Author: Virginia Pollock This curious textile was manufactured in the 1870s by American Print Works which was located in Fall River, Massachusetts. Featuring a motif of a figure taking flight on the back of an eagle, the intended destination of the traveler is revealed with the repeated phrase “TO PHILADELPHIA.” In 1876, many individuals were...
Author: Leigh Wishner In celebration of the third annual New York Textile Month, members of the Textile Society of America will author Object of the Day for the month of September. A non-profit professional organization of scholars, educators, and artists in the field of textiles, TSA provides an international forum for the exchange and dissemination...
This silk bookmark was made by the workshop of Thomas Stevens to commemorate the 1866 Yorkshire Fine Arts and Industrial Exposition. From the top down, the bookmark shows the coat of arms of the city of York, an image of the pavilion built for the exposition, a portrait of the Mayor of York, James Meek,...
This jewelry parure, or suite, is indicative of a custom that was unique to its time and class. The Grand Tour was a traditional trip taken by upper class young men and women, with the goal of exposing them to the artistic riches of France and Italy, thereby completing their education. These long sojourns became...
This souvenir handkerchief of Horticultural Hall at the 1876 Centennial Exposition in Philadelphia is unusual for its diagonal placement of the building in the center of the square. In the collection at the New York Historical Society there is a printed textile with six uncut handkerchiefs – there are views of the Art Gallery, Horticultural...
With the July 4th weekend upon us, the first thing that comes to mind is travel, and fireworks! Heading out to the beach, taking a road trip, finding a nice quiet place to relax. I felt the Souvenir wallpaper was a perfect way to explore this idea. Consisting of a series of snapshots, almost post...
The 1853 Exhibition of the Industry of All Nations was New York’s answer to the groundbreaking, wildly successful 1851 Great Exhibition in London. It originally took place in what is now Bryant Park, in an enormous Crystal Palace built to rival the iconic Crystal Palace of the previous exhibition. The fair was the brainchild of...
In the eighteenth century, many Italian artists produced views of popular tourist destinations to sell as souvenirs to travelers on the Grand Tour. This drawing by an unknown artist shows the Grotta Grande in the Boboli Gardens of Florence. Visible within the grotto’s chambers are Paris and Helena, sculpted in 1560 by Vincenzo di Rafaello...
Printed fabric novelties were popular promotional devices in the early twentieth century, a signal of the growing influence of marketing in American material culture. This souvenir square, dating from 1912 and featuring baseball greats Christy Mathewson and “Home Run” Baker, among others, was a premium offered by Helmar and Turkey Red Tobacco companies in exchange...
