Shakespeare
Child's Travelling Cot
ca. 1915 (made)
ca. 1915 (made)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
This cot is collapsible and is made up of a single piece of unbleached canvas stretched upon a wood and metal frame.
Two poles of partly-varnished beechwood are threaded along the sides of the canvas base and into a brass cross-piece at each corner, the pieces themselves being fixed to similar poles shorter poles to form the head and foot of the cot's frame. The cross-pieces additionally hold two long slender wooden poles in inverted V-shapes (one at each end) to form the legs of the cot. Each pair of legs is also fitted into a canvas 'arrowhead' at the top, with a cord strung between them. This cord would originally have held a curtain which draped over the cot, but this is missing. The sides of the cot have flaps which wrap around the head and foot and lace together. When not in use, the cot may be taken apart and stored in a canvas kit-bag with a drawstring top.
Two poles of partly-varnished beechwood are threaded along the sides of the canvas base and into a brass cross-piece at each corner, the pieces themselves being fixed to similar poles shorter poles to form the head and foot of the cot's frame. The cross-pieces additionally hold two long slender wooden poles in inverted V-shapes (one at each end) to form the legs of the cot. Each pair of legs is also fitted into a canvas 'arrowhead' at the top, with a cord strung between them. This cord would originally have held a curtain which draped over the cot, but this is missing. The sides of the cot have flaps which wrap around the head and foot and lace together. When not in use, the cot may be taken apart and stored in a canvas kit-bag with a drawstring top.
Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Title | Shakespeare (manufacturer's title) |
| Materials and techniques | Unbleached canvas, turned and varnished beech, brass |
| Brief description | Child's travelling cot with canvas base on wood and metal frame (takes apart to store in canvas kit bag), made by Benjamin Edgington in the UK ca. 1915 |
| Physical description | This cot is collapsible and is made up of a single piece of unbleached canvas stretched upon a wood and metal frame. Two poles of partly-varnished beechwood are threaded along the sides of the canvas base and into a brass cross-piece at each corner, the pieces themselves being fixed to similar poles shorter poles to form the head and foot of the cot's frame. The cross-pieces additionally hold two long slender wooden poles in inverted V-shapes (one at each end) to form the legs of the cot. Each pair of legs is also fitted into a canvas 'arrowhead' at the top, with a cord strung between them. This cord would originally have held a curtain which draped over the cot, but this is missing. The sides of the cot have flaps which wrap around the head and foot and lace together. When not in use, the cot may be taken apart and stored in a canvas kit-bag with a drawstring top. |
| Dimensions |
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| Production type | Mass produced |
| Credit line | Given by Miss Susan Bailey |
| Object history | This cot was said to have been purchased by the donor's mother from the Army and Navy Stores. It was used on holiday by Mary Bailey (b. 1913), her brother John (b. 1915) and sisters Rachel (b. 1920) and Susan (b. 1926), the last of which donated it to the Museum in 1986. All were children of a fellow of Balliol College, Oxford. The donor remembered sleeping in it herself at about four years old. On entry to the Museum its condition was noted as 'fair. Some stains, cords frayed in places, but sound. Bag dirty, with some holes'. |
| Production | This object is probably an example of a 'Shakespeare' cot which was sold by Benjamin Edgington from at least the 1880s. |
| Associated object | |
| Collection | |
| Accession number | MISC.503-1986 |
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| Record created | July 1, 2009 |
| Record URL |
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