History of the FanRhead, G. Woolliscroft (George Woolliscroft)
History
History of the Fan
Rhead, G. Woolliscroft (George Woolliscroft)
Fans
In 1788 the royal family honoured the exhibition of the Royal Academy
with a visit; this event being commemorated on two fans varying
considerably in the number and disposition of the figures, and in the
arrangement of the background. The fan leaf in the Schreiber collection
is designed by ‘P. Ramberg, P. Martini, Sculpt. Pub^d March 6, 1789,
by A. Poggi, St. George’s Row, Hyde Park,’ this being from Martini’s
original plate, also published by Poggi, cut down to the shape of a fan.
The fan leaf at present in the collection at South Kensington is
printed on vellum and tinted, and is accompanied by an engraved key to
the different personages depicted on the fan.
[Illustration: Visit of George III. to the Royal Academy.
Mr F. Perigal.]
The marriage of the Prince of Wales (afterwards George IV.) to Princess
Caroline of Brunswick, in 1795, provides the occasion for a fan, with
two oval medallion portraits in stipple of ‘The Illustrious Pair,’ on
either side of a large Prince of Wales’s feathers. ‘Publish’d Jan^{ry}
1, 1795, by J. Read, 133 Pall Mall.’ The same plate was printed in
colours and published on the same date. The ‘Royal Pair’ again appear
in the form of medallion portraits, with the Royal Arms of Great
Britain and Brunswick. Still another fan commemorative of this event
shows bust portraits of the prince and princess in the midst of a
medley of prints, riddles, etc., with a frieze of caricature busts of
various personages. ‘Published at Sudlow’s Fan Warehouse, 191 Strand.’
‘The Prince of Wales’ (Schreiber collection of unmounted fan leaves,
No. 11) is a quite charming fan leaf. The medallion portrait is printed
in a warm brown, the field of the fan painted in blue of a pleasant
quality, the ornaments painted in silver and Chinese white. This is a
scheme of colour adopted on many fans of the period; the four colours
forming an extremely effective harmony.
The popularity of Lord Howe’s victory over the French on the ‘glorious
first of June,’ 1794, is evinced by the frequency with which it was
commemorated on English pottery in the shape of statuettes, medallions,
mugs, jugs, etc. On the fan also we have the subject of a seated
Britannia bearing a medallion portrait of the admiral; the union jack,
lion, cornucopia, and a figure of Fame completing the composition.
The fan inscribed, ‘Lord Howe’s decisive victory over the Grand
French fleet, June 1, 1794.’ This published by B. Coker, 118 Fleet
Street, August 19, 1794. An example occurs in the collection of Mr.
Burdett-Coutts.
A ‘view of the trial of Warren Hastings, Esq., at Westminster Hall’ in
1778, is given in the centre of a fan having oval medallions at the
sides with references to the numbers on the engraving, as follows:—
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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