The influence of the Guilds—Architectural metal-work—The door knocker—Interior metal-work.
In all branches of art there seems to be a break between the earlier mediÆval and the later art which was the outcome to some extent of the great Renaissance or revival which swept over the Continent of Europe and brought with it such a change in everything appertaining to the beautiful. Whilst mediÆval metal-workers produced grand examples full of design and ornament, influenced by the touch with Eastern nations which the Crusaders gave them, the later smiths and founders gradually evolved styles of their own, more English to our ideas. The Renaissance with its wealth of ornament did not so much apply to copper and brass as it did to the metal-work of the smith who forged that which was beautiful and ornate in iron on his anvil. Yet some of those florid designs were reproduced by the brassfounder.
After the Restoration the art treasures which had been destroyed during the Commonwealth were replaced, as evidenced by the Regalia in the Tower, where there is so much silver-gilt and gold plate which represents the more decorative art of that period. In that famous collection of national Regalia, symbols of office, and vessels used on rare occasions, there is the alms-dish used for the distribution of the King's doles on Maundy Thursday. It bears the Royal cipher of William and Mary, and contrasts with the other plate in that it is remarkably plain, typical in its decoration with the earlier metal-work of the days of Queen Anne and those years which immediately followed her reign. When we walk through some of the once select, although now not much used, thoroughfares in London and admire the stately old houses which may be seen still in some of the Metropolitan squares, especially in the open thoroughfare known as Queen Anne's Gate, we are inclined to wonder whether after all "Queen Anne is dead." That hackneyed expression used in a humorous sense at times is certainly not true in so far as the remarkable developments in building operations and the characteristic decorations of Queen Anne's day live still not only in the old houses which are still undisturbed, but in the designs and characteristic patterns which were then adopted by metal-workers and others, their beauty and grace being recognized to such an extent that they are to-day among the much copied antiques.
The Influence of the Guilds.
It may be convenient here to refer to the influence of the old City guilds, which for so long a time acted beneficially, keeping the craftsmen of their day up to the mark, maintaining the purity of metal and other materials used, and encouraging and fostering the attainment of the highest skill in artistic workmanship.
The City Companies have long ceased to exercise active control over individual craftsmen; some would say that trade unions have taken their place, and others would point to the altered conditions of manufacture and of trade which exist now. None can deny, however, that the influence of those early pioneers is still felt, and the basis which they laid down as the art of the later period of English craftsmanship, amongst which we find the greater number of our collectable curios, remains to-day the foundation on which modern developments are built up. The Braziers' Company was once an important guild in connection with metal. Many years ago the Braziers joined the Armourers, claiming, however, a monopoly of all copper and brasswork. By an Authority received from James II the members of the Braziers' Company were granted the right to search and prove all copper and brasswork wrought with a hammer within the City of London. It is said that their Charter is still in force, although their rights and privileges are now sinecures. Few members of the old City companies have now any direct connection with the crafts with which their names are associated. They exist, however, and use some of the funds at their disposal for the encouragement and development of the modern crafts which have evolved from the older foundations with which they were associated. Now and then important exhibitions are held at which examples of the old and the new are shown, not always redounding to the credit of the antique. Some few years ago a very interesting competitive exhibition was held at Ironmongers' Hall at the instigation of the Worshipful Company of Founders, by whom prizes were given for artistic metal-work made by living craftsmen who had studied antique metal-work and had caught somewhat of the spirit of the old artists in copper and brass. The competition was keen and many of the exhibits very beautiful. The winner of the first prize had modelled a goat from life. The second prize went to the modeller of a calf which was cast in bronze; the third prize being awarded for a splendidly modelled lioness. In another division prizes were given for bells; the first prize was awarded to the founder of a church bell cast in loam, and the second prize to the designer and founder of a bell on which were exceedingly well-modelled representations of the Resurrection. In all these examples the influence of the antique was very conspicuous.
FIG. 13.—COPPER VANE ON BILLINGSGATE FISH MARKET.
FIG. 14.—THE CITY DRAGON AS A WEATHER-VANE.
FIG. 15.—COPPER COCK VANE, ONE OF FOUR ON SMITHFIELD MARKET.
The impetus which has been given to modern copper smithing by the Arts and Crafts Society through its exhibitions has given quite a different conception of the art from that which was formerly held. Instead of being a common craft, working in copper and brass has become one of the fine arts, a hobby much practised, and the results appreciated. The late William Morris, at one time President of the Society, and Walter Crane, artists of no mean order, exerted a great influence on the work of exhibitors. They have raised the tone of the work done by amateurs and have been the means of guiding modern workers in these metals in their efforts to reproduce the antique. Curios and antiques have served a double purpose associated with crafts such as those under review, as they give the present-day artist the foundations upon which to work. They give them evidence of styles and designs which have prevailed in the past and models upon which to build the art of the future. Briefly, among the best works of to-day fashioned on the arts and crafts of the coppersmiths of old are the beautiful metal dogs and fire-hearth appointments. There are the copper grilles, exquisite in design and useful for many purposes; copper lanterns and brass lamps of great variety; copper candlesticks, as well as the beaten metal candelabra and electroliers, also overmantel panels and beaten copper roundels, all worthy objects for the craftsmen of the present day to follow. Perhaps the most elaborate productions based on the antique are the ecclesiastical brasses of which there is ample choice in the old brasswork in so many cathedrals and parish churches.
Architectural Metal-Work.
Many years ago architects not only designed the main fabric and supervised the building of houses, such as those incidentally referred to being erected in the days of Queen Anne, but they were deeply interested in the metal-work which acted as exterior ornamentation, and to a large extent contributed to the beauty of their architectural designs. After the Great Fire of London swept away so much of the ancient residential portion of the old city, and took with it the Gothic and early mediÆval churches, there was a great revival in building operations. Sir Christopher Wren and his fellow-workers put up more than sixty new churches within the City, and although to some extent the contour of the old streets was observed, the newer buildings must have presented an astonishing transformation scene, for from the few old relics left of London before the Fire we can form some slight idea of what the City must have looked like then.
The collector of copper and brass takes an interest in metal-work other than that which he can collect, and admires works of art with which the architects of olden times enriched their chief buildings. It is true a considerable portion of the exterior metal-work attached to the freehold, and of the gates and palasades surrounding the more important erections, are of iron. There are enough examples of copper-work, however, to show us the skill of the old craftsmen who worked on years after the Charter granted by James II to the Braziers' Company had become a dead letter. One of the most conspicuous and at the same time decorative examples of copper-work on the loftier buildings is found in the weather-vanes, which were sometimes gilt, at others painted. In the earlier days the emblems selected had some bearing on the ownership of the building or the purposes for which it was to be used. There were well-known rules, too, governing the type of weather-vane. These are recognizable in the older examples. They have been neglected, however, in later years, and the nondescript designs chosen by builders and modelled according to the whim of the designer at the present day show little regard for the principles laid down by those early builders and metal-workers. The etiquette of the weather-vane was simple enough to observe. On towers, castles, and secular buildings a banner was the correct device, whereas on ecclesiastical edifices it was the barn-door fowl. It is said by an old authority that the cock was the emblem of clerical vigilance, not unassociated with the Biblical story of St. Peter; others more sceptical as to the origin tell us that the large tail of the barn-door fowl was well suited to turn truly to the wind. From these simple principles evolved established rules which ordered that the coat-of-arms or crest of the owner of a building should be incorporated in the design of the weather-vane, and on ecclesiastical buildings the symbol of the patron saint was to take the place of the weather-cock. As typical examples to be seen in London streets the weather-vanes on the four turrets of the White Tower of the Tower fly the Royal Arms in the form of miniature Royal Standards. In Tudor days the emblem was usually represented sitting on a slender pedestal, carrying an upright rod on which the flag or decorated plate of metal which acted as the weather-vane was attached. In the accompanying illustrations three types of symbolical weather-vanes are shown. Fig. 13 represents one of the copper vanes on Billingsgate Fish Market, symbolical of the occupation of those who frequent that famous mart. In Fig. 14 is seen the fabled dragon of the City of London, and in Fig. 15 the copper cock vane, one of the four fixed over Smithfield Market.
There are many ecclesiastical emblems visible during a morning stroll through the streets of London. Among those readily seen are the key vane on St. Peter's, Cornhill, and the emblematic gridiron on St. Lawrence's Church. On St. Michael's Church, Queenhithe, there is a copper ship, the hull of which holds just one bushel of grain. This vane is interesting in that the emblem has reference to Queenhithe, once a famous wharf, rather than to the patron saint. The Hithe is interesting in its old associations, in that the tolls of that wharf were given to Queen Eleanor by Henry II as pin money, subsequent queens of England collecting the revenue for their personal use. The grasshopper on the Royal Exchange is the same vane that surmounted the more ancient building which preceded the one now standing. The grasshopper was the crest of Sir Thomas Gresham, by whom the first Exchange was built in the reign of Queen Elizabeth. This vane, also of copper, is fully 11 ft. in length, and in miniature was reproduced as the sign of the banking house in Lombard Street kept by Sir Thomas Gresham.
The Door Knocker.
The common door knocker, essentially a piece of metal associated to-day with utilitarian purposes, is not without romantic associations. It has been a much collected object; easily detached, too, for it is said that many of the old knockers, or rappers as they were formerly called, which a few years ago could be bought quite cheaply from the marine store dealers, had been surreptitiously purloined by thieves, who for the sake of a few coppers had taken some risk even on a dark night. Some old houses are still rich in antiquarian door knockers, before the days of front door bells and electric pushes more a necessity than they are now. Their use was by no means confined to private houses, on which they figured in a variety of forms, but among the earlier examples are ponderous knockers of copper and brass, once regarded as an essential feature on the great oaken doors of cathedrals and churches and other important buildings. In the days when the precincts of certain ecclesiastical edifices were sanctuary, the knocker was the goal sought by the criminal offender who rushed to obtain the protection of sanctuary. One of the most famous historical knockers which has been copied by modern founders, and is seen in collections of so-called antiques and in use as a modern replica on room doors in twentieth-century houses, is the famous knocker which did service for so many years on the Sanctuary door of Durham Cathedral. It is a relic of great antiquity, having been placed on the door prior to the reign of King Stephen. Detailing its use as sanctuary a contemporary monk wrote: "Hereupon their leader violently and repeatedly struck the brass rings which hang outside the door." According to the "rights" of Durham all the churchyard and all the circuit thereof was sanctuary for all manner of men whatever their offences had been. It will be remembered that in olden time, still perpetuated by its name, there was sanctuary just outside the Abbey of Westminster, the right being retained even after the dissolution of the monasteries in 1540. There were similar places of refuge for criminals at the Minories, Whitefriars, and the old Mint in Southwark. The Durham knocker, around which some interest centres, was in the form of an animal's head, in which are now two empty eye-sockets, behind which it is said lights were placed, although it is probable that they may have been filled with crystal balls.
The brass lion knocker of Brazenose College, Oxford, has won some notoriety, and has been much copied. The legends regarding its ancient association with the College, and the migration of the students to Stamford in 1334, and the subsequent return of the knocker to Oxford after it had been in other hands for many years, vary, and are not altogether borne out by proven facts. The brass-nosed knocker does not appear to have given the name to the College, notwithstanding the very generally accepted belief. Indeed, according to several authorities the name originated in the words bracinum, malt, and house, a brew-house having been incorporated in the older buildings. The old knocker, however, is still regarded as historic.
Few collectors of old copper and brass can hope to possess such historical relics, nor yet are they likely to secure any of the massive knockers, some of which are to be seen in the Victoria and Albert Museum at South Kensington. They can, however, readily obtain brass knockers dating from the reign of Queen Anne, and especially the ornate knockers of Georgian times, many of them bearing traces of the Adams' style and of Chippendale influence. Some knockers are peculiar in that the design is not always apparent. In Fig. 16 is shown a fine knocker of the much favoured armorial style, and in Fig. 17 is given a drop knocker in the form of a dolphin. Some of the knockers, repeated in great numbers in certain districts, are essentially local, such as a hook and worm pattern, which took its origin in a Sussex village. It was the invention of a local smith, an admirer of Izaac Walton, who it is said frequently passed his smithy door on his way to a fishing stream. Technically described by a fisherman, this knocker is said to be "a lobworm of buxom proportions dangling from a hook." There are others, equally interesting examples, to be met with in out-of-the-way places. One of the advantages of collecting these common objects in brass and other metals is that they can still be made to serve a useful purpose on room doors, although the rat-tat of the larger specimens is sometimes startling.
"Shut, shut the door, good John! fatigued, I said;
Tie up the knocker; say I'm sick, I'm dead."
Interior Metal-Work.
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. 16.—BRONZE KNOCKER OF THE ARMORIAL TYPE.
FIG. 17.—BRASS DROP KNOCKER IN THE FORM OF A DOLPHIN.
FIG. 18.—BRASS WELL BUCKET.
The metal-work of the interior, such as lock plates, hinges, and door knobs, was frequently of brass, and very ornate some of these quaint old fittings are. Perhaps the most interesting are those which were much used on the more portable sideboards, corner cupboards, and chests. It would appear that the extravagance in design reached its height when Chippendale's influence extended to the metal ornaments on the furniture, as well as to the scrollwork and carving of the woodwork. Some of this metal-work gives evidence of Chinese influence, or as it was then called, Chinese taste, shown in the introduction of the mandarin and the fakir, Oriental landscapes, palanquins, and Chinese trees and flowers, even in English metal-work. The collector of such things finds a wealth of brass in even escutcheons and handle plates (see Chapter XIX).
There is some very rich brasswork in the frames of the old banner screens, made of beautiful needlework panels, over which so much time must have been spent. A remarkably fine banner holder in the Victoria and Albert Museum is typical of many others. We have only to look round the house and imagine how it looked a century ago to discover that the collectable objects of copper and brass, even when domestic utensils and curios have been removed, included many other objects besides those referred to which may be secured by careful and persistent search among the old shops and builders' odds and ends.
