. These museums stimulate local collectors, but they do not contribute to their collections. As places of reference they are invaluable, for the wider spread knowledge of antiques secured by the objects shown prevents amateurs from falling into traps and consequently becoming disheartened.
Dealers' Shops.
The shops of dealers supplement the auction-rooms. They are partly fed from them and partly by the persistent search ever going on for objects in which their owners have little interest and are willing to part with for a consideration—not always the "top price." The greater popularity of curio-hunting has caused a vigorous search of attic and cellar at the instance of dealers as well as collectors. Even the palaces of kings and queens and the houses of the nobility have been ransacked, and treasures from an artistic point of view, as well as from a utilitarian, have been brought to light and the dust of many years wiped away.
Many delightful examples of the coppersmith's art were until recently condemned by the travelling tinker as being no longer repairable, with the natural consequence that, their value as antiques being unknown, they were eventually sold for an "old song." Those pioneers of collecting who had time on their hands and foresaw an accruing value of even old metal went about from town to town examining the marine stores and visiting villages and farmhouses in search of anything old and curious. To-day there are few genuine antiques without some one to value them. Nearly every collection belongs to an appreciative owner, and when curios change hands it is generally at a premium instead of at "a bargain price."
Hitherto reference has been made chiefly to metal curios of British make, and to those objects with which Englishmen have become familiar. The collector, however, is cosmopolitan in his aims, and cheerfully searches the world over for objects of interest. His curios come from the Far East, from Central Africa, and from all parts of Europe, and to some extent from the American continents. There have been many methods of producing metal-work, yet native workers in all countries have had but two processes upon which they have based their plans, and it is from the smiths who hammered copper and brass into shape, and in later days stamped it, and the founder who cast the metal in moulds, that all our curios come.
The Engraver's Art.
This outline of the hunting-ground of the collector would be incomplete without some mention of the products of the graver's tool which has produced so many works of art. The much prized mezzotints, stipples, and line engravings are pictures for the most part printed from copper plates. The metal rolled in sheets and planished becomes a work of art in itself when covered with those beautiful pictures so cleverly wrought upon the metal by the light touch of the graver.
Perhaps one of the most interesting uses to which copper has been put is that of executing beautiful miniatures—tiny pictures, portraits, and emblematic designs such as were used by traders on their stationery in years gone by. The copper-plate engraver has left his mark, too, in the beautifully quaint and very valued early issues of postage-stamps, some of which were printed from copper plates. Just as copper plays an important part in the production of postage-stamps and pictures, so copper in conjunction with its alloys is the common metal of currency. Some of the most valuable metallic curios are the ancient coins which have been dug up from where they have been buried for centuries, or discovered in some hidden chamber. Such little objects of copper or bronze have an antiquarian value far beyond either their artistic beauty or their age warrants being associated with them. Collectors of metals know the value of some of the historic commemorative medallions in bronze, and heroes and warriors show their appreciation of one of the commoner metals in the value they set upon the simple Maltese cross inscribed "For Valour," for the Victoria Cross is more coveted than any naval or military award the Sovereign of these realms can bestow. Its owners regard it as a precious relic, and the reluctance of those left behind to part with it is seen in the large sum which has to be paid for one of these simple bronze crosses when it comes in the market.
III
PREHISTORIC
BRONZES
CHAPTER III
PREHISTORIC BRONZES
The dawn of progress—London relics—The beauty of ancient art—The useful bronzes, the prototypes of later brasses—The forger at work.
As it has already been intimated, our older metal curios come to us from the Bronze Age. In the relics of that period, in which the British Museum is so rich, we are able to mark the great difference that must have existed between the people who lived the "simple life" in the Stone Age, and those who understood how to make and how to use implements of bronze. Metal must have revolutionized the habits of the people, fostered development, and marked progress as the Age advanced; for with metal appliances there were greater possibilities, and from the fact that while some used bronze others were content with flint, it would appear that then, perhaps, more than at any other time, the more advanced were sharply separated from those who, possessing lesser intelligence and possibly fewer opportunities, stayed behind.
The Dawn of Progress.
The more advanced Britons and the men of the later Bronze Age in other countries improved the patterns of their tools, the basis of which was found in flint implements, which in the later Neolithic period had become more varied. Even then they had hammer, saw, chisel, borer, spear or javelin, and arrow-point. They had also a variety of knives; some of curious sickle-like forms. There are weapons of war and weapons of defence, and some obviously used for the more peaceful arts and domestic purposes. As the collector secures specimens of the rarer types of bronze and metal objects coming to us from those far-off days, we read the story of the evolution of the race, and can picture in our minds the onward march.
FIG. 5 (1).—BRONZE CALDRON; AND FIG. 6 (2).—URN OF THE LATER BRONZE AGE.
(In the British Museum.)
The Romans did not find the ancient Britons quite savages, and we sigh with regret when we think of the numberless relics of priceless value—of bronze and of even more precious metals—which existed then, but which have perished long ago. The melting-pot has been a terribly fierce enemy to the collector of copper and brass, and it is really wonderful how many rare objects of the Bronze Age remain—prehistoric only in that we have no authentic records of the happenings of that period. We have, however, abundant evidence of the importance of that Age in the bronzes preserved to us for so long by Mother Earth, and now carefully tended by museum curators and private collectors. Among the fine examples we possess in our national collections are the ornamental bucklers of which some have been found in Wales and other places. That represented in Fig. 2 (1) came from the Thames Valley, and Fig. 3 (2) from the peat bogs near Aberystwyth; both may be seen in the British Museum.
Some exceptional hoards have been found in Ireland, notably the bronzes which were discovered in 1825 in a part of Whigsborough, called Derreens, in King's Co. It is surmised that although the land is now boggy the soil was at one time under cultivation, and from indications it would appear as if the bronzefounder had worked on the spot. In Fig. 4 several representative implements found in that hoard are pictured; their descriptions are as follows: Fig. 4 (1 and 3), palstaves; (5, 6, and 7), daggers; (2) a pear-shaped bell; (4 and 8) curved trumpets, all specimens of the latter part of the Bronze Age or of the beginning of the Iron Age. Many fine bronze vessels, chiefly without feet, have been found in Ireland. The two examples shown in Figs. 5 and 6 represent the way in which they were made, especially Fig. 5 (1), in which the riveting of the plates will be observed. Fig. 6 (2) has been designated an urn. Both of these late bronzes are in the British Museum, along with other Irish finds. In the same collection there is a trumpet of horn with rings or bands of studs, the mouthpiece being at the side. It is a curious relic of an Irish musician, found some years ago at Drimoleague, Co. Cork.
London Relics.
London has been the site of an important camp, town, or city ever since man lived in the marshes and upon the banks of Old Father Thames, and among the finds in the neighbourhood have been relics of every period of British civilization; and as a natural consequence London possesses representative collections of the Bronze Age, as well as of later periods. Collectors have many opportunities of buying, as well as of inspecting prehistoric bronzes in museums and in less important private collections. Some of these antiquities are of good form and possess a beauty of their own. The vivid green, relieved with deeper shades, with which age has painted these ancient relics gives them a peculiar charm, and it would be vandalism indeed to attempt to "clean" the celts and knives which antiquaries handle with such veneration and care.
The Beauty of Ancient Art.
During the last few years more attention has been given to the beauty of the workmanship of the early objects of brass and copper relics of prehistoric peoples, especially of the people who inhabited this country in pre-Roman days. The London museums contain very representative examples. To many the Guildhall Museum is of special interest, in that every object there has been found within the confines of the City of London. There are implements of the chase and of war and peace. For instance, in the cases containing weapons which may have been used for defence against wild animals, as well as for aggressive campaigns, there are bronze celts, some socketed with loops, side by side with a very fine tool and two small lumps of copper, which were discovered near the celt. These latter represent the unfinished material ready for the crucible and for the alloy which was to turn them into a bronze of special hardness. In the same case there are leaf-shaped swords and daggers of rapier form. There are also spear-heads of slender shapes with sockets extending near to the point of the weapon; and spear shaft-sockets of bronze, some of which were found in Fetter Lane.
Of the late Celtic period there are examples of personal objects, and it may be noted that duplicates of similar antiquities to those deposited in the Museum are on sale in a great number of shops in London, and now and then quite important parcels of these interesting metallic mementoes of peoples unknown come under the hammer. Such trinkets include bronze fibulæ, some enamelled, others of plain metal. A very beautiful specimen terminating with a roughly formed snake's head was found on the Thames bank near Hammersmith, on the site of reputed pile dwellings, some little time ago. In the same locality a bronze bowl and a mount were found soon afterwards. From the river near Battersea came a bronze shield, specially interesting in that it was decorated with enamelled ornaments. Horse-bits with enamelled rosettes have also been found in London. Perhaps one of the most interesting relics of that early age was a British helmet of copper, also decorated with enamels, found near Waterloo Bridge. In the Guildhall Museum there is a brooch made with a bow and pin in one piece, and quite a number of other styles of bronze fibulæ. There are bronze hairpins, too, some of the heads being decorated. There are Celtic tweezers, armlets of bronze, and many rings.
To the inquisitive who like to inquire into the processes of making things and to their sources, the remains of ancient workshops represented by lumps of copper, strips of bronze, and objects partly formed, are of special interest. There are bows, showing another advance in civilization. There are spoons, too, of circular form, hammered into shape. It has been said that bowls and spoons are the earliest signs of domesticity and civilization. Our ancestors, who lived on the seashore, made use of large shells, which gave them the cue to the fashioning of a shallow dish, which eventually became a bowl. The wings of the valves of the oyster and the pecten may have given the suggestion of a handle to a primitive spoon. Ethnologists have said that the broken cocoanut in the South Seas was the bowl of the primitive tribes, and from it vessels in clay were moulded.
The Useful Bronzes, the Prototypes of Later Brasses.
The beautiful bronzes of the later part of the Bronze Age include objects showing the gradual development and progress of the race. Not only are the weapons those likely to be used in defence against attacks from wild animals rather than for aggressive purposes, and the domestic bronzes of more civilized forms, but there are in addition implements of husbandry. In Ireland some very pronounced sickles and reaping-hooks have been found. There are also musical instruments and sounding horns, among them curved trumpets of bronze.
Many interesting although isolated finds have been made, such as a curious bronze or brass bucket with corrugated flutes, which was found at Weybridge, in Surrey, experts placing it among the relics of the early Iron Age. From Faversham, in Kent, many bronze mirrors have been secured, some of them being very ornamental, the backs being engraved all over. In the North of England several interesting finds have been made, too. Some of especial value were discovered in Heathery Burn Cave, Co. Durham; they consisted of domestic utensils which were probably used at the extreme end of the Bronze Age.
Among frequent finds is the patera or drinking-bowl, which must, of course, be distinguished from the patine, which was a flat dish with a raised rim, used for serving up meat or fish. Indeed, it would appear that some of the peoples who dwelt in those far-off ages of which we have no written history were more advanced in civilization and in the arts and crafts than we usually realize. Modern research has revealed much that was hitherto unknown, and scientists, explorers, and antiquaries now hold the ancients in much greater respect than formerly—they no longer regard them as "savages," although they may class them with the "barbarians" of more modern Europe.
Professor Petrie, the famous Egyptologist, when speaking on his wonderful researches some little time ago, said mankind had had a long past. That past leads to the present, and without a knowledge of the present and to some extent of the intermediate ages we cannot fully understand the past. It is the curios of antiquity which help us, and lead up by slow degrees to the present; this is understood by the curio-hunter, and realized more and more as he goes further into the past of nations. The curios of the Bronze Age are not limited in locality. They are found in continents far removed from Western civilization, for in the remains of ancient Peruvians there are tools of bronze belonging to their far-off past. The Incas were not only adepts at working the precious metals with tools of bronze, but they were clever workers of other raw materials. They possessed beautiful textiles of cotton and wool and were noted agriculturists, having implements of tillage made of bronze.
The Forger at Work.
A warning note is often sounded by those who have paid dearly for their experience. It is needed, for there are many pitfalls for the unwary, especially in his researches among the relics of the Bronze Age and periods which have been much copied by the makers of modern antiques. It is worthy of note that in the middle of the nineteenth century several Birmingham firms in making bronzed inkstands, bracket lights, candelabra, and figures supporting lamps, copied the antique very closely, one noted firm announcing on their trade circulars that their designs were "according to Greek, Roman, and Gothic ornaments." Examples of such comparatively modern work, when discovered tarnished and neglected, may sometimes have a close resemblance to real antiques, and even the curios of still greater antiquity—especially Egyptian curiosities—have been much forged. The forger—or, as he would prefer to be called, the maker of replicas—is still at work.
IV
GREEK
AND
ROMAN
CURIOS
CHAPTER IV
GREEK AND ROMAN CURIOS
Grecian bronzes—Relics of Roman occupation—Interesting toilet requisites—Artificial lighting—Statues and monuments—Romano-British art—A well staged exhibit.
It is from the curios in metal and the antiquities in stone which have been discovered, chiefly in comparatively recent years, that we are able to read with understanding the allusions made by classic writers to domestic life as it was in ancient Greece and Rome. The records of the art of Greece become more real when we have gazed upon the beautiful and graceful statues and the furniture of the palace and domain for which the artists and metal-workers of those days were so justly celebrated.
Even the public school boy takes a greater interest in his studies when he recognizes in the furnishings of his home antiquities from Greece or those lands in which that once powerful nation founded colonies.
Grecian Bronzes.
In the modern replicas of antiques, and in the fashioning of the common household bronzes of the present day, the craftsman, perhaps unconsciously, gains inspiration from the older race of artists in metals. Indeed, the nearer the workman adheres to the form of the statues and domestic decorative metal-work of the ancients, the more likely he is to succeed in imparting refinement to the modern home. Ancient Greece was the nursery of art and the training ground of the athlete and of the model who served as the type of the goddesses whose perfect forms and attributes were regarded as worthy of the divinities her sons and daughters worshipped. Most of the metal objects coming to us from classic days are of bronze, toned and patinated. Images of the gods and goddesses worshipped by the ancient Greeks were to be found in every house. Wealthy patrons employed the artist in metal to produce idols and appointments for the numerous temples they built. It was the worship of many pagan deities that found work for many craftsmen. The very multiplicity of the gods served the purposes of trade, hence the supporters of pagan practices and worship found in the metal-workers and artists who wrought such things powerful allies. We read in Biblical accounts of that day that the introduction of Christianity caused no small stir amongst them, and incited Demetrius, the silversmith, and others to rise up against the "new religion," which gave no immediate promises of employment of metal-workers to compensate them for the loss of trade in idols. It was thus that so much that is beautiful when regarded as merely artistic bronze figures was made. Among the favourite deities whose emblematic bronzes have been preserved to us are Diana, Venus, Mercury, and Hercules. They rank with the gods of brass of the heathen, and according to their classic beauty are admired with the idols of metal from India and Africa (see Chapter XIV).
In all these treasures from the old world, little known or understood now, there is a blend of the decorative and artistic and the more utilitarian objects of the household. The slaves of the old families often lived luxurious lives, although the goodwill of their patrons and owners might be fickle. They had their duties, and the metal objects they handled and often skilfully manipulated are still preserved in our museums. These were often fashioned with the same grace as the statues which adorned porticoes and halls.
The ornamental objects of Greek workmanship include useful braziers or bronze tripods which gave heat and also served as purifiers; for into their round brass dishes were thrown perfumes to correct the smell of the coals and charcoal, which were then held to be injurious. Such braziers were also used by the Romans, and even in the Middle Ages were not uncommon, pepper and cloves being then burned for fragrance.
Relics of Roman Occupation.
Although many beautiful objects have been imported into this country by collectors and dealers bought in Rome itself, and in Italian and other continental cities where Roman remains have been found, it is the relics of the Roman occupation in Britain which take first place in our estimation among the valued curios of that great nation. These have been found in many places, often quite unexpectedly.
Modern London, like modern Rome, stands in part on ruins of an older city. Hence it is that when foundations are being dug and excavations to some 15 to 20 feet are made, relics of Roman London and of Saxon and early Norman buildings which were built in subsequent ages upon the older ruins come to light. It is amidst these ruins and the debris of old architecture that metal curiosities are often found. Copper and brass have not perished to the same extent as iron and more corrosive metals. In London, Bath, Chester, and cities which were famous many centuries ago, the earliest metal curiosities are unearthed. But many of the most valued have been found where least expected, for it must be remembered that even the sites of many old cities have been lost, and green fields now cover the old foundations.
It is a little disappointing at first, when a collection of Roman antiquities is under examination, to find that they bear a striking resemblance to modern appliances—especially is that so in the cooking utensils. Most of these early vessels are of bronze; some, however, are of pure copper, mostly covered over with green patina. The useful seems to have predominated over the ornamental; possibly it is that the more substantial cooking-pots and pans have remained, although lighter and more ornamental objects have perished.
The pots and saucepans are indeed remarkably like those which are now used for similar purposes. This has been remarked by many who have had to do with the uncovering of long buried ruins. A writer describing a Roman kitchen attached to the villa of a patrician family of note in the Republican era before Augustus assumed the purple, which had been uncovered in Rome, said, "The culinary utensils found there are much like our own, made of brass, some of them dipped or plated over with silver." They consisted of kettles with feet, with a dome-shaped opening under them, a hollow cylinder which entered into the kettle base so that the fire could penetrate it.
Many of these utensils, whilst possessing great strength and lasting qualities, were not altogether plain, for they were covered with foliated ornament like the saucepan illustrated in Fig. 7. The saucepans without handles were something like a caldron on feet; many, however, were fitted with bail handles, by which they could be hung over the fire by the aid of a tripod. The metal of which these early vessels were made varied, for although some were of bronze, some were made of a yellowish brass, like one found in London near Ludgate. The Guildhall Museum is the best place to find a thoroughly representative collection of Roman metal-work. In the cases there are curious saucer-like bowls with and without handles, many spoons of bronze, and a variety of ladles, some of which have long and narrow bowls; and there are some culinary strainers, not unlike the modern colander.
There are many ewers and some bowls or basins of bronze. In Fig. 8 is shown a ewer of hammered copper, the handle having at the time it was made, or at some later period, been strengthened with brass wire, which is in part flattened and stamped with medallions giving the vessel an exceedingly ornamental appearance. This curious piece is to be seen in the Victoria and Albert Museum.
Among the more important kitchen accessories which have been discovered on the sites of Roman towns are bronze scales not unlike miniatures of the steelyards once common in England, and still used by butchers. Then there are brass gridirons, dripping-pans, and cups of bronze. There are also copper pails for cooling wine, and in a few instances bronze stands for the wine amphoræ. It is almost impossible to point out the sites which are likely to yield the explorer the best results, neither is it possible to locate the town where metal-work has been found to the greatest extent, for all old camping-grounds and towns once occupied by Roman troops or residential cities during Roman occupation contain what has been thrown away as useless or has been buried accidentally.
The collector is delighted with the many little objects which can be bought, trifling matters when seen separately, but very interesting when collectively displayed.
FIG. 7.—BRONZE SAUCEPAN WITH FOLIATED HANDLE. FIG. 8.—EWER OF HAMMERED COPPER.
FIG. 9.—LAMP OF CAST BRONZE. FIG. 10.—LAMP OF BRASS INLAID WITH COPPER.
Interesting Toilet Requisites.
During excavations on the site of the National Safe Deposit Company's premises in Walbrook quite a number of beautifully formed small objects were found. Indeed, such curios (by no means uncommonly met with on sale in curio shops) are very numerous, and include toilet implements, armlets of twisted copper wire, finger rings of bronze, dress fasteners, pins, fibulæ, tweezers, key rings, bodkins, and needles.
The looking-glass is of course a modern invention, but Greek and Roman maidens learned the art of finishing their toilet in the reflective "glass" of the shining pool, and later by the aid of mirrors of highly polished metal made by the craftsmen of Rome; some of which have been preserved. The surface to which this reflective polish was given was of copper alloyed with antimony and lead. Such mirrors were sometimes hung to the girdle, a custom not unknown to Shakespeare, who frequently makes mention of it.
Artificial Lighting.
Artificial light has been a necessity to man ever since primeval days. The whole story of the discovery of fire-making and the light it gave is an enchanting romance. The contrivances for procuring and lighting a fire and for the betterment of artificial light have been many, and throughout the ages they have received perhaps greater attention by the inventor than any other requirement of the race. Of all the curios of the period under review none have been more prolific than those associated with artificial light. The lamps of ancient Rome, of beautiful bronze and brass, contrasted with the clay or terra-cotta lamps of cruder forms which have been found in such quantities. Their chased patterns were often modelled on the earlier Greek vases, so many of which are to be seen in the British Museum among the rarities of the metal collector. No collection of copper and brass would be complete without examples of the arts and crafts of Rome, so beautifully exemplified in the charming lamps to be carried in the hand, to stand on pedestals, and for suspension from the ceiling. There was something in their ornamentation which carried them beyond the works of the utilitarian maker. A celebrated historian, referring to the lights of ancient Rome, speaks of their matchless grace and simplicity, and says, "They afford traces of decoration showing an elevation in the ornamentation of common articles of every-day use." The Roman lamp of bronze was carried everywhere the conquering armies went, and in Roman settlements in France, Italy, and in Northern Africa, as well as in Britain, the native artificers in copper and bronze saw in them designs to be imitated; and after the Empire of Rome had fallen, the models which emanated from the Imperial city served as the designs for lamps in many countries centuries afterwards. The illustrations shown in Figs. 9 and 10 represent bronze lamps—the former, Fig. 9, is cast, and is an early example; Fig. 10, however, is of a later period, and it is made of brass inlaid with copper. The examples found in this and other countries may be divided into two groups, those distinctly Roman and of early date and those of the days when the Christian religion was recognized by the Emperors and the State. These latter are known by the decorations upon them.
Statues and Monuments.
Reference has already been made to the beautiful statuettes of Greece. There are others, to many grand in their conceptions, the work of Roman modellers, many representing Apollo, Hercules, Mars, and Mercury having been found. In the British Museum there are some wonderfully striking heads of several of the Emperors, and other men whose portraits have been handed on to us in monuments of stone, and upon coins and medallions, the die-sinkers of which so faithfully portrayed the men they pictured. The names of many of the most famous artists are known, and collectors rejoice over fresh examples of their handiwork. It is, however, the general characteristics of the Roman worker in metal as a whole that connoisseurs recognize and appreciate, and the true connoisseur is always searching for some greater artist's work than he has hitherto been familiar with. He is on the look-out for the very best among art treasures.
An amusing story has been told of a modern manufacturer who was very fond of inserting in his advertisements paragraphs calling attention to his modern works of art, which he said were "acknowledged by connoisseurs to be the best." "Father," said his little boy one day, "what do you mean by a connoisseur?" "A connoisseur, my boy," answered the manufacturer of copper goods, "is an eminent authority—an authority, in short, who admits that our goods are the best."
We are apt to look upon the beautiful brass grilles and copper lock-plates of mediæval days as the earliest examples of these metals in lock-making, the earliest locks found on old doors and muniment chests being chiefly of iron. But when we go back to still earlier times and examine the relics of Roman London, we find key-rings and keys of bronze, some very ornamental, too. One beautiful little key found near All Hallows Church has a bow terminating in a small spur. Another bronze key found near St. Swithin's, in Cannon Street, has a ridged annular bow, with a short square stem. Other keys are equally decorative; the locks, too, are in many instances ornamental, although in design and workmanship they fall short of the pinnacle of fame reached by the lockmakers in later Gothic times.
Romano-British Art.
Many readers in searching for curios of the Romano-British period in this country will recall the fact that the ancient Britons possessed bronze; and doubtless we should be doing an injustice to the more enlightened dwellers in Britain before Roman occupation, and contemporary with it, if we did not admit that possibly some of the relics of that period now dubbed Roman belonged to those more entitled to our regard, for Albion was their native land.
On the Thames Embankment, facing the Houses of Parliament, there is that famous bronze group perpetuating the memory of the British Queen Boadicea in her war chariot. The Romans made their famous paved roads as they pushed their outposts and line of camps farther north and west. The wheels of many British war chariots were made of, or hooped with, brass, and possibly the brass or bronze wheels, such as are represented in that group on the Embankment once covered by the flowing river, may have rattled over the roads made by the conquerors; such chariots, with their appointments of bronze and ornamental horse trappings, showed much skill in their fashioning. A poet gives voice to their use in the following lines:
"On the bright axle turns the bidden wheel Of sounding brass, the polish'd axle steel."
A Well Staged Exhibit.
It is scarcely necessary to remind readers that there is a peculiar attraction in a well staged exhibit—public or private. A case of Roman and still earlier bronzes may be made attractive by an arrangement giving a gradation of subject and inclusive of the plainer types with the more delicately formed ornamental trinkets. A very fine example of how to arrange such a collection is seen in one of the rooms in Stafford House, the new home of the London Museum. The entire collection, representative of various periods of the Roman occupation of Britain, so carefully mounted, is worthy of close inspection. It includes many rare pieces, one being an early Roman lamp, which was found in Greenwich and is said to be unique among London curios. Indeed, it is probable that none so fine, nor of exactly the same design, has been found in England. This we are able to reproduce (see Fig. 50). The newly arranged London Museum is likely to be a rendezvous of Londoners and their friends from the country, for not only are there early antiquities in copper and brass, but many fascinating curios arranged in historical sequence, showing the development in metal-work as it was fashioned by London smiths and founders, and the progress made by other craftsmen as kings and queens came and went and the London as we know it to-day was being evolved.
V
MEDIÆVAL
ANTIQUITIES
