Famous flags, famous folks.

by Barbara Owens

You cannot escape it.  When we discuss objects and artifacts in collections we must talk provenance.  If the object does not hold a "pedigree", it casts doubt as to whether that object is genuine.  Hence, objects with good provenance are so valuable, not just monetarily, but in historic significance.  Some artifacts are simply so old, that even if the story attached to them cannot be verified, the age of the piece places it close enough to a significant person or moment in time that the piece therefore gains importance.

Tecumseh Flag, NMAI.

SAC recently treated a fantastic piece of history, the Tecumseh Flag.  It belongs to the Museum of the American Indian and was recently mounted for the centennial anniversary of the War of 1812.  The term "Tecumseh Flag" can be misleading as there is no ONE flag.  Instead, there are several attributed to be affiliated with the Shawnee leader at various museums and historical societies, as well as private collections, around the world.  So why so many?  And which one (or which ones, in this case) is real?  Tecumseh, like Washington, or Custer, or any other famous person in history has many items "attached" to him.  So, separating fact from fiction becomes difficult, if not impossible.

This particular flag has nice provenance and it is in remarkable shape. It is made of wool bunting and hand-stitched with linen thread. Along the hoist are three hand-stitched grommets.

Tecumseh (1768 - October 1813) a  Shawnee leader.

The design of this flag is a British blue ensign flag (yes, the British used red and white as well, but we'll get to that later), which was used throughout the British Commonwealth beginning in 1801 when the St. George Cross, the St. Andrew Cross and the St. Patrick Cross were intertwined.  Therefore, this flag was clearly used in the War of 1812 as a British Navy flag.  But remember, Tecumseh spends his time mainly in the  Michigan Territory, so what is a navy flag doing in the center of the continent? And more importantly, why would such a flag be given to Tecumseh?

The answer is multi-layered.  First, is that it is the custom of the British to present flags, medals or uniforms to Indian chiefs as an understanding of their relationship and the expectation that the Indians will fight for the British.  Many of these flags were referred to as "treaty flags", but there is often an absence of a formal treaty, so perhaps they are best described as "gift flags"?  Tecumseh was aligned with the British through Major-General Sir Isaac Brock, in hopes of creating or maintaining an independent Indian state in the Midwest.  Tecumseh came to the aid of the British in the capture of Fort Detroit.  But, during the Battle of the Thames in 1813, he was killed.  After his death, his confederation fell apart and the British deserted their Indian allies at the peace conference that ended the War of 1812.  Later, American settlers took possession of all the territory south of the Great Lakes.

Northern Indiana

With that bit of history, let us look back to the large number of flags that are associated with Tecumseh and their similarities and differences.  A British red ensign flag is at the Windsor Museum in Canada, also called the Tecumseh Flag.  This flag is said to have covered the body of Tecumseh following his death at the Battle of Thames and has an oral history associated with it.  So while the colors are correct for the time period, the story that accompanies it, can never be confirmed.  The red background is somewhat a mystery in that a red ensign was designated as a merchant ensign, whereas the blue was a Naval Reserve ensign.

Tecumseh Flag, Windsor's Community Museum, ca 1960s.

Windsor Community Museum's Tecumseh Flag. (June 2012)

The construction and the size of both the NMAI's and Windsor's flags are similar.  But one is blue and the other is red.  Two other similar flags are found at the Kentucky and Minnesota Historical Societies, respectively.  The color differences and their relationship to Tecumseh is a mystery.  Are they simply legends perpetuating more intrigue?  Or in fact, part of symbolic alliances between parties?  Tecumseh's death at the Battle of the Thames marked the end of his resistance movement and the start of a period of myth-making that would craft an imagined hero out of this extraordinary man.

Records indicate that the "flag was carried by Native Americans
 who fought with Tecumseh during the War of 1812"
(Kentucky Historical Society)

Ojibwa Chief Mike Flatte in a ca. 1930 photograph
 wearing British treaty medals and holding the flag.
(Minnesota Historical Society)

Maybe we are thinking of this in too narrow terms.  Perhaps the color is not what is important, perhaps the symbolism of giving a flag is what mattered and the kind of flag, or where it came from was not considered.  Additionally, how many flags were available to give?  Maybe you gave whatever you had on hand?

The major European powers in North America are known to have executed various treaties with the Native American Indians, namely Great Britain, France, Spain, Russia and later their respective successors in interest Canada, United States and Mexico. The execution of these treaties was often accompanied with the exchange of gifts. The Indians often gave pelts, tanned skins, intricate beadwork and other crafts while their European counterparts often presented chiefs with medals, uniforms and flags.

The United States and Canada are all known to have continued the practice well into the 19^th century. In the case of Great Britain, the flag most often gifted to the Indians were red or blue ensigns. Clearly flags were not just given to Tecumseh but to other Chiefs as well who the government wanted to have favor with.

To read more about Tecumseh and some of the other artifacts associated with him go to: http: //tecumseh.omeka.net/exhibits/show/traces-of--shooting-star---the/introduction and http://blog.nmai.si.edu/main/2012/11/a-flag-of-the-fathers.html

Special thanks to Vexologists, James Ferrigan, David Martucci and David Phillips for sharing their wealth of knowledge about all things flag related.  

Wet Umbrellas!

by Gwen Spicer

I remember the first time I saw a method of containing a wet umbrella.  It was in 2007 and I was in Taiwan, entering a metro station near the National University in the capital.  There at the top of the escalators was a dispenser of plastic bags, made to easily slip over an umbrella.  Later, I was entering a ceramics museum and an even more elaborate vehicle for umbrella containment was there.  In this version, you plunged your umbrella into the contraption, and it instantly enveloped your umbrella in a tight-fitted plastic (or shall we say "rubber") sleeve.  This was great, no wet drips on the floor as you walk to the coat room.  I thought, "Wow, here is a very organized country in a tropical climate".  True in the United States we don't quite have that sort of climate and perhaps not nearly that level of rain.  However, this simply means we are at an umbrella wrapping disadvantage.

Why do you ask is it so important to wrap your umbrella?  Let me tell you...

 Taipei County Yingge Ceramics Museum (2007)

I have since seen many other solutions in other countries and in the United States.

Ibere Camargo Museum, Porto Alegra, Brazil (Spring 2008)

Umbrella bags at the NMAI's Suitland facility. (Summer 2012)

Outside a historic house

Historic Banners...they say a lot.

by Barbara Owens

Early 19th century, Grafton
Public Library. 

Banners have been around forever, or at least a couple thousand years.  It is said that one of the earliest accounts of their use is of Moses employing banners to keep the multitudes organized as they made their way to the Promised Land.

Angel firehouse banner - image from ARTAID.org

Banners had (and still
have) one purpose, if you want to say something, you put it on a banner and hang it up for the world to see.  Banners have been used to make political statements, they tout success, they pay homage to heroes.  Such is the case with Firehouse Banners.  Several examples exist from the Victorian Period.  A firehouse banner usually has the fire department name on it, and as you would expect, it was hung proudly in the firehouse.  However, the firehouse banner cannot be pigeon-holed into the past, as evidenced by the "Angel" banner which now graces some of the FDNY firehouses whose firefighters were lost on September 11th, 2001.

Trade Banner, 1841. Maine Historical Society

Spicer Art Conservation treats banners each year, some political, some made in protest (see the "Down with the Rent" banner above), and numerous trade banners (see right) made for parades and rallies.  Recently,  SAC received a beautiful, two-sided, velvet banner (a truly unique choice in fabric), which had remained in the attic of the Morrisville, New York Firehouse for perhaps 100 years.  The banner was for the most part intact, as was the stitching which composed the embroidery on one side, and the painting which made up the image on the reverse.  However, the colors had faded significantly and it was very dirty.

Inside of the banner, filled with
100 years of dirt, but look at
the original teal color.

The good people of Morrisville wanted to restore their banner and, if possible, rehang it in the firehouse.  To do this the banner needed to be housed in a way that would protect it.  Remember though, this is a double sided banner.  If it is framed, one side will be lost.  The solution?  A two-sided display case.

The banner is to hang in the display case using the original brass rings, rod and finials.  The stress points caused from the junction where the ring meets the fabric and is stitched to the banner was deemed too fragile to re-affix the rings.  Another solution was needed.

To construct, sometimes you must deconstruct.  The banner has two sides, and those sides required separation from each other during internal cleaning and re-application of the badly disintegrating padded layer making up the center of the banner.  SAC conservators Gwen Spicer and Nicolette Cook came up with the idea to integrate a piece of sheer fabric, which would run the length of the top of the banner.  It would be secured using running stitches and approximately 2 inches of the sheer fabric would be extended from the top of the banner.  The sheer fabric created a sleeve (much like the space where the rod passes through a curtain).  The fabric would hang from the rod, and the banner then would hang from the fabric.  The brass rings would then be affixed to this sheer fabric, thus eliminating the stress to the original fabric.  The trick was to get the rings around the rod, and through the sheer fabric.  In other words: the sheer fabric had to go around the rod, the rings had to go through the sheer fabric and around the rod, and then the banner had to be stitched to the fabric, therefore "sealing" in the sheer fabric, rings and rod.

The banner just before it is affixed to the sheer fabric.  In this photo you can really see the degree to which the fabric of the embroidered side had faded from a deep burgundy to an almost brown shade.

Banner after treatment - fabric covers the rod, the rings are "embedded" between the rod, fabric and banner.

The sheer fabric was cut in a "comb" like pattern.  The top of each comb, was seared with a soldering iron to create a perfectly round hole, which the ring would fit into.  Additionally, the color of the sheer fabric was intentionally chosen to create a near match to the rod, allowing it to become virtually invisible once the brass rings surround it.  The outcome is a banner that is conserved and displayed in a way that is beneficial to the banner and pleasing to the people who found this lost treasure in the hopes it would not only be displayed again, but for a long time to come.

Side 2, after treatment

Side 1, after treatment

Museum Worthy?

by Barbara Owens


Some things are simply so prolific you need only mention their name and instantly you can picture it clearly in your head.  Let’s test it out: Leonardo DaVinci’s “Mona Lisa”, Jan Vermeer’s “Girl with a Pearl Earring”, Gustav Klimt’s “The Kiss”, Grant Wood’s “American Gothic”, Edward Barcolo’s “Barcalounger”

Huh?

The Barcalounger: you know it well, but does it really belong grouped with such iconic works?  No, probably not, but it is nonetheless in the collection of the Buffalo and Erie County Historical Society where it was recently treated by SAC.  Are you asking why Buffalo would have such an interesting and quirky piece?  It is because the Barcalounger, of course, was originally manufactured in Buffalo where it was introduced in 1940.

The original Barcalounger is not much different from the Barcalounger of today – save for the changes in upholstery and styling.  The concept remains the same, chair goes into reclining position, you are helpless to its power, and quickly find yourself napping.

As most conservators who treat furniture will tell you, furniture conservation has intrinsic challenges.  Centuries of the various styles of furniture and upholstery that reflect changing tastes and decorating trends can fill volumes.  As a conservator you could treat a piece each year and perhaps never see the same style twice.  But nearly guaranteed, is that you will probably never be asked to treat a Barcalounger.  So when The Buffalo and Erie County Historic Society (BECHS) asked us to treat theirs, how could we possibly say “no” to a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity?

A barcalounger is cool.  It is a piece of Americana.  And conserving a chair that nearly folds out to a bed is a unique experience.  Here are the answers to your immediate questions: 1) No, we did not test-drive it.  2) Yes, it still “lounges”.

Close up of the chair seat before treatment

The BECHS chair was in desperate need of treatment.  The chair’s original upholstery was splitting and had several areas of loss, and the polyurethane foam was disintegrating.  However, the mechanics of the chair were still sound, as was the frame.

Following conservation, the chair would be part of the exhibit, "Bflo Made!" highlighting things that were “Buffalo born”.  More than 700 products, inventions, and artifacts in the Bflo. Made! exhibit highlight Greater Buffalo’s pride in its commercial and industrial heritage and present-day manufacturing and research.  What else came out of Buffalo you ask?  How about the pacemaker, the jet pack, the kazoo, Cheerios, the disco floor (yes, I mean THE disco floor, as in the one that Travolta graced with white disco suit and finger pointed strait in the air in the movie Saturday Night Fever).  The chair remains on permanent exhibit and if you happen to be in the great city of Buffalo, New York check out BECHS.

We will probably never have the chance to treat another Barcalounger, which makes this treatment so memorable.  In our day-to-day work, SAC tends to do conservation of items with similar themes: flags, maps, prints, and what seems like an endless amount of period clothing.  And while each of those items is always amazingly rich in history and so often the pieces are historically significant, it is so refreshing to do something completely different from anything else.

The Barcalounger post-treatment

Update: Edison's tinfoil, can the sounds on it be retrieved?

by Barbara Owens
When we first talked about SAC having the honor of doing the conservation work on Edison’s tinfoil back in April (see the blog entry from April 19th), we said that the foil was being prepared for digital scanning in an effort to retrieve the sound imbedded upon it more than 130 years ago.  As we at SAC researched Edison’s life, we discovered that when this particular tinfoil was made, Edison had only one phonograph, and it was he who traveled the country, demonstrating it in hopes he could find buyers for his fabulous new invention.  The bottom line is that Edison’s voice is probably on it.  

How exciting is that?

Edison's tinfoil before treatment.

As far as we know there are only two complete tinfoils in existence: the one that we treated, which is owned by "miSci" the The Museum for Innovation and Science (formerly the Schenectady Museum), and a second, which is owned by the Smithsonian.  Here’s the interesting tidbit, the one at the Smithsonian had been glued, facedown, to a board.  Getting sound from it is going to be a challenge.

The Schenectady tinfoil, that SAC treated, which had been folded several times and then crammed into an envelope, required extensive flattening before it could be scanned.  And so, after some nerve-racking and incredibly delicate treatment, it left SAC’s studio and has traveled to California where the sound is being carefully coaxed from its surfaces.  So the big question is: who is on it and what did they say?

Scanning the Edison foil. photo from Schenectady Museum

The short answer right now is that the tinfoil has been scanned and they definitely found sound on it.  Who is speaking?  Right now we know there is a conversation between a man and a woman.  Could it be it Edison?  Stay tuned for information as it unfolds, and visit the miSci (The Museum for Innovation and Science, Schenectady NY) for more information.  

The mystery of Angelica Van Buren's wedding dress

by Barbara Owens
Our 8th president (1837-1841), Martin Van Buren, had been a widower for nearly 20 years and hence had no first lady, yet someone needed to fill the position.  He called upon his daughter-in-law Angelica Singleton Van Buren (1818-1878).

Angelica has been described as a beguiling; everyone loved her, every woman wanted to be her.   She was the Jackie O of the 1800s.   She has also been described as a young, beautiful, gentle woman who was confident, poised and religious.  Raised in South Carolina as the daughter of wealthy southern plantation owners, she had a genteel southern spirit and had benefited from an excellent education, which was only afforded to few young women at the time.  

And remarkably she served as the the first lady of the United States at just 21 years old. 

Angelica Singleton VanBuren's portrait was painted by artist Henry Inman in 1842.  Today it  hangs above the fireplace mantle in the Red Room of the White House . 

When Van Buren takes the presidency in 1837 he is busy with the financial burden leftover from the previous administration that has left the United States in a depression.  Understandably, Van Buren has little time for social life or parties.   Van Buren had been a widower for nearly 20 years and for the first year and eight months of his presidency, there was no First Lady in the White House.  Van Buren is the father of four sons, and while he could have asked one of his female relatives, or a spouse of one of his Cabinet members, he chose to not invite anyone to preside as hostess at the White House.  

Enter Dolley Madison, former first lady and D.C. socialite, with her young cousin Angelica in-tow for a dinner with the Van Buren men.  The president's eldest son, Abraham, is smitten with the young lady who is described as "a lovely, charming belle with "Roman goddess" features, dark, expressive eyes, fashionable corkscrew curls, and a long neck."  Angelica and Abraham are married in November 1838.  The President reportedly approved of the marriage and the ties it brought between the White House and the powerful Southern aristocracy.  Van Buren found himself in the crosshairs of the North and South; the Northern Democrats had abolitionist sentiments and the Southern Democrats wanted to ensure that slavery continued to support their agrarian economy.  

The new Mrs. Van Buren made her debut as official White House hostess on New Year's Day, 1839. It is said that Cousin Dolley coached and trained Angelica extensively for her role.  The annual White House New Year's reception, which is the only social function that had taken place thus far during Van Buren's presidency, was a massive success.    

At the end of the 1839 social season, Abraham and Angelica honeymoon by taking an extensive grand tour of Europe.  While abroad, Angelica achieves celebrity status.  She was presented to the royal courts of England and France meeting the then freshly coronated Queen Victoria as well as  France's King Louis Philippe.  

Upon returning to America, Abraham and Angelica Van Buren moved into the White House.  Angelica employed many European-style etiquette techniques she had witnessed in her extensive traveling.  While many in Washington high society admired her regal style, Angelica was criticized by the president's foes as being extravagant and monarchical at a time when the majority of the U.S. was languishing in economic despair.  

Angelica is unflappable and continues as the White House hostess, but perhaps in a more understated way.  It is well quoted that the French minister, Adolphe Fourier de Bacourt, who was often critical of Americans, claimed that "in any country" she would "pass for an amiable woman of graceful and distinguished manners and appearance." Many historians agree that President Van Buren enjoyed Angelica’s company and truly appreciated her assistance with the social duties of the presidency.

During her years as "Lady of the President's House" she brought back not only style, but true etiquette to the White House.  The President and she gave mostly small dinner parties dispensing with all large functions other than the New Year's Day reception.  When it became necessary to redecorate and replace some of the furniture that remained from the previous administration, she was careful to not be extravagant as she had learned a hard lesson of how appearances can be perceived during a time when hard economic depression gripped the land. 

Angelica in a later portrait, although the exact date of this portrait is unknown.  Notice the dress.  The neckline is similar, she clearly liked this style of dress.

Angelica’s time at the White House was also marked by personal tragedy. In 1839, she became pregnant, and give birth in March of the following year to a daughter, Rebecca.  Details are varied, some reports claim that Rebecca dies within hours, other claim that both mother and daughter were ill for several months following the birth, and that Rebecca died at the White House in the fall of 1840. Angelica and Abraham had three sons after they left the White House. During those years, they maintained close relations with former President Van Buren. Angelica Singleton Van Buren died in 1878.

Angelica Van Buren's wedding gown.  Is it the same gown as in the White House portrait?

SAC had the opportunity to rehouse the wedding dress worn by Angelica Van Buren which belongs to the United States National Park Service, Martin Van Buren Historic Site, Columbia County, New York.  The dress has creased and yellowed, is in poor condition, and is awaiting treatment.  It was at this point when the dress was identified to us as possibly being the same dress, only altered, that Angelica wears in the White House portrait.  Here at SAC we love a good historical mystery (and gosh there are plenty of them!).  The facts are that the actual fabric of the dress appears to be identical, only the color has changed over time.  The neckline and the cut of the bodice as it dips to a point in the front appears similar.  But, if the dress that SAC conserved is the wedding dress, and the White House portrait is the same dress, then shouldn't it now look like it does in the portrait?  Not necessarily so.  Keep in mind that the portrait is a painting, the artist is free to take plenty of artistic license, including making a dress appear more extravagant.  Also, Angelica learned a tough lesson about the nation's opinion of how money is spent during a depression.  Would she have a dress made, or want to appear more frugal by wearing her wedding gown?  In addition, no portraits were made at her wedding, perhaps she could think of nothing else she would want to wear when her image was captured for prosperity.  Lastly, Angelica may not have been the last person to wear this dress, perhaps a granddaughter used it later and that is why the fabric is the same, but alterations have been made.

What do you think?  Is it the same dress?


_____________________________
Gwen Spicer is a textile conservator in private practice.  Spicer Art Conservation specializes in textile conservation, object conservation, and the conservation of works on paper.  Gwen's innovative treatment and mounting of flags and textiles is unrivaled.   To contact her, please visit her website.

Girlhood embroidery - the world of the sampler

by Barbara Owens

Pictorial Sampler c. 1876

When you talk about samplers, an image is conjured of a rectangular piece of old linen with a hand-stitched alphabet, or perhaps a biblical verse, and a “signature” of a girl, perhaps between the ages of 8 and 12 at the bottom, often accompanied by the location of where she lived or went to school. But the world of samplers goes far beyond to include intricate, highly skilled pieces such as mourning pieces, coats of arms, genealogies, pictorial works, and landscapes. Some feature painted silk, metallic threads and velvet appliqué.

The underlying history to each sampler is that it is also a documentation of the education of girls at a time when girls were seldom educated, and when they were, it was a focus on domestic arts that often dominated their studies. For it was said in an early Italian proverb; “A girl should be taught to sew and not to read, unless one wishes to make a nun of her”.

The study of samplers is an immense field with numerous texts written on everything from the way a sampler was produced, to similar sampler themes and elements which make it indicative of a certain region, to the methods of stitching, and the list goes on and on. 

A mourning piece c. 1864.  Notice the willow tree?  It appears frequently in this kind of sampler.

SAC has had the pleasure of working on countless samplers from nearly every decade from the late 1700’s through the mid to late nineteenth century when the dominance of needlework in education came to a close. Not to say that samplers first appeared in the late 1700’s, in fact they begin to appear as a “graduating accomplishment” in the century before and early samplers can be traced back to Renaissance times. The late eighteenth to mid nineteenth century was signified by a time when girls were sent to be “educated” in a way that made them suitable for a domestic future. Needlework was clearly important, reading might be taught, however writing was not always deemed necessary. Girls may also have received instruction in history or arithmetic, but equally important would be painting, drawing, and perhaps dancing and piano. This all depended of course on how much a family could afford, or if they could afford to send a daughter to school at all. 

A beautiful pictorial work.  Notice the original frame and the painted glass.

Another pictorial piece prior to conservation.

Many times SAC receives samplers that are “incomplete”, meaning all that exists from the original is the linen and the thread in which it was worked. Gone are other key elements that include the stretcher, the glass (which is often edged in black paint and guilding), and the original framing, which if you are lucky, has the stamp of the framer who put the entire thing together. Samplers were the culmination of a young girl’s study. The family would provide the linen (or in some cases, the silk), the thread (mostly silk, and sometimes wool, but almost never cotton as it was incredibly expensive) and then the family would have the work framed and it would hang in the home as a testament to the abilities of their daughter and her completion of an education of propriety and piety.

Here the framer has documented his work "picture put back in the original frame Oct. 1st 1908".

While each sampler is different, the conservation of samplers often presents the same problems. So often a sampler has gotten wet in some way; either it was stored improperly, damaged in a flood, or the humidity levels were too high. This results in the dye of the thread beginning to “bleed” into the other colors or on to the linen. Moisture in/on samplers can also lead to tide marks in the linen.

Damage to samplers can also be “self-inflicted” in that the thread used to create the sampler contained tannins, which due to their own acidic nature, became brittle and then disintegrate. 

Front side exposed to constant light. 

A sampler that has been displayed for years can also have light damage. The threads become faded and the linen darkens. Dust and dirt collect on the stitches and linen, furthering a dark, faded appearance. Turning a sampler over will reveal a glimpse of what it originally looked like. The reverse, particularly on samplers which are in their original frame, shows the original color of the linen and the vibrant colors of the thread.

Reverse side that had been protected from light - notice the difference in color.

Regional samplers come from a particular geographic location and can often be identified simply by what is in the picture. It has been speculated that this is simply because the schoolmistress gave out the same pattern to her students year after year. Particular style elements or unique stitches have been attributed to an individual teacher and can be traced to her as she moved from one school to another, therefore influencing the samplers of the towns in which she taught.

Dudley Castle, which is now the Dudley Observatory in Schenectady, New York 

A mourning piece done in hair?

The Capital Region of New York has a unique feature to some of its samplers. Unlike samplers from other regions, these were worked in a small, fine, stitch that appears to be a brown or black thread. Here’s the rumor – it is said that the thread is actually the hair of the girl who created the sampler. Now that’s really putting yourself into your work! If it is hair, shouldn’t there be “blond” or “red” works?

A close-up of a "traditional" Capital Region piece 

_____________________________

Gwen Spicer is a textile conservator in private practice.  Spicer Art Conservation specializes in textile conservation, object conservation, and the conservation of works on paper.  Gwen's innovative treatment and mounting of flags and textiles is unrivaled.   To contact her, please visit her website.

What do you think, is it possible, is it probable?