Origin of Name
The necklace was
perhaps worn by Mary Louisa Brown in 1849, at the time of her marriage
to Howard Potter
The 19th-century seed pearl necklace designed around
the period 1845-50, in the United States, at the height of the
popularity of seed pearl jewelry, in the U.S., the United Kingdom and
other European countries, was a family heirloom believed to have
descended in the family of Howard Potter, an industrialist, investment
banker, diplomat and philanthropist, who helped found the Metropolitan
Museum of Art, together with other benefactors like William E. Dodge,
Theodore Roosevelt Sr. and others, and became one of the members of its
first board of trustees. Some of the other public institutions he helped
to establish were the American Museum of Natural History, the Children's
Aid Society and the New York Orthopedic Hospital. According to family
tradition Mary Louisa Brown, daughter of James Brown of Brown Bros. &
Co, probably wore this seed pearl necklace on the occasion of her
marriage to Howard Potter in September, 1849. The necklace which
remained in the family for over 150 years, was eventually gifted to the
Metropolitan Museum of Art, by Mrs. Janet H. Dehn in the year 2003.
The necklace was a
valuable addition to the Metropolitan Museum of Art, in New York City
Seed pearl jewelry are delicate pieces of jewelry
held together by horsehair and silk, natural fibers used in the 19th
century for stringing pearls. Unless such pieces had been restrung
during the course of time, its difficult to keep them together as a
single piece, in their original format. Thus, most of the beautiful
pieces of seed pearl jewelry created in the 19th century, had
disintegrated and disappeared forever. Therefore, seed pearl jewelry are
among the most scare items of antique jewelry one can find in an antique
jewelry store. To find an entire seed pearl parure, the usual form in
which they were sold, completely intact is an extreme rarity, and may be
seen perhaps only in a natural history museum,, such as the Mary Lucile
Stevens Seed Pearl Parure in the Treasure House of the Smithsonian
Institution, and several seed pearl jewelry sets in the British Museum.
Thus, the Mary Louisa Brown Seed Pearl Necklace, in a fairly perfect
state of preservation, in spite of being over a century-and-a-half old,
is an extremely valuable addition to the Metropolitan Museum of Art,
where it is preserved and displayed today, under the American Decorative
Arts Section.
Seed Pearl Necklace in the Metropolitan Museum of Art-
Mary Louisa Brown Seed Pearl Necklace
©
Metropolitan Museum of Art
Click to Enlarge (External Link)
Characteristics of
the Seed Pearl Necklace
The necklace is a
"Princess" under the modern system of classification of pearl necklaces
The double strand seed pearl necklace is 50.8 cm (20
inches) long, and under the modern system of classification of pearl
necklaces falls under the category of "Princess," whose range of length
is between 17-20 inches. See table below.
Modern classification
of pearl necklaces based on the length of the strand
|
S/N |
Length of strand in inches |
Category |
|
1 |
10"-13" |
Collar |
|
2 |
14"-16" |
Choker |
|
3 |
17"-20" |
Princess |
|
4 |
21"-24" |
Matinee |
|
5 |
25"-34" |
Opera |
|
6 |
>35" |
Rope |
The materials used on
the necklace are seed pearls, yellow-gold, mother-of-pearl, horsehair
and silk
Three floral plaques, also mounted with seed pearls
on thin sheets of mother-of-pearl, covered with yellow-gold, are placed
at three points on the necklace; one as the centerpiece of the necklace,
and the other two at symmetrical positions on either side of the
necklace. The plaques are joined by the two strands of seed pearls, and
on the rear side to the clasp. The pearls on the floral plaques appear
to be spherical, but those on the strands are baroque in shape. The
rectangular shaped clasp also appear to be mounted with seed pearls. The
gaps between the two strands are filled with a foliage motif, consisting
of pairs of spindle-shaped leaves, also mounted with seed pearls, on a
yellow-gold backing. The pairs of leaves are connected together by two
narrow strands of pearls, representing the stem. Between the centerpiece
and the two floral plaques on either side are four pairs of leaves. The
number of pairs of leaves, between the floral plaques on the sides and
the clasp behind, are three on each side. Another floral cluster hangs
from the central plaque, by a sagging short strand of seed pearls. The
diameter of the seed pearls vary from 1.59 mm to 5.0 mm, and the pearls
are strung together with fine white horsehair, the preferred fiber for
stringing together seed pearls at that time, as it could pass through the extremely
minute drill holes, through which silk thread could not normally pass. The
floral plaques of the necklace are backed by silk for the convenience
and comfort of the wearer.
History of Seed Pearl
Jewelry
The Source of the
Seed Pearls
Pearls that were
known as "Madras Pearls" actually originated on the Sri Lankan side of
the Gulf of Mannar
Seed pearls are presently defined as natural pearls
less than 2 mm in diameter and less than a quarter grain in weight. This
definition however, had changed from time to time, and previously pearls
up to a diameter of 5 mm were considered as seed pearls. The world's
most prolific source of seed pearls in the past had been the Persian
Gulf and the Gulf of Mannar, the traditional source of natural pearls in
the world. This obviously coincided with the existence of the saltwater
pearl oyster, Pinctada radiata in these waters, the most prolific pearl
and seed pearl producer since ancient times. According to George
Frederick Kunz as stated in his book, "The Book of the Pearl" the
quantity of seed pearls obtained in the Ceylon pearl fishery from the
Gulf of Mannar, exceeded that of any other fishery in any part of the
world. The seed pearls produced in the Gulf of Mannar and the Persian
Gulf, eventually found their way to the pearl markets of Bombay and
Madras, two of the largest cities and commercial centers of India during
the British period. In fact Madras was one of the first British outposts
in India, where they built a fortress, and from where they eventually
colonized the entire Indian sub-continent. Madras, was also the
headquarters of the British East India Company. Pearls from the Ceylon
pearl fishery in the Gulf of Mannar, reached Madras on the eastern coast
on India, where they were drilled, and strung into strands, using
horsehair or silk, and then exported in large quantities to the European
pearl markets, where they came to be known as "Madras Pearls," though in
fact the pearls originated on the Sri Lankan side of the Gulf of Mannar.
Significant quantities of seed pearls from the Gulf of Mannar, also
entered the Kingdom of Hyderabad, ruled by the Nizams, where a jewelry
industry based on pearls, and patronized and encouraged by the Nizams,
was based.
Pearls from the
Persian Gulf reached the pearl markets of Bombay
Pearls from the Persian Gulf, usually reached Bombay,
another port of call for British ships on the western coast of India.
The seed pearls that reached Bombay, were drilled and strung into
strands, and sold in the local pearl markets, where there was a great
demand for such pearls from the Maharajahs of the Princely states of
India, who paid better prices than those obtainable in London. The
estimated 2 million pearls that went into the production of the "Pearl
Carpet of Baroda" in the 1860s, are all "Basra pearls" from the Persian
Gulf, that was purchased by the Gaekwar of Baroda, Maharajah Khande Rao
(1856-1870), through his agents based in Bombay.
China and Japan was another source of
seed pearls in the past
Another, source of seed pearls in the past was China
and Japan, where a natural pearl industry based on Pinctada fucata (Akoya
pearl oyster) and Pinctada martensii (Akoya-gai pearl oyster), which
were closely related to Pinctada radiata existed. The Chinese seed
pearls were also drilled and strung with horsehair, before they were
exported to Europe. Thus the main source of seed pearls that reached
Europe in the 18th and 19th centuries, were China and Madras, the ports
from where these pearls were exported.
History of the Usage
of Seed Pearls
Multiple uses of
seed pearls in the past in Asian countries
Before seed pearl jewelry became popular in Europe in
the 19th-century, during the Victorian period, seed pearls had been put
into multiple uses in the countries of the east, such as India, Persia
and the Arab countries of the Middle East. In India, the seed pearls
were strung and used in multi-strand necklaces or twisted into
multi-strand ropes. They were also used in embroidering royal robes and
carpets, the studding of thrones, crowns and other royal paraphernalia.
Seed pearl strands were also used in interior decorations in the courts
and palaces of the kings and emperors of India and Persia. In Europe,
large quantities of seed pearls that reached the capital cities from
Venezuela, via Seville in Spain, was used mainly in the embroidery of
royal robes in the 16th and 17th centuries, such as the famous seed
pearl studded dresses of Queen Elizabeth I.
The use of seed
pearls in Europe become popular in the late Georgian and early Victorian
periods
In Europe, the use of seed pearls in jewelry, first
became popular in the late Georgian period, from the last quarter of the
18th-cenntury to the early quarter of the 19th-century. The popularity
of seed pearls however reached a climax in the early Victorian period,
between 1837 and 1860, a period during which the rapid industrialization
of Europe, created an increased middle class who could afford to
purchase such pieces of jewelry. This was a period during which
symbolism reigned supreme, and great symbolic meanings were attached to
types of gemstones and jewelry motifs used in personal adornment. Seed
pearl jewelry were associated with innocence and purity, and were
believed to be ideal pieces of jewelry to be gifted to a girl on her
18th birthday, as her first formal piece of jewelry or to a bride
on her wedding day.
Seed pearl jewelry
were first introduced to the United States during the Federal period,
but the manufacture of seed pearl jewelry in America started in the
1820s or 1830s.
Seed pearl jewelry were first introduced into America
during the Federal period, immediately after the revolution, and were
imported from Europe, together with its symbolic values. However,
the first workshop to produce seed pearl jewelry in the United States,
was started in the 1820s or 1830s by Henry Dubosq, who used the same
methods employed for its production, as he had seen in England and
Germany, and importing his raw materials initially from Europe, and
later directly from the source countries of India and China. As in
Europe, seed pearl jewelry in the United States were gifted to young
girls at the age of 18, as their first formal piece of jewelry, or to a
bride on her wedding day. By the mid-19th century the wearing of seed
pearl jewelry, became fashionable for all formal occasions, and was a
must even in the ballroom. The usage of seed pearl jewelry received its
highest recognition in America in 1865, when President Abraham Lincoln,
purchased a suite of seed pearl jewelry, consisting of a necklace and
two bracelets, from Tiffany & Co. for his wife, Mary Todd Lincoln, to be
worn at his inauguration, held on Saturday, March 4, 1865. In 1855,
Tiffany's displayed a $1,000 seed pearl parure, at the International
Exposition held at the Crystal Palace, in New York.
The Metropolitan
Museum of Art
Early History of
the Museum
The Metropolitan Museum of Art, popularly known as
"The Met," situated on the eastern edge of Central Park, in New York
City, is one of the world's largest art galleries, having a permanent
collection of more than 2 million works of art, divided into 19
curatorial departments, each manned by a specialized staff of curators
and scholars. The museum was founded in the year 1870, by a group of
American citizens, that included businessman, bankers and financiers,
apart from leading artists and intellectuals of the time, with the
object of bringing art and works of art, closer to the American people,
and to encourage and develop the study and appreciation of fine arts. The museum that opened on
February 20, 1872, was first housed in a building, located at 681,
Fifth Avenue, in New York City. The first President of the Museum was
John Taylor Johnston, a railroad executive, who gifted his personal art
collection to the museum; and the founder Superintendent of the museum
was the publisher, George Palmer Putnam. The artist, Eastman Johnson
served as a co-founder of the museum; and Luigi Palma di Cesnola, the
former Civil War officer, as its first Director. The museum that
initially consisted of only 174 European paintings and a Roman stone
sarcophagus, expanded rapidly, and with the purchase of the Cesnola
Collection of Cypriot antiquities in 1873, the available space was not
enough to hold the increasing collection. The museum was then shifted in 1873, from
its Fifth Avenue location to the Douglas Mansion situated at 128, West
14th Street. But soon, even the space available at Douglas Mansion was
not enough to hold the rapidly expanding collection.
Entrance to the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York
Photo above,
Creative Commons
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York at night
Photo above,
Creative Commons
The Great Hall, Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York
Photo above,
Creative Commons
The construction
of permanent buildings for the museum on the east side of Central Park
The founders of the museum then drew up plans for the
construction of permanent buildings to house the expanding collection,
on the land allocated for the purpose on the east side of Central Park
by the City of New York. The buildings executed in the High
Victorian Gothic Style, was designed by American architects Calvert Vaux
and Jacob Wrey Mould. Since then the building had undergone drastic
alterations, modifications, and expansion, and the original buildings
designed by Vaux, became completely surrounded by later additions.
Presently, the complex of buildings housing the Metropolitan Museum of
Art is around 400 meters long, and covers a floor space of 190,000
square meters (2,000,000 sq.ft.), which is more than 20 times the size
of the original building opened in 1880. The museum buildings are owned
and maintained by the City of New York, which also provides the
utilities, heat etc. The collections in the museum are owned by a
private corporation of fellows and benefactors that total around 1630
persons. The governing body of the museum is the Board of Trustees
consisting of 41 elected members.
The curatorial
departments in the museum
The 17 curatorial departments in the Metropolitan
Museum of Art include the following :-
1) American Decorative Arts
2) American Paintings and Sculpture
3) Ancient Near Eastern Art
4) Arms and Armor
5) Asian Art
6) Costume Institute
7) Drawings and Prints
8) Egyptian Art
9) European Paintings
10) European Sculpture and Decorative Arts
11) Greek and Roman Art
12) Islamic Art
13) Lehman Collection
14) Medieval Art
15) Modern Art
16) Musical Instruments
17) Photographs
The European Sculpture Court, Metropolitan Museum of
Art, New York
Photo above,
Creative Commons
The New Roman Gallery, Metropolitan Museum of Art, New
York
Photo above,
Creative Commons
The Roof Top Garden at the Metropolitan Museum of Art,
New York
Photo above,
Creative Commons
The American
Decorative Arts Department that houses the Mary Louisa Brown Seed Pearl
Necklace
The Mary Louisa Brown seed pearl necklace is part of
the exhibits housed in the American Decorative Arts Department. The
American decorative arts collection, consists of 12,000 items, ranging
from late 17th to early 20th centuries. The collection was started in
1909, after the donation of a private collection of American decorative
arts in 1909 by Margaret Olivia Sage, wife of financier Russell Sage.
However a separate department for American decorative arts was
established only in 1934. Among the departments current holdings are, an
extensive silver collection, including pieces by Paul Revere, and
Tiffany & Co.; an extensive collection of American stained glass,
including pieces by Louis Comfort Tiffany, Henry E. Sharp, William J.
Bolton, and John LaFarge; and furnishings from various periods and
designers.
A Short Biography of
Howard Potter
Howard Potter, an
industrialist, diplomat and successful investment banker
Born to a family of academics in Schenectady, New
York, on July 8, 1826, Howard Potter was the second son of Alonso
Potter, Professor and later Vice President of Union College, and Maria
Nott, the daughter of Dr. Eliphalet Nott, President of Union College,
for more than 60 years. Howard Potter entered Union College in 1842, and
graduated in 1846. After graduation he remained at Union College, as
tutor of Latin and Greek for about an year. He left Union College, and
studied law, and was admitted to the bar at New York. However, he never
practiced law, but instead took up a business career, becoming the
secretary and treasurer of Novelty Iron Works, one of the most notable
machine shops in the U.S. at that time. In 1849, he married Mary Louisa
Brown, the daughter of Mr. James Brown, the head of the New York branch
of the firm, Brown Bros & Co. Soon after his marriage in 1849, Howard
Potter was sent as U.S. diplomat to the Court of Berlin in Prussia, in
which capacity he served for more than 6 months. In 1859, at the
invitation of his father-in-law, James Brown, he joined the firm of
Brown Bros. & Co., becoming one of its partners in 1861. He was active
in the merchant banking business of Brown Bros. & Co., a firm which he
served with dedication until his death. His total commitment and
dedication to the Company, raised him to the position of the managing
director of Brown Shipley, the British Wing of the Brown merchant
banking business. At the time of his death in 1897, Howard Potter, was
still working with Brown Shipley in London.
Howard Potter the
great humanist and philanthropist
Howard Potter, apart from being an industrialist,
diplomat, and successful investment banker, was a notable humanist and
philanthropist, who spared no efforts in uplifting the social and living
standards of the less fortunate in society. His concern for the poor was
clearly demonstrated in his work with "The New York Association for
Improving the Condition of the Poor" a charitable organization, of which
he was President from 1878 to 1884, and whose members referred to him as
one "whose life was one long effort on behalf of the cause of humanity."
However, his greatest act of charity was his work as the Trustee of the
Children's Aid Society for 40 years from 1857 until his death in 1897,
an organization which was his own brainchild, and rendered yeoman's
service to poor, abandoned, and friendless children of New York. After
his death the Children's Aid Society paid the following tribute to him
:-
"There is none who has served our board with more zeal,
or for a longer period, than he, and we meet here to record his life and
death in our minutes. He became by giving, he has done his utmost to
create and sustain the Society. Commanding in presence, gentle in
voice, wise in counsel and most persuasive in address, he stood before
us as the model of a Christian gentleman." He
lived life's full measure and when his time came God's finger touched
him and he slept." Therefore, "Resolved, that his name be ever held
among us in loving remembrance, and that we place on our records this
expression of our affection and gratitude."
Other positions of public
trust held by Howard Potter
1) President
of the Orthopedic Dispensary from 1878 to 1891.
2) President
of the Niagara Park Association.
3) Treasurer
of the United States Sanitary Commission during the civil war.
4) One of the
managers of St. Luke's Hospital from 1869 to 1886.
5) Treasurer
of St, Johnland from 1871 to 1883
6) First
Vice-President of the State Charities Aid from 1874 to 1880.
7) A trustee
of Union College
8) One of the
founders of Metropolitan Museum of Art, and a member of its first board
of trustees.
You are welcome to discuss this
post/related topics with Dr Shihaan and other experts from around the
world in our
FORUMS (forums.internetstones.com)
Related :-
1)
Mary Lucile Stevens Seed Pearl Parure
External Links :-
1) Maker Unknown American Seed Pearl Necklace -
Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History, New York. The Metropolitan Museum of
Art.
http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/works-of-art/2003.350.2
References :-
1) Maker Unknown American Seed Pearl Necklace -
Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History, New York. The Metropolitan Museum of
Art. www.metmuseum.org
2) Metropolitan Museum of Art - From Wikipedia, the
free encyclopedia.
3) Howard Potter - From Wikipedia, the free
encyclopedia.
4) Howard Potter - Alonzo Potter Family Website.
www.alonzopotter.com
