Acanthus
Wallpaper
1875 (published)
1875 (published)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
Specimen of 'Acanthus' wallpaper, a foliate pattern of acanthus leaves; Block-printed in distemper colours, on paper.
Part of a wallpaper pattern book containing 132 specimens (E.2734-2866-1980), mounted on a display stand, with a cloth cover.
Part of a wallpaper pattern book containing 132 specimens (E.2734-2866-1980), mounted on a display stand, with a cloth cover.
Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Title | Acanthus (assigned by artist) |
| Materials and techniques | block-printed in distemper colours, on paper |
| Brief description | Specimen of 'Acanthus' wallpaper, a foliate pattern of acanthus leaves; Block-printed in distemper colours, on paper; Designed by William Morris; Published by Morris & Co.; Part of a wallpaper pattern book containing 132 specimens (E.2734-2866-1980), mounted on a display stand, with a cloth cover; England; 1875. |
| Physical description | Specimen of 'Acanthus' wallpaper, a foliate pattern of acanthus leaves; Block-printed in distemper colours, on paper. Part of a wallpaper pattern book containing 132 specimens (E.2734-2866-1980), mounted on a display stand, with a cloth cover. |
| Style | |
| Marks and inscriptions | 'THESE PAPERS ARE PRINTED BY HAND /
Hand or Block-printed Papers and Machine-printed Papers. /
MORRIS AND COMPANY are often asked "What is the advantage of hand-printed papers over those printed by machine?" /
HAND-PRINTED PAPERS are produced very slowly, each block used being dipped into pigment and then firmly pressed on to the paper, giving a great body of colour. This process takes place with each separate colour, which is slowly dried before another is applied. The consequence is that in the finished paper there is a considerable mass of solid colour. /
MACHINE-PRINTED PAPERS are produced at a great speed, all the colours being printed at one time and rapidly dried in a heated gallery. In consequence of the speed at which they are printed, there is merely a film of colour deposited on the surface of the paper. /
FOR PERMANENT USE we strongly recommend the hand-printed paper. /
The machine-printed papers are placed at the end of one of the books or in a msall book by themselves. /
Show Rooms: /
449, Oxford Street, London, W.' (Printed on cover sheet of stand-book.) |
| Credit line | Given by Shand Kydd Ltd |
| Object history | The 'Acanthus' design requires thirty separate woodblocks to complete the pattern. Parry (see references) notes that: 'Acanthus was the first of a group of large-scale, heavily patterned and deep coloured papers: the others were Pimpernel (1876), Wreath (1876), Rose (1877) and Chrysanthemum (1877). The large size of this design requires thirty blocks to complete the pattern, making it an expensive paper costing 16s. a roll.' |
| Production | Part of a pattern book of wallpapers containing 132 specimens (E.2734-2866-1980) from 1880-1917. |
| Subjects depicted | |
| Associated objects |
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| Bibliographic references |
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| Collection | |
| Accession number | E.2857-1980 |
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| Record created | June 23, 2009 |
| Record URL |
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