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Shells in the Archway
Unknown1796–1810
Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum
New York, United States
Pillar and arch design. A pile of shells sits on a ledge before an arch. The arch is fronted by a pilaster on either side. Bunches of grapes hang from a vine over the arch. The interior shows a brick pattern. Printed in off-white and shades of brown on a yellow ocher ground.
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Details
- Title: Shells in the Archway
- Creator: Unknown
- Date Created: 1796–1810
- Type: Sidewall
- Rights: Gift of The Museum at The Fashion Institute of Technology
- Medium: Block-printed on handmade paper
- Provenance: From the General Henry Knox Mansion in Thomaston, Maine. General Knox served under George Washington as first Secretary of War, and in 1796 built his home in Thomaston, planning the rooms around a large square hall. Further changes were made only a few years ago and the plaster was removed from this niche, and the shell paper was discovered beneath the plaster. It had evidently hung there, plastered over, for at least 100 years.
- Dimensions: a) Overall: 74.5 x 56.5 cm (29 5/16 x 22 1/4 in.)
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