Meyer Franz. A Handbook of Ornament

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METAL

OBJECTS.

391

The

Helmet.

Plate

227

392

The Helmet.

—

The

Sword.

—

The Dagger.

Roman,

bronze, Louvre,

Paris, (Menard et

Sauvageot).

—6. Roman, bronze,

for

gladiators,

different views, (Menard

Sauvageot).

Mediaeval Salade, iron.

8. Mediaeval

Heaume, iron,

the chain was hooked into

the

cross-

shaped

slit.

Mediaeval Tilting-helmet, iron.

10.

Mediaeval Armet, iron.

11.

Mediaeval, iron,

with

barred vizor.

12.

Renascence, Morion, etched iron,

13.

Renascence Burganet, German.

14.

State-helmet, 16th century, (L'art pour

tous).

The

Sword. (Plate

228.)

The Sword

is the most

universally used of the offensive

weapons.

Much

as these

weapons for cutting

and

thrusting differ from

each

other

in size and finish; they

generally

consist of three principal

parts:

the Blade,

single or

double-edged, tapering

more or less

towards

the point,

generally

straight, but sometimes curved

or waved,

also

sometimes fluted

to save

weight, only decorated by

means of

engraving,

etching, damaskeening,

&c.;

the Handle, with

or without

pommel,

cup, or basket; and the

Scabbard or sheath, with

or without

a hanger.

The two

latter, the

handle and scabbard, offer

the most

scope

for decoration. The material of these is, in addition

to iron,

the

other metals and alloys, wood, bone,

leather,

coloured

stones,

&c.

Here,

also, from

an artistic point

of view,^ we

have to consider

less

the

practical

than

the State-swords, on which the

Renascence, the

following

styles, and Modern art, have

found

ample opportunity

exercise their

artistic skill. Plate 228

offers a

small selection from

the copious material

in our

armouries and collections

of weapons.

Plate 228. The Sword,

and

its Scabbard.

—3. Assyrian, from reliefs.

and

6. Egyptian.

5. Prehistoric, bronze, found in

Switzerland.

—9.

Mediaeval, and Renascence,

—12.

Renascence.

—

15.

Renascence,

Pommel,

guard, and

chape,

by Hans

Holbein

the

Younger, (Fornaenschatz).

The

Sword,

and its

Scabbard.

Plate

228.

394

The Dagger.

—

The

Halberd.

The

Dagger.

(Plate

229.)

The Dagger is a Sword

miniature,

'in

which

the

gnard

either

omitted or

reduced

size.

What

has been

said of

the

Sword

will

apply

to the

Dagger. The greatest

artists

the

Renascence:

Holbein,

Diirer,

Cellini,

and

others,

did not

disdain,

as the

plate

shows,

to devote

their

artistic

genius

this weapon,

which

was

often worn

more for

fashion

than for practical purposes.

The "Dance of Death" (fig.

is a very popular motive in the

decoration of the scabbards of

Daggers.

Considering the object of the

weapon, a more

pregnant

and appra-

priate

decoration can scarcely be

imagined.

Plate 229.

The

Dagger, and its

Scabbakd.

Egyptian, blade of white

bronze,

handle of cedar

wood,

plated with gold and

silver, tomb

of Queen Aah-Hotep,

Qurnah ,near Thebes

(1800

C),

Bulak, Museum.

2. Egyptian, blade of

gold,

handle of cedar wood

plated with

gold

and

incrusted

with

red and blue

enamel, (as

No.

1).

3. Renascence,

handle, end

of 15th century,

Basel, (Kunst

Hause).

4. Renascence, handle,

end of

15th century, Basel,

(Viollet-le-Duc).

Renascence, German,

Basel,

(Kunst

im Hause).

6—8.

Designs, by

Hans

Holbein the

Younger,

(1497—1543),

(Formenschatz).

Designs, by

Albrecht

Diirer,

(Formenschatz).

10. Renascence,

German,

blackened iron

parcel-gilt, Collection of

Napoleon III,

(L'art pour

tous).

11.

Creese, from

Sumatra,

wooden

handle

and sheath,

United

collections,

Carlsruhe.

The

Halberd.

(Plate

230.)

Among

the

multifarious

utensils of

war of

the Mid^dle

Ages

and

the

Renascence:

may

specially

mention

the following:

—

The

Lance

and the

Pike,

wooden

shafts

with a leaf or

awl-

shaped

iron

spike.

(Fig. 11

shows a

Pike-head

complicate

shape).

small

flag

was

often

attached to

the

Lance

just below

the

head.

The

Partizan

is a Pike

with a

flat

blade

and

symmetrical

lateral

points

(figs.

1, 4,

and

5).

War

-scythes

and

War-forks:

the

shapes

of which

are

indicated

their

names

(figs.

and

7).

The

Battle-axe,

and Martel,

are

axe

and

hammer-shaped

weapons,

METAL

OBJECTS.

395

The

Dagger,

and

its

Scabbard.

Plate

229.

396

The

Halberd.

—

The

Spoon.

with one

side terminating

in an

axe or

hammer,

and the

other

a point (fig.

9).

The Halberd

a combination

the

Pike or

Partizan

with

the

Battle-axe (figs.

and

8).

The Mace

a handle

with a

knob

of various

forms;

when it

set with

spikes,

it is called

"Morning-star",

and

when

set

with

radiating

blades,

it is

termed a

Quadrelle

(fig.

10).

The War-flail

distinguished

from

the

Mace by

the knob

being

fastened

to the

handle

chain.

And

so on,

in endless variety.

So far

decoration

concerned:

the

first

place is due

Halberds

and Partizans; not

only

because

the

shape

of the blade

frequently very

varied and

handsome,

but

also

because

the

union

with

the shaft,

means of

bands,

nails,

tassels, &c.,

gives an

oppor-

tunity

for rich colour.

The

blades,

slso,

are often

decorated

damaskeening,

engraving,

gilding,

etc.

Plate

230. The Halberd,

&c.

1. Partizan,

richly

etched ,

German,

16th

century,

Historical

Museum, Dresden,

(Kunsthandwerk).

2. Halberd, richly-etched,

German, 1613,

Artillery

Museum,

Paris,

(L'art

pour

tons).

8. Fauchard, richly-etched,

German, 1580,

Artillery

Museum,

Paris,

(L'art

pour

tous).

Partizan, richly-etched,

German,

17th

century,

Artillery

Museum,

Paris,

(L'art

pour

tous).

5. Partizan, richly- etched ,

German, 1712,

Royal

Armoury,

Berlin,

(Kunsthandwerk).

and

Halberds.

Combination of

War-scythe

and

War-fork.

Battle-axe, Hindu,

United

collections,

Carlsruhe.

10.

Mace, so-called

quadrelle,

(VioUet-le-Duc).

Pike.

(The shafts have

been omitted,

only

partially

indicated).

Table

Utensils.

The

Spoon.

(Plate

231.)

The Spoon is,

strictly

speaking,

dipper;

and

has

already been

alluded-to

the

discussion

the group

Vessels (comp.

Plate

193).

It is

here

treated

the

group

of Utensils.

table

utensil the

METAL

OBJECTS.

397

The

Halberd,

&c.

Plate

230.

398 The Spoon.

Spoon has been in

use from the

earliest times; its fundamental

form has undergone

very little

alteration;

although

its style and size

have varied

different periods.

The

form of the

Bowl

is spherical,

elliptic, or

oval

(in the last

case the handle

usually attached

the broad

end, more rarely

the narrow

one).

The Handle has a cylindrical,

prismatic

conical

tapering form,

or is

spatulate. Spatulate handles broaden out at

the

free end; and are

decorated with cartouches or pierced

work

(figs.

26,

—

30).

Prismatic, cylindrical,

and conical, handles usually

terminate

in knobs, busts,

or little whole-length

figures (figs.

—

17,

-and

19—23).

The "handles of

small

Antique

spoons

for eating

shellfish, Ac,

often taper to a

point

to serve

openers. Double-spoons,

shown

in fig.

24,

are

rare. Folding

Pocket-spoons, as in

figs.

18, 19,

and

22,

are

not

infrequent

in the Middle Ages,

and the

Renascence.

Bowl

and

handle

either lie in

the same plane

(figs.

and

16),

they form an

angle at the

point of junction (figs.

and

11).

As a

rule: the

decoration is

confined to the

handle;

where the

bowl is

decorated, it

with

some

kind of flat

work

(engraving, or

enamelling). The

materials are the precious

metals, alloys,

tin,

bone,

horn,* wood,

&c.;

very

often, the handle

and the

bowl are of

different

materials.

Plate

231.

The Spoon.

Egyptian.

—

12.

Antique, bronze,

(ligulae), Pompeii.

—

14.

Mediaeval,

hammered copper,

13th century,

6V4

ins.

long,

Pierrefonds

castle.

—

16.

Mediaeval, tin,

12th century,

6^/4

ins.

long.

Mediaeval, chased

and

hammered

brass,

SVs

i^s.

long,

Pierrefonds castle.

18.

Folding

Pocket-spoon,

I5th

century,

4^8

i°s.

long,

Cluny

Museum,

Paris,

(Viollet-le-Duc).^

19.

Renascence,

South

Kensington

Museum,

London.

20.

Renascence,

silver,

terminating

in a

Madonna,

6^/^

ins.

long,

Cluny

Museum,

Paris.

21.

German,

folding

Pocket

-spoon,

16th

century,

ins.

long,

Dziatinska

collection.

22.

Renascence,

folding

Pocket-spoon

silver, S'/g

ins. long,

Cluny

Museum,

Paris.

23.

Renascence,

bowl

agate,

handle of

copper

gilt,

5'/8

ii>s.,

Cluny

Museum,

Paris.

(L'art

pom* tous).

24.

Double-spoon,

bronze,

Germanisches

Museum,

Nurembeig.

METAL

OBJECTS.

399

The

Spoon. Plate 231.

400

The Spoon.

—

The Knife, and

the Fork.

25. Persian,

from an

inkstand,

17th

century,

4'/^

ins. long,

Duhousset collection, (L'art

pour tous).

26. Persian,

17th century,

4'/4 ins. long, Duhousset collection,.

(L'art

pour tous).

27.

German,

tin, inscription: "Trink und is, Gott nit

vergis".

United

collections, Carlsruhe.

28.

Modern, French,

(Gewerbehalle).

29. Modern,

silver gilt

and enamelled, by

the architect P. O

Schulze,

(Gewerbehalle).

30.

Modern,

silver,

by F.

Seitz.

The

Knife

and the Fork.

(Plate

232.)

Knives and Forks, unlike Spoons, are of

comparatively late

introduction

table utensils. Although it is

probable that they

were in

use at a

very

early period as kitchen

utensils

for carving

food,

still they did not attain the rank of a

recognised

dinner

set

until

the

art of eating had reached a certain

refinement.

It has. been

maintained

that

Knives and Forks appeared on

dinner

tables towards

the

close of the

Roman Empire. In our own

country

it can be

proved

that they did

not come into

general use

until- the 15th or

16th

century. This may

explained

by the

circumstance

that in the

earlier

period of the

Middle ages, as at

the present

time in the East,

food

was

carried

to the mouth

with the fingers

with

spoon,

after

having undergone

the

necessaiy division into

small

portions in

the kitchen.

Cleanliness

was

ensured

frequently

washing the

hands daring dinner.

As regards form

and

material: what has

been said of

Spoons,

also true for Knives and Forks. The handles

are

similarly shaped,

secure

uniformity in the whole set; the

bowl of the Spoon is

replaced

the 'two, or

prongs of the Fork,

or by the

blade

of the Knife. The Handle

made of

wood,

ivory, &c.,

and

it is

comparatively stronger as

must possess a

greater power

of re-

sistance, because the tang or prolongation

of the

blade,

which is

always made

steel,

must

let-into it. As the

Plate shows,

the

shape of the blade has

passed through

many changes in the

course

of time. To cut

the

"t;onsecrated

bread" the

Middle

Ages employed

peculiar knives,

the

blades of which

were engraved

with

mcttoes

and

musical

scales.

Plate

232.

The

Knife, and

the

Fork.

—

2. Mediaeval, (13th—

15th century),

wooden

handle inlaid with

silver.