A Musical Chair for Musical Chairs

 

QUESTION: This summer while vacationing on Cape Cod, I spent some time antiquing. In one of the shops I discovered an unusual chair. It looked like a fancy side chair but the seat had hinges. When I lifted it up, I found a music box. The dealer told me that it was a Swiss Musical Chair, used in the game of musical chairs. What can you tell me about this chair? Where did it originate and who made it? 

ANSWER: While these chairs were popular with the wealthier set in the second half of the 19th and early 20th centuries, they don’t often appear in antique shops. Something like this is most often found in auctions or antique shows.

No one knows for sure who invented the game of musical chairs and when. But historians note that people have been playing it for centuries. Previously called “Trip to Jerusalem.” But when people began calling it Musical Chairs is also unknown. 

Trip to Jerusalem —known in German as “Reise Nach Jerusalem”—was a game played predominately in Germany. So why did people call the game “Trip to Jerusalem?” Some historians theorize that the Crusades inspired the name in the Middle Ages. They believe that the elimination of players who cannot find an empty seat at the end of each round compares to the losses suffered by the Crusaders as they battled the Muslims for control of Jerusalem. This would have made the game more relevant to players at the time. But as the centuries rolled on, that relevancy disappeared, so players started calling the game exactly what it was—a game of musical chairs.

Another less plausible theory, is that the immigration of Jews from the diaspora to the Land of Israel, called the Aliyah, inspired the game. During these trips, there was supposedly very limited spaces for Jews on the ships to the Land of Israel. This is supposedly depicted in the game by the number of chairs used. However, neither of these theories has ever been confirmed.

Musical chairs has always been a fun party game. The fact that it began with a "musical chair" seems lost in obscurity. The Swiss and Germans, known for their music boxes, found a novel way to insert one in the seat of an elaborately decorated chair. A hostess placed the chair among others in a circle. The game’s players walked around the circle while the music from the chair’s music box played. Whoever sat on the chair and stopped the music by engaging the switch that turned off the music box, had to leave the game. The last person to remain won.

Swiss and German craftsmen produced these chairs from the 1880s to the 1920s. They  used several kinds of wood, usually walnut plus some exotic varieties for inlays. They usually didn’t sign their chairs. Often, these chairs came in a set with an armchair and side chairs. 

The seat and seatback of these chairs featured intricately inlaid cartouches each depicting various images, including carved leaves and edelweiss, alpine chamois and deer. They placed the music box mechanism, made by another party, under the seat.

Woodcarving brought riches to the villages of Switzerland and the Black Forest region of Germany. It became all the fashion and no English traveler left these areas without having purchased some sort of woodcarving to take back home. As the tourist industry flourished and thrived, so did the carvers, selling their wares to the wealthy tourists.

Though the idea of a Grand Tour began in the 17th century, it wasn’t until the mid 19th century that it reached its peak. The wealthy believed the primary value of the Grand Tour lay in the exposure both to classical antiquity and the Renaissance, and to the aristocratic and fashionably polite society of the European continent.

The Grand Tour not only provided travelers with a cultural education but allowed those who could afford it the opportunity to buy things otherwise unavailable at home, such as the woodcarvings of Black Forest craftsmen. Grand Tourists would return with crates of art, books, pictures, sculpture, and items of culture, which would be displayed in libraries, cabinets, gardens, and drawing rooms.

This fashion had been set in motion by Queen Victoria's visit to the area in April 1868, and by her subsequent inspiration to build a Swiss chalet at Osborne House and fill it with Black Forest and Swiss carvings.

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A Piece for Every Food

QUESTION: An uncle of mine collected Victorian silverware. All the pieces he had—some 400–were from the same pattern, Renaissance. One day, he invited me over for lunch. And to my surprise, he laid out two place settings of this beautiful silverware. Not only did we use the usual fork, knife, and spoon, but we also used numerous serving pieces. Why did the Victorians use so many different pieces of silverware? Did people try to outdo each other by seeing how many different pieces they could use at a single meal?

ANSWER: Today, some people break out their silverware service for eight or twelve for holiday meals and special occasions. It naturally goes with the “good china.” But in the second half of the 19th century, wealthy Victorians laid out as many as eight to ten pieces at each place setting! How could they afford to do this? Well, for one thing, they had lots of money, and secondly, they had servants to wash and polish all those pieces.

By the 1850s, table etiquette in the English-speaking world had begun to undergo dramatic changes, thanks in part to Queen Victoria. But the invention in 1830 of a silver plating process for applying, or electroplating, a coating of pure silver to a base metal, usually copper or a zinc alloy, sealed the deal.

Up until this time silver had been sterling, solid silver that was 925 parts pure silver per thousand—coin silver, solid silver made from melted down coins and containing varying amounts of pure silver, and Sheffield plate, a process that fused two sheets of sterling silver to either side of a core sheet of copper. Sheffield plate, named for the region of England, near Birmingham, where it was manufactured, was a process suited for household items, such as bowls, goblets, cups, and trays, but not suited for eating utensils.

Although Victoria's reign began in 1837, it wasn’t until the late 1800s that the opulence, extravagance, and rigidly adhered to social rituals and etiquette associated with the Victorian era reached their height. By 1850, the Industrial Revolution was in full swing, both in England and America. Manufacturers could produce silverware somewhat inexpensively thanks to silverplating, and Queen Victoria set a new standard for social mores that centered around the home and family.



For centuries, flatware, or what most people called silverware, had consisted solely of spoons and ladles of varying sizes and materials, simple forks, and cutlery, or knives. People used forks with two or three tines to hold food for cutting and used knives to spear their food and transfer it to their mouths for eating. Queen Victoria soon changed that.

She frowned upon the use of the knife for spearing food. In order to discourage this practice, she encouraged silverware manufacturers to blunt the sharp ends of knife blades. The fork, until this time used primarily for holding food in place while people cut and speared it—much like our present day carving forks—became the utensil of choice. The rule became, never use a knife if a spoon can be used, and never use a spoon if a fork can be used. By the late 1800s, manufacturers were producing forks for every conceivable use—dinner forks, luncheon forks, salad forks, dessert forks, pastry forks, fish forks, oyster forks, berry forks and ice-cream forks, to name a few.

They also produced a variety of spoons—teaspoons, five-o'clock spoons (slightly smaller than a regular teaspoon), coffee or demitasse spoons, chocolate spoons, round cream soup spoons, bullion spoons (smaller than cream soup spoons), dessert spoons, cereal spoons, and more.

However, people still needed knives for cutting, so silverware makers produced dinner knives, luncheon knives, breakfast knives, fruit knives and butter knives. To emphasize the lesser role to which the knife had been relegated, matching knives, especially those with hollow handles, became less common than today. Victorian-era place setting knives, with the exception of butter knives and spreaders, usually had solid and plain or pearl handles, as well as handles of wood, bone, and ivory.

But it was the Victorian serving pieces where the extravagance and opulence of design was the most apparent. In addition to the traditional serving spoon, serving fork, gravy ladle, butter knife and sugar spoon that are staples of today’s silver services, Victorian silver manufacturers produced such items as asparagus servers, berry spoons, cucumber servers, fish servers, oyster ladles, soup ladles, preserve spoons, salt spoons, toast servers, tomato servers, and waffle servers, among many others. These  pieces were large and ornately decorated. They often heavily embossed the bowls of serving spoons and the base of the handles of serving forks and knives.
   
Once word of the electroplating process spread to the United States, a bevy of small silver manufacturers sprang up, primarily in Connecticut. Companies such as Oneida, Reed and  Barton, William Rogers, 1847 Rogers Brothers, and Wallace, became prominent and produced some of the most collectible silver flatware of that era. Ironically, the first patterns produced in any amount were silver plate. Later, in response to customer requests, they produced some of the same patterns in sterling. Later on, they made different patterns in sterling to distinguish them from silver plate.

Makers gave their silverware patterns names rather than numbers to identify them, the idea being that names would be easier to remember than numbers. They also thought that the names, themselves, would evoke an image of gracious living. Pattern names such as Moselle, Renaissance, Berkshire, Vintage, New Century, Orange Blossom, Grenoble, and York Rose are reminiscent of that refined era.

There are probably as many different ways of collecting and reasons for collecting as there are patterns and pieces in Victorian flatware. The next time you watch a TV series like “Downton Abbey,” notice the table settings. The prop department went out of their way to make sure that everything was exactly right and even instructed the actors in the proper etiquette for the time.

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Carrying on the Tradition

QUESTION: I recently purchased a small wooden sculpture of a crane. It looks to be carved from an exotic wood, but I’m not sure what kind. It has a sleek, streamlined appearance, much like sculptures from the Art Deco Period of the 1920s and 1930s. Can you tell me anything about my sculpture—when and where it was made and perhaps who made it?

ANSWER: It looks to me as if you have a piece of Balinese wood carving. Your crane has the style and shows the fine workmanship of pieces from that part of Indonesia. Dating it is more of a challenge because much of the contemporary wood carving of Bali was heavily influenced by the style of Art Deco. And even more recent pieces have that look.

Wood carving, dating back 3,000 years, is the most popular medium for artistic expression in Indonesia, and the diversity of Indonesia's wood carvings is remarkable.

In the times of Bali's old feudal kingdoms, woodcarving served as temple decoration. Wood was also utilized in such everyday household features as carved beams, columns, doors for houses, and implements like musical instruments, tool handles, and bottle-stoppers. Carvers painted these carvings in bright colors, lacquer, or gold leaf and seldom left the wood raw.

There are two main types of Balinese woodcarving. The first is traditional carving in bas-relief tableaux and plaques, used mainly for decorating temple doors, walls and columns, plus small statues of deities and mythical heroes, designed for use in public buildings. The second type is contemporary woodcarving, featuring highly stylized human or animal figures, often grotesque, almost psychotic—expressing the Balinese fear of the supernatural and a strong, sensual feeling for nature.

One of Bali’s most noted wood carvers was Ida Bagus Nyana, who worked in the village of Mas. His son, Ida Bagus Tilem, carries on the tradition today.

Ida Bagus Njana created abstract sculptures of human beings and surrealistic knotty "natural" sculptures out of gnarly tree trunks. He used small incisions on the surface to indicate contours while the wavy grain of the wood contributing to the motion of the figure. He was also the original creator of the fat statues of toads, elephants, and sleeping women now on sale all over Bali.

Nyana allowed his son, Tilem, to develop his skills, unhindered, while teaching the boy to be patient. Gradually, Tilem developed his talent, carving tiny birds, animals, and traditional figures, despite battered hands from his first few attempts with his father’s razor-sharp chisels. He was able to sell his carvings to tourists and pay for his schooling.

Tilem decided to leave school and set up a studio at his home in Mas in 1958, where he sold his own work to help his family. He furnished wood and tools to local boys who couldn't afford them. Eventually, he had over 100 apprentices and 100 carvers working with him. He was chosen to represent Indonesia at the New York Worlds Fair in 1964 and has had numerous overseas exhibitions.

During the 1930s and 1940s Balinese wood carving underwent a transformation when the main art center shifted to Ubud and its surrounding villages. The 1930s brought an influx of tourists, and a dramatic change in the perspective of Balinese wood sculptors. Shops, street corners, hotel lobbies, marketplaces, the airport, and harbors suddenly blossomed with objets d'art   produced to sell. In contrast to the traditional polychrome, mythological religious carvings, more realistic statues of peasants toiling, nude girls bathing and deer grazing appeared, themes that found a very ready market among the tourists. All in natural polished woods.


Most Balinese wood carvers favor teak wood, though it has become increasingly expensive. Teak is one of the best woods because it is easily carved and is less susceptible to warping, splitting, insects and rot. Carvers will occasionally use mahogany and ebony, both of which are also very expensive. Besides the more exotic woods, carvers use jackfruit, a cheap, common wood, though it tends to warp and split, as well as tamarind, hibiscus, frangipani, and kayu jepun, and sawo, a beautiful dark red wood.

The texture of the grain determines the nature of the piece to be carved. Dark ebony, particularly pieces with striped grain, are best suited for vertical shapes or faces. Rarer are pieces made of unpolished ebony (sanded and brushed only) where you can make out the grain in the wood. The blackest ebony might be used to depict a subject of great dignity. Satinwood, a light striped, beige-colored wood native to Bali, may inspire pieces of a softer theme. The grain often follows a skin pattern or veins in the arms of the statue.

The sounds of gentle hammering, sanding, and spontaneous chatter of the woodcarvers fill the lanes in villages like Mas. They sit cross-legged on the floor surrounded by piles of freshly carved wood chips and rough, uncut blocks as chickens peck their way around the tools. The sweet aroma of clove cigarettes and coffee hangs over the warm, humid air.

Carvers work with simple tools—a hand-held knife or a chisel struck with a hammer or mallet. The art of the wood carver depends on knowledge of specific woods, skill in fashioning the material, and talent in design.
     
Traditionally, they smoothed their pieces with pumice and gave them a high polish by rubbing them with bamboo. Traditionally, they treated and stained their carvings with oils to achieve a pleasing subtle gloss, but now Balinese artisans find that neutral or black shoe polish produces much the same result with half the effort.
    
In the main woodcarving centers, high-quality carvings sell for as much as US$3,500 apiece. Contemporary carvings in natural woods begin selling for around $25 and go as high as $500 online.

But regardless of how commercial the subject matter, all carvings share certain characteristics and techniques uniquely Balinese. Even the copyists work strictly within the self-imposed rules of an established style.

No Room at the Inn

QUESTION: My grandfather left me a beautiful creche which he said his father brought over from Germany in the late 19th century. Can you tell me anything about this and if it is, in fact, German?

ANSWER: You, indeed, have a German creche. From its design, I’d say it dates from the 1890s, possibly a bit before. During the 17th century, Nativity scenes, promoted by the Capuchin, Jesuit and Franciscan orders, gained in popularity as a way for common people to express their joy during the Christmas season.

The most popular form is the crèche, a word meaning "manger" or "crib" in French. Originally carved from wood, today these beautiful figures can also be made of   ceramic, glass, straw, fabric, or even plastic, then and painted. A crèche usually depicts the entire Nativity scene—the manger, star, angels, shepherds, kings and the Holy Family. Most makers construct them on a miniature scale, although some church crèches can be almost life-sized. Crèches originated in Europe with the Italian presepio which used small carved figures in the 18th century. By then, three centers of creche culture had emerged—Naples, Italy; Provence, France; and Bavaria in southern Germany.

Historians generally credit St. Francis of Assisi with popularizing the Nativity scene.
Supposedly, a rich man, Giovanni Vellita, approached St. Francis in December, 1223, asking how he could serve God. St. Francis told him to build a simple, little stable just outside Assisi in the cave at Greccio. During the 13th century, people celebrated Christmas as a purely religious holiday, so many of the activities associated with it occurred in churches. Since common workers weren’t given much of a place in these celebrations, St. Francis came up with the idea to give them a chance to celebrate.

As the story goes, as midnight approached that Christmas Eve, a great procession wound its way out of Assisi and up the hill to Greccio. Everyone came carrying candles to this new manger they had built for the Holy Child. They celebrated mass that night, surrounded by an ox and a donkey and by the people of Assisi, all playing the parts of the shepherds and folk of Bethlehem. From Italy, the idea spread north across the Alps, and finally came to the U.S. with German settlers.

Today’s creche makers model their pieces after the elaborate Italian and German ones of the 17th  century. Creches or Nativity sets can be made from a variety of materials. The characters can be carved from wood, formed from wax, papier-mache, or clay, or hand painted on cardboard. They stand in or in front of buildings, ranging from Alpine stables and guest houses to romantic Roman ruins. Others have oriental style structures with minarets and domes.

But the best—elaborate and intricately carved figures of wood—came from Bavaria.
Their creators stained them with paint to make them lifelike. German creches , often called krippen, can also be made of cast metal, cast painted plaster, cardboard with painted or printed artwork, turned wood or clay. Each Christmas, in scenes made up of rocks, branches, evergreens and moss collected in the woods by the family’s children just before the holiday, the krippe is reborn. Christmas morning finds these scenes around the base of the family’s Christmas tree in what’s called a putz or tree yard.

Among collectible creches, those hardest to find today are those predating World War II.  Adolf Hitler had many of the German molds for creche figures destroyed. At the time, Germany was the premiere maker of creches. So what you have is a real treasure, not only for its value—a similar one sold for close to $1,000 at previous auction and just one animal is going for $95 currently on eBay—but also for its place in history.