Design for woven silk from the 'Liddiard Set', pencil, pen and ink and watercolour on laid paper, probably by James Leman, Spitalfields, ca. 1717 or 1718

Design for woven silk from the 'Liddiard Set', in pencil, pen and ink and watercolour on laid paper, in pale yellow, pink, dark red, ochre, pale, mid and dark green, blue, purple and dark brown, depicting stylised floral, foliate, fruit and decorative motifs. There is a decorative background made up of numerous motifs in pale yellow and pale green. Superimposed over this is a central sinuous stem, complete with flowers, leaves, fruit and additional decorative motifs.

The design is squared up for cords and dezines in ink and has been patched.

This design is one from a group of designs known as the 'Liddiard Set', which was given to the V&A by Mr G.W. Sherriff of Streatham in 1862. According to Luther Hooper, who compiled the first typescript catalogue of Spitalfields textiles designs in the Museum, on the cover of the folio (now missing) which contained this Set, was inscribed 'Pattern book of Liddiard & Co. Circa 1718'. In addition, most of the designs in this Set are inscribed in ink with 'L & Co.', as well as a number. The designs are also numbered heavily in pencil with a different number and have also all been numbered subsequently by the V&A - E.4440 to 4519-1909.

Natalie Rothstein researched and catalogued the designs for her publication Silk Designs of the Eighteenth Century. In it she states that 'the drawings in the Liddiard Set range in date from 1717 to 1722. They are mostly numbered heavily in pencil in the same way as the drawings in the Vanners Silks Set, which were all drawn by Leman between 1706 and 1716.' The Vanners Set is now known as the Leman Album (after the designer, James Leman), which is also in the V&A Collection - E.1861.1 to 106-1991.

Natalie Rothstein has identified many of the designs as the work of James Leman, although some designs have been attributed to Christopher Baudouin and Joseph Dandridge, both well-known designers in their day. Such attributions have been decided on the grounds of handwriting, signatures and abbreviations rather than due to stylistic considerations. She argues that 'There is no appreciable difference between the style of the drawings signed by Leman and those of Baudouin and Dandridge, and all attempts to divide the drawings in this Set into groups which could be attributed to the three designers on stylistic grounds have proved inconclusive. This is not so surprising, for the patterns drawn in any one year all conform to the general style dictated by the prevailing fashion, and since the designers in question were all working in the same city at the same time and for the same mercers, they would have all used the same professional conventions. Both the methods of drawing and the colour schemes used would be necessarily very similar. It does seem, however, that Leman frequently obtained from Dandridge the designs for especially rich silks using metal threads and the least naturalistic exotic motifs - such as E.4451-1909 - while Leman himself concentrated on the lighter silks with more delicate designs.'

Attribution note: Natalie Rothstein researched and catalogued the designs for her publication Silk Designs of the Eighteenth Century. In it she states that 'It is clear that many of the drawings in this Set are by James Leman. Ten of them bear his signature, in some cases followed by the word 'fecit' [made]; while a further half-dozen or so have had his signature cut out - why we do not know - but the typical flourishes with which he signed his name can still be discerned.'

Regarding this particular design, she stated the date was 'About 1717 or 1718; cf. E.4451-1909. The small spray of flowers at the top-right centre is almost identical to the sprays that appear alone on E.4461-1909, a drawing dated 1718.'

E.4458-1909