Buckle thumbnail 1
Buckle thumbnail 2
+1
images
Image of Gallery in South Kensington
On display at V&A South Kensington
Paintings, Room 81, The Edwin and Susan Davies Galleries

Buckle

19th century (made)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

This is the buckle worn by Elfrida Elizabeth Bird, Mrs Luke Ionides, in a portrait painted in 1879. The artist was William Blake Richmond (1842-1921). The Victoria and Albert Museum acquired the painting in 2003 (E.1062-2003). The buckle looks golden in the portrait, and there are still traces of gilding on the buckle, but much of it has worn off over the years.

The buckle is composed of three plaques of openwork foliage and strapwork around figures of the three Theological Virtues: Faith, with cross and chalice, Hope, with an anchor, and Charity, with two children. The buckle may be converted from an old Dutch book clasp. Clasps were imported from the mid 1870s by retailers such as Walter Thornhill of 144, New Bond Street, London. It is of a design which appears within a few years to have been copied by late 19th century manufacturers. Almost identical silver buckles were illustrated in trade catalogues issued by Mappin & Webb Ltd (1900) and Saunders & Shepherd Ltd (1903–4).


Object details

Categories
Object type
Parts
This object consists of 2 parts.

  • Buckle
  • Buckle End
Materials and techniques
Cast silver-gilt
Brief description
Buckle, England, ca.1879. Previous loan number - LOAN:J IONIDES.1:1-2002

Buckle end, England, ca.1879. Previous loan number - LOAN:JIONIDES.1:2-2002
Physical description
Silver-gilt buckle of openwork design composed of three plaques containing figures, scrolling foliage and strapwork. In the plaque on the left is a seated figure of Faith holding cross and chalice. She sits beneath a broad 'C' scroll and on a platform supported by an urn. The central plaque, which is hinged to the plaque on the left, has a seated figure of Hope with an anchor. The central plaque has a hasp (now broken) to attach it to a plaque on the right which has a seated figure of Charity with two children and is otherwise similar to the plaque containing Faith. The gilding has largely been off both back and front of the buckle. There are two loops for attaching a belt on the back of the buckle.
Dimensions
  • Length: 17.3cm
  • Width: 6.7cm
  • Depth: 0.8cm
Credit line
Given by Julia Ionides
Object history
This is the buckle worn by Elfrida Elizabeth Bird, Mrs Luke Ionides, in a portrait painted in 1879 by William Blake Richmond (1842-1921) which was acquired by the Victoria and Albert Museum in 2003 (E.1062-2003). The buckle has descended to Julia Ionides, who has donated it to the Museum.

The buckle is directly related to silver buckles illustrated in trade catalogues issued by Mappin & Webb Ltd and Saunders & Shepherd Ltd (see references). There are minor differences.
Subjects depicted
Summary
This is the buckle worn by Elfrida Elizabeth Bird, Mrs Luke Ionides, in a portrait painted in 1879. The artist was William Blake Richmond (1842-1921). The Victoria and Albert Museum acquired the painting in 2003 (E.1062-2003). The buckle looks golden in the portrait, and there are still traces of gilding on the buckle, but much of it has worn off over the years.

The buckle is composed of three plaques of openwork foliage and strapwork around figures of the three Theological Virtues: Faith, with cross and chalice, Hope, with an anchor, and Charity, with two children. The buckle may be converted from an old Dutch book clasp. Clasps were imported from the mid 1870s by retailers such as Walter Thornhill of 144, New Bond Street, London. It is of a design which appears within a few years to have been copied by late 19th century manufacturers. Almost identical silver buckles were illustrated in trade catalogues issued by Mappin & Webb Ltd (1900) and Saunders & Shepherd Ltd (1903–4).
Bibliographic reference
Hinks, Peter (introduction by). Victorian Jewellery. London: Studio Editions, 1991.
Collection
Accession number
M.1:1-2004

About this object record

Explore the Collections contains over a million catalogue records, and over half a million images. It is a working database that includes information compiled over the life of the museum. Some of our records may contain offensive and discriminatory language, or reflect outdated ideas, practice and analysis. We are committed to addressing these issues, and to review and update our records accordingly.

You can write to us to suggest improvements to the record.

Suggest feedback

Record createdJanuary 30, 2004
Record URL
Download as: JSON