William Morris Registered 1883 Textile Yardage, Provenance

This is the “Tudor Rose” pattern by William Morris. 

One of the most respected books about William Morris is by Linda Parry. "William Morris" was published to coincide with the exhibition "William Morris 1834-1896" at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London. 

Parry describes this particular pattern as registered on "8 December 1883, this is only one of the three printed textile patterns in which Morris depicted birds. (see also "Strawberry Thief, cat. no 60, and "Bird of Anemone"). As he claimed in a letter to Thomas Wardle of 25 March 1877 that he was studying birds to put in his next design it is probable that he alone was responsible for these (designs)." 

Parry adds, "Morris insisted on printing this complex design by the indigo-discharge process, despite this involving the bleaching and clearing of most of the white ground."  

The colors are vivid. The fabric is strong. There are no stains, holes or problems of any kind. This exquisite yardage has been carefully stored away for decades and has never been on the open market prior to now. 

This textile comes from the estate of Peter Hansen, designer to Gustav Stickley. 

Indeed, authentic, this large textile sample is in a Morris pattern called “Tudor Rose” and was registered by Morris in 1883, only three years before his death. Please refer to the photographs, including the reference for the design sketch of this pattern, as found in the Victoria and Albert Museum, London. 

This textile comes to us from the direct descendant of the Peter Hansen estate. Peter Hansen was the furniture designer for Gustav Stickley. His wife, Ruth, was an artist and also worked as a draftsman for Stickley. 

The provenance is that the samples were first gathered by Peter and his wife when they decorated their home in upstate New York. This was during the time when they worked for Stickley, sometime around 1905. 

The remainder of the Morris collection may be seen online at the Cranbrook Art Museum, located in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan. That particular donation consisted of the many rare William Morris wallpaper samples and all came from this very same estate. The items listed here on The Gilded Griffin are the textiles that were not donated to the Museum, but items that remained in Mrs. Hansen’s possession until her passing. The provenance and records come from the files of the two local ASA appraisers who handled Mrs. Hansen's estate. 

The Morris wallpaper samples are discussed in the Cranbrook Art Museum blog, dated October 3, 2014. The author of the entry is Shelley Selim, 2013-2015 Jeanne and Ralph Graham Collections Fellow. She writes: 

“Cranbrook Art Museum holds seventy-two wallpaper samples in its collection, which were donated by Mrs. Olive Hansen in 1991. Peter Heinrich Hansen, Mrs. Hansen’s father-in-law, was a German immigrant who in 1904 was hired as a designer-draftsman by none other than Gustav Stickley, one of the American Craftsman style’s greatest furniture makers (and like Morris, an ardent socialist). When Hansen and his wife, Ruth, who herself worked for Stickley as an architectural draftsman, were redecorating their home in upstate New York, they ordered wallpaper samples of every pattern made by Morris & Company–the design firm founded by William Morris–and never threw them away. 

You can read more about the design, implementation, and social context of William Morris’s wallpapers on the Victoria and Albert Museum website. And for more on Morris’s influence on George Booth and the foundation of Cranbrook, you can check out this great gallery guide written by a former Art Museum fellow, which I’ve scanned and uploaded here.” 

This particular “Rose” textile has the handwritten note attached, written in the hand of Mrs. Olive Hansen. Please refer to the photograph attached. 

Another, similar piece of this yardage is in the NYC MOMA collection…while yet another is at the Victoria and Albert Museum, London. On occasion, early William Morris yardage and samples such as these come to auction at such fine auction houses such as Christie's or Bonhams. 

These are obviously historic and important textiles and they are destined for discerning private or museum collections. 

The actual printing date is unknown, but providence points to pre-1905. The selvage has the Reg Morris & Company logo written on it. 

There are four William Morris textiles from the Hansen estate being offered by The Gilded Griffin. This particular textile appears to be the oldest of the four and the printing date may even be 19th century, whereas the other samples appear to be pre-1918. 

The textile measures 54 inches or 137.16 cm in length. It is 38.5 inches or 97.79 cm wide. There is simply nothing like the colors and brilliance in this fine William Morris textile. 

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William Morris ‘Tulip’ Textile Yardage, Provenance

This is the William Morris “Tulip” pattern. It was first registered on the 15th of April, 1875.

This printing is dated to pre-1925 due to the company name printed in the selvage region, and sometime after 1905 due to provenance, color and printing style.

The fabric is referenced in "William Morris"  by Linda Parry; published for the William Morris exhibit at the Victoria and Albert Museum, London during 1996.

She writes about an earlier printing of this design, which is in the William Morris Gallery, Walthamstow:

"Morris drew five textile designs in 1895, this is one of three...registered on the same day. All three are densely flourished with a repeating zigzag of wavy leaves, and show Morris's preoccupation with wallpaper design at this time. Despite the simplicity of the pattern, many colour trials were undertaken and a letter as early as 3 September 1875 refer to the 'dark outline of the tulip...."

Truly, this is a rare opportunity for discerning curators and collectors.

This exquisite William Morris textile is in magnificent condition overall. Considering age, this historic piece of fabric is in excellent condition.

The colors are vivid. The fabric is strong. There are no holes or problems of any kind aside from two small areas of dark staining which may have happened during manufacture.  (Please refer to the photographs). One is approximately the size of an American dime and the other the size of a large pin head. They are aligned and these are located at both ends of the yardage, a few inches from the bottom.

We have not attempted to clean this piece of fabric. The stains may be removed by a talented conservator, but we cannot guarantee the results.

This exquisite yardage has been carefully stored away for decades and has never been on the open market prior to now.

This textile comes from the estate of Peter Hansen, designer to Gustav Stickley,

Indeed, authentic, this large textile sample is in a Morris pattern called “Tulip” and was originally registered by Morris in 1875, about a decade before his death. Please refer to the photographs.

This textile comes to us from the direct descendant of the Peter Hansen estate.  Peter Hansen was the furniture designer for Gustav Stickley. His wife, Ruth, was an artist and also worked as a draftsman for Stickley.

The provenance is that the samples were first gathered by Peter and his wife when they decorated their home in upstate New York. This was during the time when they worked for Stickley, sometime around 1905.

The remainder of the Morris collection may be seen online at the Cranbrook Art Museum, located in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan.  That particular donation consisted of the many rare William Morris
wallpaper samples and all came from this very same estate. The items listed here on The Gilded Griffin are the textiles that were not donated to the Museum, but items that remained in Mrs. Hansen’s possession until her passing.

The Morris wallpaper samples are discussed in the Cranbrook Art Museum blog, dated October 3, 2014. The author of the entry is Shelley Selim, 2013-2015 Jeanne and Ralph Graham Collections Fellow. She writes:

“Cranbrook Art Museum holds seventy-two wallpaper samples in its collection, which were donated by Mrs. Olive Hansen in 1991. Peter Heinrich Hansen,  Mrs. Hansen’s father-in-law, was a German immigrant who in 1904 was hired as a designer-draftsman by none other than Gustav Stickley, one of the American Craftsman style’s greatest furniture makers (and like Morris, an ardent socialist). When Hansen and his wife, Ruth, who herself worked for Stickley as an architectural draftsman, were redecorating their home in upstate New York, they ordered wallpaper samples of every pattern made by Morris & Company–the design firm founded by William Morris–and never threw them away.

You can read more about the design, implementation, and social context of William Morris’s wallpapers on the Victoria and Albert Museum website. And for more on Morris’s influence on George Booth and the foundation of Cranbrook, you can check out this great gallery guide written by a former Art Museum fellow, which I’ve scanned and uploaded here.”

On occasion, early William Morris yardage and samples such as these come to auction at such fine auction houses such as Christie's or Bonhams and are found displayed as art in the world’s greatest museums.

These are obviously historic and important textiles and they are destined for discerning private or museum collections.

The selvage has the Morris & Company logo written on it.

The provenance and records come from the files of the two local ASA appraisers who handled Mrs. Hansen's estate.

The textile measures 45.5 inches or 115.57 cm in length. It is 38 inches or 96.52 cm wide. It is hand-hemmed along two sides.

 There is simply nothing like the colors and brilliance in this fine William Morris textile.

Rare Original Label On William Morris Wool & Mohair Woven Textile Sample, Provenance

This is a rare and wonderful small sample of a wool and mohair woven William Morris woven pattern called “Violet and Columbine.” It was first registered in 1883. 

This woven textile sample dates to circa 1917 due to both label and provenance. The label is both printed and hand-lettered. It states that this is the 1/300 referring to the first run sample out of 300 in ink, handwriting. The width of the woven fabric measures 72 inches wide and the price of the Violet and Columbine handwoven cloth was 55/-yard. This label is a magnificent piece of William Morris history.
 Truly, this is a rare opportunity for discerning curators and collectors. 

This exquisite William Morris woven textile is in magnificent condition overall. Considering age, this historic piece of fabric is in excellent condition. 

The colors are vivid. The fabric is strong. The fabric sample has one area where there is a clipped area of damage in the lower half. The area is not completely through and there is no hole. This is quite small and does not appear to be from insect damage because of the clean edges. If you look closely this is only in one place, on one of the blue petals of the flower. We have not attempted to clean this piece of fabric. There are no stains nor other damage. This is a sample from the William Morris company from the turn of the last century. It would have been used so that customers could choose their colors and style of fabrics and wallpaper. 

This exquisite fabric sample that is nearly a century old, was carefully stored away for decades and has never been on the open market prior to now. 

This textile sample comes from the estate of Peter Hansen, designer to Gustav Stickley. Indeed, this is authentic. 

This textile comes to us from the direct descendant of the Peter Hansen estate. Peter Hansen was the furniture designer for Gustav Stickley. His wife, Ruth, was an artist and also worked as a draftsman for Stickley. 

The provenance is that the samples were first gathered by Peter and his wife when they decorated their home in upstate New York. This was during the time when they worked for Stickley, sometime around 1905. 

The remainder of the Morris collection may be seen online at the Cranbrook Art Museum, located in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan. That particular donation consisted of the many rare William Morris wallpaper samples and all came from this very same estate. The items listed here on The Gilded Griffin are the textiles that were not donated to the Museum, but items that remained in Mrs. Hansen’s possession until her passing. 

The Morris wallpaper samples are discussed in the Cranbrook Art Museum blog, dated October 3, 2014. The author of the entry is Shelley Selim, 2013-2015 Jeanne and Ralph Graham Collections Fellow. She writes: 

“Cranbrook Art Museum holds seventy-two wallpaper samples in its collection, which were donated by Mrs. Olive Hansen in 1991. Peter Heinrich Hansen, Mrs. Hansen’s father-in-law, was a German immigrant who in 1904 was hired as a designer-draftsman by none other than Gustav Stickley, one of the American Craftsman style’s greatest furniture makers (and like Morris, an ardent socialist). When Hansen and his wife, Ruth, who herself worked for Stickley as an architectural draftsman, were redecorating their home in upstate New York, they ordered wallpaper samples of every pattern made by Morris & Company–the design firm founded by William Morris–and never threw them away. 

You can read more about the design, implementation, and social context of William Morris’s wallpapers on the Victoria and Albert Museum website. And for more on Morris’s influence on George Booth and the foundation of Cranbrook, you can check out this great gallery guide written by a former Art Museum fellow, which I’ve scanned and uploaded here.” 

On occasion, early William Morris yardage and samples such as these come to auction at such fine auction houses such as Christie’s or Bonhams and are found displayed in the world’s greatest museums. This particular pattern is found at the New York Metropolitan Museum of Art. 

These are obviously historic and important textiles and they are destined for discerning private or museum collections. 

There are four William Morris textiles from the Hansen estate.

 The provenance and records come from the files of the two local ASA appraisers who handled Mrs. Hansen's estate.

We have dated this particular sample in particular based on its original label. This is a woven wool and mohair sample with its original Morris label attached; stapled onto the fabric. To note, the original staple that secures the label is period (staplers were commonly sold by the turn of the last century). 

The address on the label reads 17 George Street, Hanover Square. According to “Morris and Company in the Twentieth Century” by Linda Parry in a lecture at the Victoria and Albert Museum, February 1985: 

“In 1917 the shop was moved to more fashionable premises at 17 George Street, Hanover Square and the range of services offered was increased. As well as a full cleaning service for carpets, tapestries and textiles, antique textiles and furniture were sold. The catalogue boasted 'Morris & Co. have good facilities for purchasing genuine old furniture of Tudor, Jacobean, Queen Anne and Georgian times and have generally got a selection of picked pieces, at very moderate prices, to choose from'. Many items anonymously passed through the salerooms today may well have been restored and re-upholstered in the Morris workshops. Despite the catalogue's words 'at very moderate prices' such stock increased the firm's exclusiveness. May Lea, one of the company's curtain makers, remembers not daring to enter the George Street shop, seeing it as a place only for illustrious and wealthy clients.” 

During 1925, the Morris Company name was changed to Morris & Co. Art Workers Limited. 

This century old textile sample measures 13.25 inches or 33.65 cm in length. It is 5.25 inches or 13.33 cm wide. There is simply nothing like the colors and brilliance in this fine William Morris textile. 

Rare William Morris and John Henry Dearle Textile Sample, Authentic & Rare with Provenance

This is a rare and wonderful small sample of a John Henry Dearle pattern called “Daffodil” for William Morris. It was first registered in 1891. 

This printing dates to circa 1905 due to provenance.
 

This exquisite William Morris textile is in magnificent condition, overall. 

The colors are vivid. The fabric is strong. There are no holes or problems of any kind. It is hemmed by both hand as well as machine on two sides and a one side is pieced together. 

It was a sample textile offered to potential clients from the William Morris company from the turn of the last century. It was used by customers so that they could choose their colors and style of fabrics and wallpaper from the comfort of their home.

This exquisite fabric sample that is over a century old, was carefully stored away for decades and has never been on the open market prior to now. 

This textile sample comes from the estate of Peter Hansen, designer to Gustav Stickley. Indeed, this is authentic and not a reproduction.

This textile comes to us from the direct descendant of the Peter Hansen estate. Peter Hansen was the furniture designer for Gustav Stickley. His wife, Ruth, was an artist and also worked as a draftsman for Stickley. 

The provenance is that the samples were first gathered by Peter and his wife when they decorated their home in upstate New York. This was during the time when they worked for Stickley, sometime around 1905. 

The remainder of the Morris collection may be seen online at the Cranbrook Art Museum, located in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan. That particular donation consisted of the many rare William Morris wallpaper samples and all came from this very same estate. The items listed here on The Gilded Griffin are the textiles that were not donated to the Museum, but items that remained in Mrs. Hansen’s possession until her passing. 

The Morris wallpaper samples are discussed in the Cranbrook Art Museum blog, dated October 3, 2014. The author of the entry is Shelley Selim, 2013-2015 Jeanne and Ralph Graham Collections Fellow. She writes: 

“Cranbrook Art Museum holds seventy-two wallpaper samples in its collection, which were donated by Mrs. Olive Hansen in 1991. Peter Heinrich Hansen, Mrs. Hansen’s father-in-law, was a German immigrant who in 1904 was hired as a designer-draftsman by none other than Gustav Stickley, one of the American Craftsman style’s greatest furniture makers (and like Morris, an ardent socialist). When Hansen and his wife, Ruth, who herself worked for Stickley as an architectural draftsman, were redecorating their home in upstate New York, they ordered wallpaper samples of every pattern made by Morris & Company–the design firm founded by William Morris–and never threw them away. 

You can read more about the design, implementation, and social context of William Morris’s wallpapers on the Victoria and Albert Museum website. And for more on Morris’s influence on George Booth and the foundation of Cranbrook, you can check out this great gallery guide written by a former Art Museum fellow, which I’ve scanned and uploaded here.” 

On occasion, early William Morris yardage and samples such as these come to auction at such fine auction houses such as Christie’s or Bonhams and are found displayed in the world’s greatest museums. 

These are obviously historic and important textiles and they are destined for discerning private or museum collections. 

There are four William Morris textiles from the Hansen estate being offered here at The Gilded Griffin. The provenance and records come from the files of the two local ASA appraisers who handled Mrs. Hansen's estate.

This century old textile sample measures 11.75 inches or 29.84 cm in length as well as width.  There is simply nothing like the colors and brilliance in this fine William Morris textile. 

160 Year Old Sterling Silver Fruit Knife Inscribed “Ella January 1, 1856”

Nearly 160 years ago, this was a loving gift to a beloved woman. Her name was Ella and it was given to her on New Year’s Day, only a week after Christmas in 1856 when Christmas and New Year’s Day gifting traditions started to peak for the very first time. 

Just to hold the knife as she did so long ago is as if to touch her hand in time.... 

The knife is made entirely of sterling silver. It was well used to delicately peel fruit, especially oranges if one could afford such luxurious food. The blade was not sharp and designed to slip under peels. Ella would have used this knife in a most genteel manner. 

This repoussé fruit knife in a comes from a Maine oceanside estate. It is in excellent overall. 

The knife bears the American silversmith hallmark of Tifft & Whiting of Attleboro, Massachusetts, which was bought out by William Whiting in 1853. The knife was likely purchased from Whiting’s jewelry shop as recorded in the 1855 census, especially since the knife is inscribed as it is. 

The handcolored engraved illustration seen in this listing is from the January 1856 edition of “Godey’s Lady’s Book.” It is a reminder of what Ella and other women may well have looked like…in a time that was nearly 160 years ago. 

The knife was well-used. It has a slight dent in the blade, but remains strong. It measures 2-7/8 inches or 7.30 cm long when folded. Extended, it is 5 inches or 12.7 cm in length.