OLD SILK HAND FAN ANTIQUE 1800s ELEGANT ABANIKO MAI OGI SENSU FRAMED GLASS

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FRAMED UNDER GLASS
AN ANTIQUE
HAND FAN
CIRCA 1800 - 1850
ELEGANT PERIOD ACCESSORY
MADE OF FINE SILK
FRAMING MEASURES ABOUT 19" x 25" x 3"
EXQUISITE

APPEARS TO BE APPLIED WITH ADHESIVE.
WE CANNOT ACCEPT RETURNS IF THIS ITEM IS REMOVED FROM THE GLASS FRAME.


 

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FYI

 

 

The movement of a hand-held fan provides cooling by increasing the airflow over the skin, which in turn increases the evaporation rate of sweat droplets on the skin, and increasing heat convection by displacing the warmer air, produced by body heat, that surrounds the skin. This evaporation has a cooling effect due to the latent heat of evaporation of water. Fans are convenient to carry around, especially folding fans.

Next to the folding fans, the rigid hand screen fan, was also a highly decorative and desired object among the higher classes. Its purpose is different since they are more cumbersome to carry around. They were mostly used to shield the lady's face against the glare of the sun or the fire.

History

Europe

Archaeological ruins and ancient texts show that the hand fan was used in ancient Greece at least since the 4th century BC and was known under the name rhipis (Greek: ῥιπίς). Christian Europe's earliest fan was the flabellum (or ceremonial fan), which dates to the 6th century. This was used during services to drive insects away from the consecrated bread and wine. Its use died out in western Europe, but continues in the Eastern Orthodox and Ethiopian Churches. Hand fans were absent in Europe during the High Middle Ages until they were reintroduced in the 13th and 14th centuries. Fans from the Middle East were brought back by Crusaders. Portuguese traders brought them back from China and Japan in the 16th century, and fans became generally popular. The fan is especially popular in Spain, where flamenco dancers used the fan and extended its use to the nobility.

17th century

In the 17th century the folding fan, introduced from East Asia, became popular in Europe. These fans are particularly well displayed in the portraits of the high-born women of the era. Queen Elizabeth I of England can be seen to carry both folding fans decorated with pom poms on their guardsticks as well as the older style rigid fan, usually decorated with feathers and jewels. These rigid style fans often hung from the skirts of ladies, but of the fans of this era it is only the more exotic folding ones which have survived. Those folding fans of the 15th century found in museums today have either leather leaves with cut out designs forming a lace-like design or a more rigid leaf with inlays of more exotic materials like mica. One of the characteristics of these fans is the rather crude sticks and the way the leather leaves are often slotted onto the sticks rather than glued as with later folding fans. Fans made entirely of decorated sticks without a fan 'leaf' were known as brise fans. However, despite the relative crude methods of construction folding fans were at this era high status, exotic items on par with elaborate gloves as gifts to royalty.

In the 17th century the rigid fan which was seen in portraits of the previous century had fallen out of favour as folding fans gained dominance in Europe. Fans started to display well painted leaves, often with a religious or classical subject. The reverse side of these early fans also started to display elaborate flower designs. The sticks are often plain, sometimes inlaid with gold or silver pique work. The way the sticks sit close to each other, often with little or no space between them is one of the distinguishing characteristics of fans of this era.

In 1685 the Edict of Nantes was revoked in France. This caused large scale immigration from France to the surrounding Protestant countries (such as England) of many fan craftsman. This dispersion in skill is reflected in the growing quality of many fans from these non-French countries after this date.

In the 18th century, fans reached a high degree of artistry and were being made throughout Europe often by specialized craftsmen, either in leaves or sticks. Folded fans of silk, or parchment were decorated and painted by artists. Fans were also imported from China by the East India Companies at this time. Around the middle 18th century, inventors started designing mechanical fans. Wind-up fans (similar to wind-up clocks) were popular in the 18th century. In the 19th century in the West, European fashion caused fan decoration and size to vary.

It has been said that in the courts of England, Spain and elsewhere fans were used in a more or less secret, unspoken code of messages These fan languages were a way to cope with the restricting social etiquette. However, modern research has proved that this was a marketing ploy developed in the 18th century (FANA Journal, spring 2004, Fact & Fiction about the language of the fan by J.P. Ryan) - one that has kept its appeal remarkably over the succeeding centuries. This is now used for marketing by fan makers like Cussons & Sons & Co. Ltd who produced a series of advertisements in 1954 showing "the language of the fan" with fans supplied by the well known French fan maker Duvelleroy.

The rigid or screen fan (eventail a ecran) became also fashionable during the 18th and 19th century. They never reached the same level of popularity as the easy to carry around, folding fans which became almost an integrated part of women's dress. The screen fan was mainly used inside the interior of the house. In 18th and 19th century paintings of interiors one sometimes sees one laying on a chimney mantle. They were mainly used to protect a woman's face against the glare and heat of the fire, to avoid getting 'coup rose' or ruddy cheeks from the heat. But probably not in the least it served to keep the heat from spoiling the carefully applied make-up which in those days was often wax-based. For a better understanding we have to realise that until the mid 20th century houses were heated by open fires in chimneys or by stoves, and the lack of insolation made many a house very draughty and cold during winter. Therefore, any social or family gathering would be in close proximity to the fireplace.

The design of the screen fan is a fixed handle, most often made out of exquisitely turned (painted or guided) wood, fixed to a flat screen. The screen could be made out of silk stretched on a frame or thin wood, leather or papier mache. The surface is often exquisitely painted with scenes ranging from flowers and birds of paradise to religious scenes. at the end of the 19th century they disappeared when the need for them ceased to exist During the 19th century names like the Birmingham-based firm of Jennens and Bettridge produced many papier-mache fans.

East Asia

The oldest existing Chinese fans are a pair of woven bamboo side-mounted fans from the 2nd century BCE. The Chinese character for "fan" (扇) is etymologically derived from a picture of feathers under a roof. The Chinese fixed fan, pien-mien, means 'to agitate the air'. A particular status and gender would be associated with a specific type of fan. During the Song Dynasty, famous artists were often commissioned to paint fans. The Chinese dancing fan was developed in the 7th century. The Chinese form of the hand fan was a row of feathers mounted in the end of a handle. In the later centuries, Chinese poems and four-word idioms were used to decorate the fans by using Chinese calligraphy pens. In ancient China, fans came in various shapes and forms (such as in a leaf, oval or a half-moon shape), and were made in different materials such as silk, bamboo, feathers, etc.

Japanese foldable fan(Sensu)

Japanese rigid fan (uchiwa)

In ancient Japan, hand fans, such as oval and silk fans was influenced greatly by the Chinese fans. The earliest visual depiction of fans in Japan dates back to the 6th century CE, with burial tomb paintings showed drawings of fans. The folding fan was invented in Japan, with date ranging from the 6th to 9th centuries. It was a court fan called the Akomeogi (衵扇 AkomeUgi?) after the court women's dress named Akome. According to the Song Sui (History of Song), a Japanese monk Chonen (奝然 ChUnen?, 938－1016) offered the folding fans (twenty wooden-bladed fans hiogi (桧扇 hiUgi?) and two paper fans kawahori-ogi (蝙蝠扇 kawahori-Ugi?)) to the emperor of China in 988. Later in the 11th century, Korean envoys brought along Korean folding fans which were of Japanese origin as gifts to Chinese court. The popularity of folding fans was such that sumptuary laws were promulgated during Heian period which restricted the decoration of both hiogi and paper folding fans. They were made by tying thin stripes of hinoki (or Japanese cypress) together with thread. The number of strips of wood differed according to the person's rank. Later in the 16th century, Portuguese traders introduced it to the west and soon both men and women throughout the continent adopted it. They are used today by Shinto priests in formal costume and in the formal costume of the Japanese court (they can be seen used by the Emperor and Empress during coronation and marriage) and are brightly painted with long tassels. Simple Japanese paper fans are sometimes known as harisen.

Printed fan leaves and painted fans are done on a paper ground. The paper was originally handmade and displayed the characteristic watermarks. Machine-made paper fans, introduced in the 19th century, are smoother, with an even texture. Even today, Geisha of all types (but maiko most often) use folding fans in their fan dances as well.

Japanese fans are made of paper on a bamboo frame, usually with a design painted on them. In addition to folding fans (Ugi), the non-bending fans (uchiwa) are popular and commonplace. The fan is primarily used for fanning oneself in hot weather.

It was also used in the military as a way of sending signals on the field of battle, however fans were mainly used for social and court activities. In Japan, fans were variously used by warriors as a form of weapon, by actors and dancers for performances, and by children as a toy.

Traditionally, the rigid fan (also called fixed fan) was the most popular form in China, although the folding fan came into popularity during the Ming Dynasty between the years of 1368 and 1644, and there are many beautiful examples of these folding fans still remaining.

The Mai Ogi (or Chinese dancing fan) has ten sticks and a thick paper mount showing the family crest, and Chinese painters made a large variety of designs and patterns. The slats, of mica, mother of pearl, sandalwood, or shell, were carved and covered with paper or fabric. Folding fans have "montures" which are the sticks and guards, and the leaves were usually painted by craftsmen. Social significance was attached to the fan in the Far East as well, and the management of the fan became a highly regarded feminine art. Fans were even used as a weapon - called the iron fan, or tessen in Japanese.

Types

There were two main types of fans seen in Europe during the 18th century: the rigid (or fixed) fan and the folding fan.

Rigid fan

As its name implies, the rigid fan is stiff. Possible fan shapes are a leaf, a rectangle, or an oval. The fan is attached to a base where it is held.

Folding fan

The folding fan was the most popular in Europe during the 18th century, a time known as the golden age of the folding fan. The principal folding fan styles are pleated, brise, and cockade.

Pleated fan

The pleated fan consists of a mount and a set of sticks. The outer sticks (the guards) are wider than the others and are often more decorated. At the base of the sticks is a pivot which connects the fan and allows it to spread and open. The base is either shaped or rounded off.

Brise fan

The brise fan consists only of a set of sticks. These sticks are attached to a base with a pivot similar to that of a pleated fan. A cord or ribbon runs across the top of the fan, holding the sticks together.

Cockade fan

A cockade fan opens into a complete circle around the pivot. Their style can be either pleated or brise. They were not very practical and considered too flamboyant, and thus they saw little popularity.

Materials

Fans in the 18th century were made from a wide variety of materials depending on their style and purpose. During the 18th century fans were a fashion accessory and thus were made from the fashionable materials of the time.

Sticks and handles

Sticks and handles could be made of gold, shell, mother-of-pearl, or wood. They were often highly decorated. Most sticks and handles were not only made of the previously listed materials, but were inlaid with others. For example, a mother-of-pearl fan could be inlaid with gold. Other sticks were plain.

Mounts

Previous to 1780, mounts were typically made of vellum or paper. Some, more valuable fans were decorated with materials used for the sticks such as mother-of-pearl. Other decorations included feathers, butterfly wings, silk, gold, and sequins. Although not as common, the 18th century also saw lace fans.

Subject matter

European fans were often decorated with historical, political, or social images. While some fans were meant to inform, others were meant to entertain. There was fan for every occasion; whether it be a wedding, a funeral, or a dance, there was always a fan made specifically for the event.

Entertainment

Some artists designed fans which would prevent boredom during a dull event, or would start a conversation. These fans were often covered with riddles and puzzles. Another type of entertainment fan was the fortune-telling fan. These presented questions such as “Whether one is to get Riches; Whether one will be successful in Love; What sort of Husband shall I have; etc.”

 

 

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