Mirror Frame
1660-1680 (made)
| Artist/Maker |
Object Type
Mirror glass had a considerable intrinsic value in the 17th century, and the presence of a relatively small piece could be increased with a broad decorated frame. The decoration of mirror frames with a wide inner border of embroidery seems to have been a popular accomplishment of amateur needlewomen particularly between about 1660 and 1680. This panel was being prepared for such a frame.
Design & Designing
The subjects and styles of embroidery chosen for mirror frames were close to those used for caskets, pictures, and other domestic items worked at home. Motifs were copied from pattern books and prints, or the satin panels could be bought already drawn out as 'kits', as this has been. The figures here are based on engravings from Gerard de Jode's 'Thesaurus Sacrarum Historiarum Veteris Testamenti', first published in Antwerp in 1585.
Subjects Depicted
This unfinished mirror frame shows scenes from the Old Testament story of Hagar and Ishmael. Hagar was the servant of Abraham's wife Sarah, who was unable to have children. When Hagar conceived a child by Abraham she showed contempt towards Sarah, who retaliated with such harsh treatment that Hagar fled into the wilderness. There she was comforted by an angel, and gave birth to her son Ishmael.
Mirror glass had a considerable intrinsic value in the 17th century, and the presence of a relatively small piece could be increased with a broad decorated frame. The decoration of mirror frames with a wide inner border of embroidery seems to have been a popular accomplishment of amateur needlewomen particularly between about 1660 and 1680. This panel was being prepared for such a frame.
Design & Designing
The subjects and styles of embroidery chosen for mirror frames were close to those used for caskets, pictures, and other domestic items worked at home. Motifs were copied from pattern books and prints, or the satin panels could be bought already drawn out as 'kits', as this has been. The figures here are based on engravings from Gerard de Jode's 'Thesaurus Sacrarum Historiarum Veteris Testamenti', first published in Antwerp in 1585.
Subjects Depicted
This unfinished mirror frame shows scenes from the Old Testament story of Hagar and Ishmael. Hagar was the servant of Abraham's wife Sarah, who was unable to have children. When Hagar conceived a child by Abraham she showed contempt towards Sarah, who retaliated with such harsh treatment that Hagar fled into the wilderness. There she was comforted by an angel, and gave birth to her son Ishmael.
Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Materials and techniques | Satin, embroidered with silk thread |
| Brief description | Unfinished embroidery |
| Physical description | Panel of cream-coloured satin, embroidered with a wide border in coloured silks. Parts of the design are worked separately, and stitched down over a padding. The whole pattern has been drawn in outline, and the embroidery is unfinished. At the top are Sarah and Isaac within a tent in the middle. To the right is Ishmael sleeping beneath a tree, behind which is a well, and to the left the angel is appearing to Hagar. In the middle of the long sides is Abraham on the right, and Hagar with Ishmael on the left. Below is a fountain with a lady on one side and a gentlemen on the other. The rest of the border is occupied by flowers, animals, birds and insects. |
| Dimensions |
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| Gallery label |
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| Object history | Purchased for £8 from Lieutenant Colonel J. E. Goodall, Dinton Hall, Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire |
| Historical context | See T.143-1962 for details of design source. |
| Summary | Object Type Mirror glass had a considerable intrinsic value in the 17th century, and the presence of a relatively small piece could be increased with a broad decorated frame. The decoration of mirror frames with a wide inner border of embroidery seems to have been a popular accomplishment of amateur needlewomen particularly between about 1660 and 1680. This panel was being prepared for such a frame. Design & Designing The subjects and styles of embroidery chosen for mirror frames were close to those used for caskets, pictures, and other domestic items worked at home. Motifs were copied from pattern books and prints, or the satin panels could be bought already drawn out as 'kits', as this has been. The figures here are based on engravings from Gerard de Jode's 'Thesaurus Sacrarum Historiarum Veteris Testamenti', first published in Antwerp in 1585. Subjects Depicted This unfinished mirror frame shows scenes from the Old Testament story of Hagar and Ishmael. Hagar was the servant of Abraham's wife Sarah, who was unable to have children. When Hagar conceived a child by Abraham she showed contempt towards Sarah, who retaliated with such harsh treatment that Hagar fled into the wilderness. There she was comforted by an angel, and gave birth to her son Ishmael. |
| Bibliographic reference | Ann Sumner (et al.), Men, birds, beasts and flowers: an exhibition of seventeenth century pictorial needlework, Bath, Holburne Museum and Crafts Study Centre, 1987, Cat. 31 |
| Collection | |
| Accession number | 247-1896 |
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| Record created | March 27, 2003 |
| Record URL |
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