I 
 
 Principles of Decorative Design. 
 
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 the Internet Archive 
 
 
 
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Decorative Design. 
 
PRINCIPLES 
 
 OF 
 
 ECORATivE Design. 
 
 BV 
 
 Christopher Dresser, 
 
 Ph.D., F.L.S., F.E.B.S., etc., 
 Author of " T/ie Art of Decorative Design," " U/iity in Variety," etc. 
 
 Ca^^EEE, PeTTEF(, & QAEPIjN; 
 London, Paris, and New York. 
 
PREFACE 
 
 Y object in writing tliis work lias been that of aiding in the 
 art-education of those who seek a knowledge of ornament 
 as applied to our industrial manufactures. 
 
 I have not attempted the production of a pretty book, 
 but have aimed at giving what knowledge I possess upon 
 the subjects treated of, in a simple and intelligible manner. I have 
 attempted simply to instruct. 
 
 The substance of the present work was first published as a series of 
 lessons in the Technical Educator. These lessons are now collected into 
 a work, and have been carefully revised ; a few new illustrations have 
 been inserted, and a final chapter added. 
 
 As the substance of this work was written as a series of lessons for 
 the Technical Educator, I need not say that the book is addressed to 
 working men, for the whole of the lessons in that publication have been 
 prepared especially for those noble fellows who, through want of early 
 opportunity, have been without the advantages of education, but who 
 have the praiseworthy courage to educate themselves in later life, when 
 the value of knowledge has become apparent to them. 
 
 That the lessons as given in the Technical Educator have not been 
 written wholly in vain I already know, for shortly before I had completed 
 this revision of them, I had the opportunity of visiting a provincial town 
 hall which I had heard was being decorated, and was pleasingly surprised 
 
vi PREFACE. 
 
 to see decoration of considerable merit, and evidences that mucli of what 
 I saw liad resulted from a consideration of my articles in the Technical 
 Educator. The artist engaged upon the work, although having suffered 
 the disadvantage of apprenticeship to a butcher, has established himself 
 as a decorator while still a young man ; and from the manifestation of 
 ability which he has already given, I hope for a brighter future for one 
 who, as a working man, must have studied hard. If these lessons as 
 now collected into a work should lead to the development of the art- 
 germs which doubtless lie dormant in other working men, the object 
 which I have sought to attain in writing and collecting these together 
 will have been accomplished. 
 
 Tower Cress y, Notting Hill, 
 London, W. 
 
CojNTEJNT^ 
 
 CHAPTER I. PAGE 
 
 Introductoky — Division I. Akt-knowledge ; Histokic Styles . . . . 1 
 
 „ II. Truth, Beauty, Power, etc. . . . . .14 
 
 „ III. Humour i.\ Ouxament • .... 25 
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 
 COEOUR ............ 30 
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 
 Furniture 50 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 
 Decoration oe Buildings— Division I. General Considerations — Ceilings . . 73 
 
 „ II. Decorations of Walls . . . .83 
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 
 Carpets ........... 94 
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 
 Curtain Materials, Hangings, and Woven Fabrics generally . . . 107 
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 
 Hollow Vessels — Division I. Pottery . . . . . . .117 
 
 „ II. Glass Vessels ...... 127 
 
 ,, III. MhTAL-WORK . ... . . .135 
 
 CHAPTER VIII. 
 
 Hardware ........... 144 
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 
 Stained Glass .......... 153 
 
 CHAPTER X. 
 
 Conclusion ........... 160 
 
Principles of Design. 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 Division I. 
 
 There are many handicrafts in which a knowledge of the true principles of orna- 
 mentation is almost essential to success, and there are few in which a knowledge 
 of decorative laws cannot be utilised. The man who can form a bowl or a vase well 
 is an artist, and so is the man who can make a beautiful chair or table. These are 
 truths; but the converse of these facts is also true ; for if a man be not an artist he 
 cannot form an elegant bowl, nor make a beautiful chair. 
 
 At the very outset we must recognise the fact that the beautiful has a com- 
 mercial or money value. We may even say that art can lend to an object a value 
 greater than that of the material of which it consists, even when the object be formed 
 of pi'ccious matter, as of rare marbles, scarce woods, or silver or gold. 
 
 This being the case, it follows that the workman who can endow his productions 
 with those qualities or beauties which give value to his works^ must be more useful 
 to his employer than the man who produces objects devoid of such beauty, and his 
 time must be of higher value than that of his less skilful companion. If a man, 
 who has been born and brought up as a ''son of toil," has that laudable ambition 
 which causes him to seek to rise al)ove his fellows by fairly becoming their superior, 
 I would say to him that 1 know of no means of his so readily doing so, as by his 
 acquainting himself with the laws of beauty, and studying till he learns to perceive 
 the difference between the beautiful and the ugly, the graceful and the deformed, 
 the refined and the coarse. To perceive delicate beauties is not by any means an easy 
 task to those who have not devoted themselves to the consideration of the beautiful 
 for a long period of time, and of this be assured, that what now appears to you to be 
 beautiful, you may shortly regard as less so, and what now fails to attract you, may 
 ultimately become charming to your eye. In your study of the beautiful, do not be 
 led away by the false judgment of ignorant persons who may suppose themselves 
 possessed of good taste. It is common to assume that women have better taste than 
 men, and some women seem to consider themselves the possessors of even authorita- 
 tive taste from which there can be no appeal. They may be right, only we must 
 be pardoned for not accepting such authority, for should there be any over-estimation 
 
 B 
 
2 
 
 I'lllKCIPLES OF DESIGN. 
 
 of the accuracy of this g-ood taste, serious loss of jn-ogress in art- judgment might 
 result. 
 
 It may be taken as an invariable truth that knowledge, and knowledge alone, 
 can enable us to form an accurate judgment respecting- the beauty or want of beauty 
 of an object, and he who has the greater knowledge of art can judge best of the 
 ornamental qualities of an object. He who would judge rightly of art-works must 
 have knowledge. Let him who would judge of beauty apjjly himself, then, to 
 earnest study, for thereby he shall have wisdom, and by his wise reasonings he will 
 be led to perceive beauty, and thus have opened to him a new source of pleasure. 
 
 Art-knowledge is of value to the individual and to the country at large. To 
 the individual it is riches and wealth, and to the nation it saves impoverishment. 
 Take, for example, clay as a natural material: in the hands of one man this material 
 becomes flower-pots, worth eight een-pence a "cast'''' (a number varying from sixty 
 to tweVe according to size) ; in the hands of another it becomes a tazza, or a vase, 
 worth five pounds, or perhaps fifty. It is the art which gives the value, and not the 
 material. To the nation it saves impoverishment. 
 
 A wise policy induces a country to draw to itself all the wenlth that it can, 
 without parting with more of its natural material than is absolutely necessary. If 
 for every pound of clay that a nation parts with, it can draw to itself that amount of 
 gold which we value at five pounds sterling, it is obviously better thus to part with 
 but little material and yet secure wealth, than it is to part with the material at a low 
 rate either in its native condition, or worked into coarse vessels, thereby rendering a 
 great impoverishment of the native resources of the country necessary in order to 
 its wealth. 
 
 Men of the lowest degree of intelligence can dig clay, iron, or copper, or quarry 
 stone ; but these materials, if bearing the impress of mind, are ennobled and 
 rendered valuable, and the more strongly the material is marked with this eimobling 
 impress the more valuable it becomes. 
 
 I must qualify my last statement, for there are possible cases in which the 
 impress of mind may degrade rather than exalt, and take from rather than enhance, 
 the value of a material. To ennoble, the mind must be noble ; if debased, it can 
 only debase. Let the mind be refined and pure, and the more fully it impresses itself 
 upon a material, the more lovely does the material become, for thereby it has 
 received the impress of refinement and purity; but if the mind be debased and 
 impure, the more does the matter to which its nature is transmitted become degraded. 
 Let me have a sim^^le mass of clay as a candle-holder rather than the earthen 
 candlestick which only presents such a form as is the natural outg-oing of a degraded 
 mind. 
 
 Thei-e is another reasc n why the material of which beautiful objects are formed 
 ehould be of little intrinsic value besides that arising out of a consideration of the 
 
ECONOMY OF MATERIAL. 
 
 3 
 
 exhaustion of the country^ and this will lead us to see that it is desirable in all cases 
 to form beautiful objects as far as possible of an inexpensive material. Clay, wood, 
 iron, stone, are materials which may be fashioned into beautiful forms, but l^eware of 
 silver, and of gold, and of precious stones. The most frag-ile material often endures for 
 a long period of time, while the almost incorrosible silver and gold rarely escape the 
 ruthless hand of the destroyer. " Beautiful though gold and silver are, and worthy, 
 even though they were the commonest of things, to be fashioned into the most 
 exqviisite devices, their money value makes them a perilous material for works 
 of art. IIow many of the choicest relics of antiquity are lost to us, because 
 they tempted the thief to steal them, and then to hide his theft by melting them ! 
 How many imique designs in gold and silver have the vicissitudes of war reduced in 
 fierce haste into money-changers' nuggets ! Where are Benvenuto Cellini's vases, 
 Lorenzo Ghiberti's cups, or the silver lamps of Ghirlandajo ? Gone almost as com- 
 pletely as Aaron's golden pot of manna, of which, for another reason than that 
 which kept St. Paul silent, 'we cannot now speak particularly.' Nor is it only 
 because this is a world ' where thieves break through and steal' that the fine gold 
 becomes dim and the silver perishes. This, too, is a world where ' love is strong as 
 death ; ' and what has not love— love of family, love of brother, love of child, love of 
 lover — prompted man and woman to do with the costliest things, when they 
 could be exchanged as mere bullion for the lives of those who w^ere beloved?"* 
 Workmen ! it is fortunate for us that the best vehicles for art ai-e the least costly 
 materials. 
 
 Having matle these general remarks, I may explain to my readers what I am 
 about to attempt in the little work which I have now commenced. My primary 
 aim will be to bring about refinement of mind in all who may accompany me 
 through my studies, so that they may individually be enabled to judge correctly 
 of the nature of any decorated object, and enjoy its beauties — should it present any 
 — and detect its fai;lts, if such be present. This refinement I shall attemj^t to bring 
 about by presenting to the mind considerations which it must digest and assimilate, 
 so that its new formations, if I may thus speak, may be of knowledge. We shall 
 carefully consider certain general principles, which are either common to all fine arts or 
 govern the production or arrangement of ornamental forms: then we shall notice the 
 laws which regulate the combination of colours, and the application of colours to 
 objects ; after which we shall review our various art-maiiufactures, and considerr art 
 as associated with the manufacturing industries. We shall thus be led to consider 
 furniture, earthenware, table and window glass, wall decorations, carpets, floor cloths, 
 window-hangings, dress fabrics, works in silver and gold, hardware, and whatever 
 
 * From a lecture by the late Professor George Wilson, of Edinburgh. 
 
4 
 
 I'laXCIPLES OF DESIGN. 
 
 is a combination of art and manufacture. I shall address myself^ then^ to the 
 carpenter, the cabinet-maker, potter, glass-blower, paper-stainer, weaver and dyer, 
 silversmith, blacksmith, g-as-finisher, designer, and all who are in any way engaged 
 in the production of art-objects. 
 
 But before we commence our regular work, let me say that without laborious 
 study no satisfactory progress can be made. Labour is the means whereby we raise 
 om'selves above our fellows ; labour is the means by which we arrive at aflluence. 
 Think not that there is a royal road to success — the road is through toil. Deceive 
 not yourself with the idea that you were born a genius — that you were born an artist. 
 If you are endowed with a love for art, remember that it is by labour alone that you 
 can get such knowledge as will enable you to present your art-ideas in a manner 
 acceptable to refined and educated people. Be content, then, to labour. In the case 
 of an individual, success ajipears to me to dejiend upon the time which he devotes 
 to the study of that which he desires to master. One man works six hours a day ; 
 another works eighteen. One has three days in one ; and what is the natural 
 result ? Simply this — that the one who works the eighteen hours jirogresses with 
 three times the rapidity of the one who only works six hours. It is true that indivi- 
 duals differ in mental capacity, but my experience has led me to believe that those 
 who work the hardest almost invariably succeed the best. 
 
 ^Vhile I write, I have in my miud^s eye one or two on whom Nature appeared 
 to have lavishly bestowed art-gifts ; yet these have made but little progress in life. 
 I see, as it were, before me others who were less gifted by Nature, but who 
 industriously jiersevered in their studies, and were content to labour for success; and 
 these have achieved positions which the natural genius has failed even to approach. 
 Workmen ! I am a worker, and a believer in the efficacy of work. 
 
 We will commence our systematic course by observing that good ornament — 
 good decorations of any character, have qualities which appeal to the educated, but 
 are silent to the ignorant, and that these qualities make utterance of interesting 
 facts ; but before we can rightly understand what I may term the hidden utterance 
 of ornament, we must inquire into the general revelation which the ornament of any 
 particular people, or of any historic age, makes to us, and also the utterances of 
 individual forms. 
 
 As an illustration of my meaning, let us take the ornament produced by 
 the Egyptians. In order to see this it may be necessary that we visit a museum — ■ 
 say the British Museum — where we search out the mummy-cases ; but as most 
 provincial museums boast one or more mummy-cases, we are almost certain to find 
 in the leading country towns illustrations that will serve our present purpose. On a 
 mummy-case you may find a singular ornament, which is a conventional drawing of 
 
EGYPTIAN ORNAMENT. 
 
 5 
 
 Fig. 2. 
 
 the Egyptian lotus, or blue water-lily* (see Fig-s. 1, -Z, 3), and in all iJrobability you 
 will find this ornamental device repeated over and over again on the one mummy- 
 case. Notice this peculiarity of the drawing o£ the lotus — a jiecidiarity common to 
 Egyptian ornaments — that there is a severity, a rigidity of line, a sort of sternness 
 about it. This rigidity or 
 severity of drawing is a 
 great peculiarity or charac- 
 teristic of Egyptian draw- 
 ing-. But mark ! with this 
 severity there is alwa^'s 
 coupled an amount of 
 dignity, and in some cases 
 this dignity is very ap- 
 parent. Length of line, 
 firmness of drawing, se- 
 verity of form, and sub- 
 tlety of curve are the great 
 characteristics of Egyptian 
 ornamentation. 
 
 What does all this ex- 
 press ? It expresses the 
 character of the people 
 who created the ornaments. 
 The ornaments of the 
 ancient Egyptians were all 
 ordered by the priesthood, 
 am<ingst whom the learn- 
 ing of this people was 
 stored. The priests were 
 the dictators to the people 
 not only f>i religion, but 
 of the forms which their 
 ornaments were to assume. 
 Mark, then, the expressum 
 of the severity of character 
 
 and dignified bearing of the priesthood : in the very drawing of a simple flower we 
 have presented to us the character of the men who brought about its production. But 
 this is only what we are in the constant habit of witnessing. A man of knowledge 
 
 imlllllHliimllllnilllimmiimmiillll 
 
 !llt| 
 
 Fi-. 3. 
 
 * This can be seen fjrowing in the water-' anks in the Kew Gardens, conservatories, and in 
 the Crystal Palace at Sydenham. 
 
6 
 
 PRINCIPLES OF DESIGN'. 
 
 wi-ites with power and force; while the man of wavering opinions writes timidly and 
 with feebleness. The force of the one character (which character has been ir.ade 
 forcible by knowledg-e) and the ■weakness of the other is manifested by his written 
 words. So it is with ornaments : power or feebleness of character is manifest by the 
 forms produced. 
 
 The Egyptians were a severe people ; they were hard task-masters. When a 
 great work had to be performed^ a number of slaves were selected for the work, and 
 a portion of food allotted to each, which was to last till the work was completed; and 
 if the work was not finished when the food was consumed, the slaves perished. We 
 do not wonder at the severity of Egyptian drawing. But the Egyptians were a noble 
 people — noble in knowledge of the arts, noble in the erection of vast and massive 
 buildings, noble in the greatness of their power. Hence we have nobility of 
 drawing— power and dignity mingled with severity in every ornamental form which 
 they produced. 
 
 We have thus noticed the general utterance or expression of Egyptian drawing ; 
 but what specific communication does this particular lotus make? Most of the 
 ornaments of the Egyptians — whether the adornments of sarcophagi, of water- 
 vessels, or mere charms to be worn i^endent from the neck — were symbols of some 
 truth or dogma inculcated by the priests. Hence Egyptian ornament is said to be 
 symbolic. 
 
 The fertility of the Nile valley was chiefly due to the river annually overflowing 
 its banks. In spreading over the land, the water carried with it a quantity of rich 
 alluvial earth, which gave fecundity to the country on which it was deposited. When 
 the water which had overspread the surrounding land had nearly subsided, the corn 
 which was to produce the harvest was set by being cast upon the retiring water, 
 through which it sank into the rich alluvial earth. The water being now well-nigh 
 Avithin the river-banks, the first flower that sprang up was the lotus. This flower was 
 to the Egyptians the harbinger of coming plenty, for it symbolised the springing 
 forth of the wheat. It was the first flower of spring, or their primrose (first rose). 
 The priesthood, perceiving the interest with which this flower was viewed, and the 
 watchfulness manifested for its appearance, taught that in it abode a god, and that 
 it must be worshipped. The acknowledgment of this flower as a fit and primary 
 object of worship caused it to be delineated on the mummy-cases, and sarcophagi, 
 and on all sacred edifices. 
 
 We shall have frequent occasion, while considering decorative art, to notice 
 symbolic forms; but we must not forget the fact that all good ornaments make 
 utterance. Let us in all cases, when beholding them, give ear to their teachings ! 
 
 Egyptian ornament is so full of forms which have interesting significance that 
 I cannot forbear giving one other illustration ; and of this I am sure, that not only 
 does a knowledge of the intention of each form employed in a decorative scheme 
 
EGYPTIAN ORNAMENT. 
 
 7 
 
 cause the beholder to receive a special amount of pleasure when viewing it, but also 
 that without such knowledge no one can rightly judge of the nature of any 
 ornamental work. 
 
 There is a device in Egyptian ornament which the most casual observer cannot 
 have failed to notice ; it is what is termed the " winged globes" and consists of a 
 small ball or globe, immediately at the sides of which are two asps, and from which 
 extend two wings, each wing being in length about live to eight times that of the 
 diameter of the ball (Fig. 4). The drawing of this device is very grand. The force 
 with which the wings are delineated well represents the powerful character of 
 the protection which the kingdom of Egypt afforded, and which was symbolised by 
 the extended and overshadowing pinions. 
 
 I know of few instances where forms of an ornamental character have been 
 combined in a manner either more quaint or more interesting than in the example 
 before us. The composition presents a charm that few ornaments do, and is worthy 
 
 Fig. 4. 
 
 of careful consideration. But this ornament derives a very special and unusual 
 interest when we consider its purpose, the blow which was once aimed at it, and the 
 shock which its producers must have received, upon finding it powerless to act as 
 they had taught, if not believed, it would. 
 
 The priesthood instructed the people that this was the symbol of protection, and 
 that it so effectually appealed to the preserving spirits that no evil could enter 
 where it was portrayed. With the view of giving a secure protection to the inmates 
 of Egyptian dwellings, this device, or symbol of protection, was ordered to be placed 
 on the lintel (the post over the door) of every building of the Eg^'ptians, whether 
 residence or temple. 
 
 It was to nullify this symbol, and to show the vain character of the Egyptian 
 gods, that Moses was commanded to have the blood of the lamb slain at the passover 
 placed upon the lintel, in the very position of this winged globe. It was also enjoined 
 as a further duty that the blood be sprinkled on the door-post ; but this was merely 
 a new duty, tending further to show that even in position, as well as in nature, this 
 winged globe was powerless to secure protection. This device, then, is of special 
 interest, both as a symbolic ornament and as throwing light on Scripture history. 
 
 Besides the two ornamental forms mentioned— /.e., the lotus and the winged 
 globe— we might notice many others also of great interest, but our space will not 
 
8 
 
 PRINCIPLES OF DESIGX. 
 
 enable us to do so; further information may, however, be got from the South 
 Kensington Museum library,* where several interesting works on Egyptian ornament 
 maybe seen; — from the Grammar of Ornament" by Mr. Owen Jones, — the works on 
 Egypt by Sir Gardiner Wilkinson ; and, especially, — by a visit to the Egyptian Court 
 of the Crystal Palace at Sydenham, and by a careful perusal of the hand-book to 
 that court.f Much might also be said respecting Egyptian architecture, but on this 
 we can say little here ; yet, as the columns of the temples are of a very ornamental 
 character, we may notice that in most cases they were formed of a bundle of papj'riisj 
 stems bound together by thongs or strajjs — the heads of the plant forming the capital 
 of the column, and the stems the shaft (Fig. 5). In some cases the lotus was sub- 
 stituted for the papyrus ; and in other instances 
 the palm-leaf was used in a similar way ; these 
 modifications can be seen in the Egyptian Court 
 at Sydenham with great advantage, and many 
 varieties of form resulting from the use of the 
 one plant, as of the papyrus, may also there be 
 observed. 
 
 We have here an opportunity of noticing how 
 the mode of building, however simple or ^n'iniitive 
 in character, first employed by a nation may 
 become embodied in its ultimate architecture ; for, 
 undoubtedly, the rude houses first erected in Egypt 
 were formed largely of bundles of the papyrus, 
 which were gathered from the river-side — for 
 wood was rare in Egypt — and, ultimately, when 
 buildings were formed of stone, an attempt was 
 made at imitating in the new material the form 
 which the old reeds presented. But mark, the imitation was no gross copy of the 
 original work, but a well-considered and perfectly idealised work, substituting for 
 the bundle of reeds a work having the true architectural qualities of a noble-looking 
 and useful column. We must now pass from the ornament of the Egyptians to 
 that of the Greeks, and here we meet with decorative forms Laving a different 
 object and dil¥ei-ent aim from those already considei-ed. 
 
 * Any person can have admission to the South Kensington Museum Art library and its 
 Educational library, for a week, by payment of sixpence. 
 
 t A hand-book to each of the historic courts erected in the Sydenham Palace was prepared at 
 the time the courts were built. These are still to be got in the Literary department, in the north-east 
 gallery of the building. They are all worthy of careful study. 
 
 t The papyrus was the plant from which Egyptian paper was made. It was also the bulrush of 
 the Scriptures, in which the infant Moses was found. 
 
 Fig. 5. 
 
GEEEK ORNAMENT. 
 
 9 
 
 Egyptian ornament was symbolical in character. Its individual forms had 
 specific meanin<js— the purport of each shape being taught by the priests — but we 
 find no such thing as symbolism in Greek decoration. The Greeks were a refined 
 people, who souglit not to express their power by their art-works so much as their 
 refinement. Before the mental eye they always had a perfect ideal, and their most 
 earnest efforts were made at the realisation of the perfections of the mental 
 conception of absolute refinement. In one respect the Greeks resembled the 
 Egyptians, for they rarely created new forms. When once a form became sacred to 
 the Egyptians, it could not be altered ; but with the Greeks, while bound by no such 
 law, the love of old forms was great ; yet the Greeks did not seek simply to 
 reproduce what they had before created, but laboured hard to improve and refine 
 what they had before done ; and even through succeeding centuries they worked at 
 the refinement of simjile forms and ornamental compositions, which have become 
 characteristic of them as a people. 
 
 The general expression of Greek art is that of refinement, and the manner in 
 which the delicately cultivated taste of. some of the Greeks is expressed by their 
 ornaments is astonishing. One decorative device, which we term the Greek 
 Anthemion, may be regarded as their principal ornament — (the original ornamental 
 composition by one of my pupils. Fig 6, consists primarily of three anthemions) 
 —and the variety of refined forms in which it appears is most interesting. 
 
 But it must not be thought that the Greek ornaments and architectural forms 
 present nothing but refinement made manifest in form, for this is not the case. 
 Great as is the refinement of some of these forms, we yet notice that they speak of 
 more than the perfected taste of their producers, for they reveal to us this fact — that 
 their creators had great knowledge of natural forces and the laws by which natural 
 forces are governed. This becomes apparent in a marked degree when we inquire 
 into the manner in which they arranged the proportion of the various parts of their 
 works to the whole, and esi^ecially by a consideration of the subtle nature of the 
 curves which they employed both in architectural members and in decorative forms ; 
 but into this we must not now inquire. Yet, by way of throwing some ffiint light 
 upon the manner in which knowledge is embodied in Greek forms, I may refer to 
 the Doric column, such as was employed in the Parthenon at Athens* (Fig. 7). The 
 idea presented by this column is that of energetic upward growth which has come 
 in contact with some superposed mass, the weight of which presses upon the 
 column from above, while the energy of the upward growth causes the column 
 to appear fully equal to the task of supporting the superincumbent structure. Mark 
 this— that by pressure from above, or weight, the shaft of the column is distended, 
 
 * A capital, and portion of tlie shaft, of one of these columns are to be seen in tlie Britisli 
 Museum Sculpture-room, and a cast of the same at the Crystal Palace, Sydenham. This Doric 
 column is employed in the Greek Court of the Crystal Palace. 
 
 C 
 
10 
 
 PUIXCIPLES OF DESIGN. 
 
 or hcn'c on':, al:)out one-third of the distance from its base to its apex (just where 
 this distension would oecurj were the column formed of a slightly plastic material), 
 
 Fig. 7. 
 
 and yet this distension of the shaft is not such as to give any idea of weakness, for 
 the column appears to rise with the energy of such vigorous life as to he more than 
 able to bear the weight which it has to sustain. 
 
 Mark also the singularly delicate curve of the capital of the column, which 
 
EASTERN AND CHRISTIAN ORNAMENT. 
 
 11 
 
 appears as a slightly plastic cushion intervening between the shaft and the super- 
 incumbent mass which it has to support. The delicacy and refinement of form 
 presented by this capital is perhaps greater than that of any other with which we 
 are acquainted. 
 
 The same principle of life and energy coming in contact with resistance or 
 pressure from above is constantly met with in the enrichments of Greek cornices 
 and mouldings ; but having called attention to the fact, I must leave the student to 
 observe, and think upon, these interesting sul^jeets for himself. Let me, however, 
 say that there are few classic buildings in England which will aid the learner in his 
 researches ; there is but little poetry in our architectural buildings, and but little 
 refinement in the forms of the parts, especially in our classic buildings ; and, added 
 to this, Greek art without Grec^k colouring is dead, being almost as the marble statue 
 to the living form. For the purposes of my readers, the Greek Court at the Crystal 
 Palace will be the best examjjle for study. 
 
 I might now review Roman ornament, and show that in the hour of pride the 
 materials of which the Roman works were formed were considered, rather than 
 the shapes which they assumed ; and how we thus get little worthy of praise from 
 the all-conquering Romans — how the sunny climate and religious superstitions of the 
 East called forth the gorgeous and beautiful developments of art which have existed, 
 or still exist, with the Persians, Indians, Turks, Moors, Chinese, and Japanese ; but 
 I have not space to do so ; yet all the forms of ornament which these people have 
 created are worthy of the most careful and exhaustive consideration, as they present 
 art-qualities of the highest kind. I know of no ornament more intricately beautiful 
 and mingled than the Persian — no geometrical strapwork, or systems of interlacing 
 lines, so rich as those of the Moors (the Alhambraic) — no fabrics so gorgeous as 
 those of India — none so quaintly harmonious as those of China; and Japan can 
 supply the world with the most beautiful domestic articles that we can anywhere 
 procure. 
 
 We must pass on, however, to what we may term Christian art, or that develop- 
 ment of ornament which had its rise with the Christian religion, and has associated 
 itself in a si^ccial manner with Christianity. 
 
 Neither the Egyptians nor early Greeks appear to have used the arch structurally 
 in their buildings ; the Romans, however, had the round arch as a jjrimary structural 
 element. This round arch v/as also used by the Byzantines, and amongst their 
 ornaments we find those combinations of circles, or parts of circles, which so constantly 
 recur in later times in Gothic architecture and Gothic ornament. Norman buildings, 
 again, show us the round arch, and present us with such intersected arcs as would 
 naturally suggest the pointed arch of later times, with which came the full development 
 of Gothic or Christian architecture and ornamentation. There was a veiy fine and 
 marvellously clever development of decorative art, enthusiastically worked at by the 
 
12 
 
 PEINCIPLES OF DESIGN. 
 
 Christ lan monks of the seventh and eighth centuries, called Celtic, of which we have 
 many beautiful examples in Professor Westwood^s great work on early illuminated 
 manuscri])ts ; but what is generally understood by Christian or Gothic art had its 
 finest develoj)ment about the thirteenth century. 
 
 Gothic ornament, like the Egyptian, is essentially symbolic. Its forms have 
 in many instances specific significance. Thus the common equilateral triangle is in 
 some cases used to symbolise the Holy Trinity ; so are the two entwined triangles. 
 But there are many other symbols employed in Gothic ornament which set forth the 
 mystery of the Unity of the Trinity. Thus in Fig. 8 we have three interlaced 
 circles, which beautifully express the eternal Unity of the Holy Trinity, for the circle 
 
 Fig. 8. Fig. 9. Fig. 10. 
 
 alone symbolises eternity, being without beginning and without end, and the three 
 jjarts point to the Three Persons of the Godhead. A very curious and clever symbol 
 of the Trinity is portrayed in Fig. 9, where three faces are so combined as to form 
 an ornamental figure. 
 
 Baptism under the immediate sanction of the Divine Trinity was represented 
 by three fishes placed together in the manner of a triangle (Fig. 10) ; but so 
 numerous were Christian symbols after the ninth century, that to enumerate them 
 merely would occupy much space. Every trefoil symbolised the Holy Trinity, every 
 cpiatrefoil the four evangelists, every cross the Crucifixion, or the mart3'rdom of some 
 saint. And into Gothic ornamentation the chalice, the crown of thorns, the dice, 
 the sop, the hammer and nails, the flagellum, and other symbols of our Lord's 
 passion have entered. But, besides these, we have more purely architectural forms 
 making gentle utterance : the church spire points heavenwards, and the long lines 
 of the clustered columns of the cathedral direct the thoughts upwards to heaven 
 and to God. 
 
 Gothic ornament, having passed from its purity towards undue elaboration, 
 began to lose its hold on the people for whom it was created, and the form of religion 
 
EENAISSANCE ORNAMENT. 
 
 13 
 
 with which it had long been associated had become old, when the great oveiilirow 
 of old traditions and usages occurred, commonly called the Reformation. With the 
 reformation of religion came a revival of classic learning, and a general diffusion of 
 knowledge, and thus the immediate necessity for art-symbols was passing away, it 
 being especially to an unlettered people that an extended system of symbolism 
 appeals. With this revival of classic learning came the investigation of classic 
 remains — the exploration of Greek and Roman ruins ; and while this was going on, 
 a dislike to w^hatever had been associated with the old form of religion had sprung 
 up, which dislike turned to hate as the struggle advanced, till the feeling against 
 Gothic architecture and ornament became so strong that anything was preferred to 
 it. Now arose Renaissance architecture and ornament (revival work), which was 
 based on the Roman remains, but was yet remoulded, or formed anew ; so that the 
 ornament of the Renaissance is not Roman ornament, but a new decorative scheme, 
 of the same genus as that of the Roman. Here, however, all my sympathies 
 end. I confess that all Renaissance ornament, whether developed imder the soft 
 sky of Italy (Italian ornament), in more northerly France (French Renaissance), 
 or on our own soil (Elizabethan, or English Renaissance), fails to awaken any 
 feeling of sympathy in my breast ; and that it, on the contrary, chills and repels 
 me. I enjoy the power and vigour of Egyptian ornament, the refinement of the 
 Greek, the gorgeousness of the Alhambraic, the richness of the Persian and 
 Indian, the quaintness of the Chinese and Japanese, the simple honesty and bold- 
 ness of the Gothic ; but with the coarse Assyrian, the haughty Roman, and the 
 cold Renaissance, I have no kindred feeling — no sympathy. They strike notes 
 which have no chords in my nature : hence from them I instinctively fly. I 
 must be pardoned for this my feeling by those who differ from me in judgment, 
 but my continued studies of these styles only separate me further from them 
 in feeling. 
 
 It will be said that in my writings I mingle together ornament and architecture, 
 and that my sphere is ornament, and not building. I cannot separate the two. The 
 material at command, the religion of the people, and the climate have, to a great 
 extent, determined the character of the architecture of all ages and nations; but 
 they have, to the same extent, determined the nature of the ornamentation of the 
 edifices raised. Ornament always has arisen out of architecture, or been a mere 
 reflex of the art-principles of the building decorated. We cannot rightly consider 
 ornament without architcctm-e ; but I will promise to take no further notice of 
 architecture than is absolutely necessary to the proper understanding of our subject. 
 
PIU:\X'IPLES OF DESIGN. 
 
 Division II. 
 
 In my previous remarks I have attempted to set forth some of the first 
 principles of ornament, and to call attention to the purport or intention of certain 
 of the leadinj:^ historic styles, and the manner in which they make utterance to us of 
 the faith or sentiments of their producers. 
 
 But there are other utterances of ornament, and other g-eneral expressions 
 which decorative forms convey to the mind. Thus sharp, angular, or spiny forms are 
 
 more or less exciting (Fig. 11); while 
 bold and broad forms are soothing, or 
 tend to give repose. 
 
 Sharp or angular forms, where 
 combined in ornament, act upon the 
 senses much as racy and pointed say- 
 ings do. Thus " cut or angular 
 glass, spinose metal -work, as the 
 pointed foliage of some wrought-iron 
 gates, and other works in which there 
 is a prevalence of angles and points, 
 so act upon the mind as to stimulate 
 it, and thus produce an effect opposite 
 to repose ; w hile " breadth " of form 
 and "largeness" of treatment induce 
 tranquillity and meditation. 
 
 Nothing can be more important 
 to the ornamentist than the scientific 
 study of art. The metaphysical in- 
 cjuiry into cause and effect, as relating 
 to decorative ideas, is very impoi'tant 
 —indeed, all-important — to the true decorator. He must constantly ask himself 
 what eff'ect such and such forms have upon the mind — which effects are soothing, 
 which cheerful, which melancholy, which rich, which ethereal, which gorgeous, 
 which solid, which graceful, which lovable, and so on ; and in order to do this 
 he must separate the vaiious elements of ornamental composition, and consider 
 these apart, so as to be sure that he is not mistaken as to what affects the mind 
 in any particular manner, and he must then combine these elements in various 
 proportions, and consider the effects of the various combinations on his own mind 
 and that of others, and thus he will disco\ er what wall enable him to so act on 
 the senses as to induce effects such as he may desire to produce. 
 
 Are we to decorate a dining-room, let the decoration give the sense of richness; 
 
 Fig. 11. 
 
TRUTH, BEAUTY, POWER. 
 
 In 
 
 a drawing'-room, let it give cheerfulness ; a library, let it give worth ; a bed-room, 
 repose ; but glitter must never occur in large quantities, for that which excites can 
 only bo sparingly indulged in — if too freely employed, it gives the sense of vulgarity. 
 
 In this chapter I have to speak primarily of Truth, Beautij, and Power. Long 
 since I was so fully impressed with the idea that true art-principles are so perfectly 
 manifested by these three words, that I embodied them in an ornamental device 
 which I painted on my study door, so that all who entered might learn the 
 principles which I sought to manifest in my works. 
 
 There can be morality or immorality in art, the utterance of truth or of 
 falsehood ; and by his art the ornamentist may exalt or debase a nation. 
 
 Truth. — How noble, how beautiful ; how righteous to utter it ; and how 
 debasing is falsehood; yet we see falsehood preferred to truth — that which debases 
 to that which exalts, in art as well as morals ; and I fear that there is almost as 
 much that is false, degrading, and untrue in my beautiful art as there is of the 
 noble, righteous, and exalting, although art should only be practised by ennobling 
 hands. It is this grovelling art, this so-called ornamentation, which tends to 
 debase rather than exalt, to degrade rather than make noble, to foster a lie rather 
 than utter truth, which brings about the abasement of our calling, and causes our 
 art to fail in many instances in laying hold of, and clinging to, the affections of the 
 noble and the great. Ornamentation is in the highest sense of the word a Fine 
 Art; there is no art more noble, none more exalted. It can cheer the sorrowing; 
 it can soothe the troubled ; it can enhance the joys of those who make merry ; it 
 can inculcate the doctrine of truth ; it can refine, elevate, purify, and point onward 
 and upward to heaven and to God. It is a fine art, for it embodies and expresses 
 the feelings of the soul of man — that inward spirit which was breathed by the 
 Creator into the lifeless clay as the image of his life — however noble, pure, or holy. 
 
 This being the case, those who ignore decoration cast aside a source of 
 refinement, and deprive themselves of what may induce their elevation in virtue 
 and morals. Such a neglect on the part of those who* can afford luxuries would be 
 highly censurable, were it not that the professors of the art are for the most part 
 false pretenders, knowing not what they practise, and men ignorant of the power 
 which they hold in their hands. The true artist is a rare creature ; he is often 
 unknown, frequently misunderstood, or not understood at all, and is not unfrequently 
 lost to a people that prefer shallowness to deep meaning, falsehood to truth, and 
 glitter to repose. 
 
 We now see the utter folly of appealing simply to what is called "taste "in 
 matters of art, and the uselessness of yielding to the caprice (falsely called taste) of 
 the uneducated in such matters, especially as this so-called taste is often of the 
 most vulgar and debased order. We also see the absurdity of persons who employ 
 a true artist interfering with his judgment and ideas. The true artist is a noble 
 
16 
 
 PRINCIPLES OF DK8IGN. 
 
 teacher ; shall he be told, then, what morals he shall inculcate, and what lofty 
 truths he shall embody in his works, or omit from them ? Do we tell the preacher 
 what he shall say, and ask him to withhold whatever is refining' and elevating ? 
 We do not, and in art we must leave the professors free to teach, and hold them 
 responsible for their teaching's. 
 
 If I thought that I had now convinced my reader that decorative art does not 
 consist merely in the placing together of forms, however beautiful they may be 
 individually or collectively ; nor in rendering ol)jec'ts simply what is called pretty ; 
 but that it is a power for good or evil ; that it is what will elevate or debase — that 
 which cannot be neutral in its tendency-^ — I would advance to consider its jirinciples ; 
 but I cannot teach, nor can I be understood, unless the reader feels that he who 
 practises art wields a vast power, for the rightful use of which he miist be held 
 I'esponsible. 
 
 All graining of wood is false, inasmuch as it attempts to deceive; the effort 
 being made at causing one material to look like another which it is not. All 
 " marbling " is false also : a floor-cloth made in imitation of carpet or matting is 
 false; a Brussels carpet that imitates a Turkey carpet is false; so is a jug that 
 imitates wicker-work, a printed fabric that imitates one which is woven, a gas-lamp 
 that imitates an oil-lamp. These are all untruths in expression, and are, besides, 
 vulgar absurdities which are the more lamentable, as the imitation is always less 
 beautiful than the thing imitated ; and as each material has the power of expressing 
 beauty truthfully, thus the want of truth brings its own punishment. A deal door 
 is beautiful, but it will not keep clean ; let it then be varnished. It is now j^reserved, 
 and its own characteristic features are enhanced by the varnish, so that its indivi- 
 duality is emphasised, and no untruth told. A floor-cloth can present a pattern with 
 true and beautiful curves — how absurd, then, to try and imitate the dotty effect of 
 a carjjet; and the Brussels carpet can express truer curves than the Turkey carpet, 
 then why imitate the latter in the finer material ? But perhaps the most senseless 
 of all these absurdities is the making an earthen jug in imitation of wicker-work 
 when if so formed it wovild be useless as a water-vessel. I can imagine a fool in his 
 simplicity priding himself on such a bright thought as the production of a vessel of 
 this kind, but I cannot imagine any rightly constituted mind producing or com- 
 mending such an idea. Let the expression of our art ever be truthful. 
 
 Beaut will say little on this head, for decorative forms must be beautiful. 
 Shapes which are not beautiful are rarely decorative. I will not now attempt to 
 exj^ress what character forms should have in order that they be considered beautiful, 
 but will content myself by saying that they must be truthful in exjiression, and 
 graceful, delicate, and refined in contour, manifesting no coarseness, vulgarity, or 
 obtrusiveness. My views of the beautiful must be gathered from the series of 
 chapters which will follow, but this I may here say, that the beautiful manifests 
 
UTILITY. 
 
 17 
 
 no want, no shortcoming-. A composition that is beautiful must have no parts 
 which could be taken from it and yet leave the remainder equally good or 
 better. The perfectly beautiful is that which admits of no improvement. The 
 beautiful is lovable, and, as that which is lovable, takes hold of the affections and 
 clings to them, binding itself firmer and firmer to them as i'lme rolls on. If an 
 object is really beautiful we do not tire of it ; fashion does not induce us to change 
 it ; the mereJy new does not disjjlace it. It becomes as an old frieud, more loved as 
 its good qualities are better understood. 
 
 Power. — We now come to consider an art-element or principle of great 
 importance, for if absent from any composition, feebleness or weakness is the result, 
 tlie manifestation of which is not pleasant. With what power do the plants burst 
 from the earth in spring ! With what power do the buds devel.ip into branches ! 
 The powerful orator is a man to be admired, the powerful thinker a man we esteem. 
 Even the simple power, or brute force, of animals we involuntarily approve — the 
 powerful tiger and the powerful horse call forth our commendation, for power is 
 antagonistic to weakness. Power also manifests earnestness ; power means energy ; 
 power implies a conqueror. Our comj^ositions, then, must be powerful. 
 
 But besides all this, we, the professors of decorative art, must manifest power 
 in our works, for we are teachers sent forth to instruct, and ennoble, and elevate our 
 fellow-creatures. We shall not be believed if we do not utter our truths wit4i 
 power ; let truth, then, be uttered with power, and in the form of beauty.* 
 
 There aire other principle?; governing the production and application of orna- 
 ment which we must now notice, the first of which is utilitij, for the first aim of the 
 designer of any article must be to render the object which he produces useful. I 
 may go further, and say that an article must be made not only useful, but as 
 perfectly t/aited to the purpose for which it is intended' as it can l)e. It matters 
 not how beautiful the object is intended to be, it must first be farmed as though it 
 were a mere work of utility, and after it has been carefully created with this end in 
 view it may then be rendered as beautiful as you please. 
 
 There are special reasons why our works should be useful as well as beautiful, 
 for if an object, however beautiful it may be in shape, however richly covered with 
 beautiful ornaments, or however harmoniously coloured, be unpleasant to use, it will 
 
 * I bavo given ia this chapter an original sketch (Pig. 12), in which I have sought to embody 
 chiefly the one idea of power, energy, force, or vigour ; and in order to this, I have employed sucli 
 lines as we see in the bursting buds of sjiring, when the energy of growth is at its maximum, and 
 especially such as are to be seen in the spring growth of a luxuriant tropical vegetation ; I have 
 also availed m>self of those forms to be S3en in certain bones of birds which are associated with 
 the organs of flight, and which give us an impression of great strength, as well as those observable 
 in the powerful propelling fins of certain species of fish. 
 
 O 
 
PRINCIPLES OF DESIGN. 
 
 Fig. 12. 
 
UTILITY AND BEAUTY. 
 
 19 
 
 ultimately be set asidc^ and that which is more convenieut for use will replace it, 
 even if the latter be without beauty. As an illustration of this fact, let us suppose 
 the balustrade railings of a staircase very beautiful, and yet furnished with such 
 projections as render it almost impossible that we walk up or down the stairs without 
 tearing- the dress, or injuring- the person, and how soon will our admiration of the 
 beautiful railing disappear, and even be replaced by hate ! In like manner let the 
 handle of a door, or the head of a poker, be so formed as to hurt the hand, and 
 the simple round knob, or round head, will be jDreferred to it, however ornamentally 
 or beautifully formed. 
 
 In relation to this subject. Professor George Wilson has said : " The conviction 
 seems ineradicable from some minds, that a beautiful thing- cannot be a useful thing, 
 and that the more you increase the beauty of the necessary furniture or the 
 implements of every-day life the more you lessen their utility. Make the Queen's 
 sceptre as beautiful as you please, but don't try to beautify a poker, especially in 
 cold weather. My lady^s vinaigrette carve and gild as you will, but leave untouched 
 my pewter ink-bottle. Put fine furniture, if you choose, into my drawing-room ; 
 but I am a plaiii man, and like useful things in my parlour, and so on. Good folks 
 of this sort seem to labour under the impression that the secret desire of art is to 
 rob them of all comfort. Its unconfessed but actual aim, they believe, is to realise 
 the faith of their childhood, when it was understood that a monarch always wore his 
 crown, held an orb in one hand and a sceptre in the other, and a literal interpretation 
 was put upon Shakespeare's words, 
 
 " ' Uneasy lies the head that wearf? a crown.' 
 
 Were art to prosper, farewell to fire-proof, shapeless slippers, which bask like 
 salamanders unharmed in the hottest blaze. An aesthetic pair, modelled upon 
 Cinderella's foot, and covered with snow-white embroidery, must take their j^lace, 
 and dispense chilblains and frost-bite to miserable toes. Farewell to shooting-coats 
 out a little at the elbows, to patched dressing-gowns, and hair-cloth sofas. Nothing 
 but full-dress, varnished boots, spider-legged chairs, white satin chair-covers, 
 alabaster ink-bottles, velvet door-mats, and scrapers of silver or gold. It is 
 astonishing how many peojile think that a thing cannot be comfortable if it is 
 beautiful. ... If there be one truth Avhich the Author of all has taught us in 
 his works more clearly than another, it is the perfect compatibility of the highest 
 utility with the greatest beauty. I offer you one example. All are familiar with 
 the beautiful shell of the nautilus. Give the nautilus itself to a mathematician, and 
 he will show you that one secret of its gracefulness lies in its following in its volute 
 or whorl a particular geometrical curve with rigid precision. Pass it from the 
 mathematician to the natural philosopher, and he will show you how the simj^le 
 superposition of a great number of very thin transparent plates, and the close 
 
20 
 
 PKINCIPLES OF DESIGN. 
 
 approximation of a multitude of very fine eng-raved lines, are the cause of its 
 exquisite pearly lustre. Pass it from the natural philosopher to the engineer, and 
 he will show you that this fairy shell is a most perfect practical machine, at once a 
 sailing vessel and a diving-bell, in which its living possessor had, centuries before 
 Archimedes, applied to utilitarian ends the law of specific gravity, and centuries 
 before Halley had dived in his bell to the bottom of the sea. Pass it from the 
 engineer to the anatomist, and he will show you how, without marring its beauty, it 
 is occupied during its lifetime with a most orderly system of rowing and sailing 
 tackle, chambers for food, pumps to hce]) bhjod circulating, ventilating apparatus, 
 and hands to control all, so that it is a model ship with a model mariner on board. 
 Pass it lastly from the anatomist to the chemist, and he will show you that every 
 part of the shell and the creature is compounded of elements, the relative weights of 
 which follow in each individual nautilus the same numerically identical ratio. 
 
 " Such is the nautilus, a thing- so graceful, that when we look at it we are 
 content to say with Keats — 
 
 " ' A thing of beauty is a joy for ever 
 
 and yet a thing so thoroughly utilitarian, and fulfilling with the utmost perfection 
 the purely practical aim of its construction, that our shipbuilders would be only too 
 thankful if, thoug-h sacrificing all beauty, they could make their vessels fulfil their 
 business ends half so well." 
 
 Viewing our siiliject in another light, and with special reference to architecture, 
 we notice that unless a building is fitted for the purpose intended, or, in other 
 words, answers utilitarian ends, it cannot be esteemed as it otherwise might be, even 
 though it be of great {esthetic beauty. In respect to this subject, Mr. Owen Jones 
 has said : " The nave and aisles of a Gothic church become absurd when filled with 
 pews for Protestant worship, where all are required to see and hear. The columns of 
 the nave which impede sight and sound, the aisles for processions which no longer 
 exist, rood screens, and deep chancels for the concealment of mysteries, now no 
 longer such, are all so many useless reproductions which must be thrown aside." 
 Further, "As architecture, so all works of the decorative arts, s// oh id possess fitness, 
 proportion, harmony; the result of all which is repose." Sir M. Digby Wyatt has 
 said: " Infinite variety and imei-ring fitness govern all forms in Nature." Vitruvius, 
 that " The perfection of all works depends on their fitness to answer the end proposed, 
 and on principles resulting from a consideration of Nature itself." Sir Charles L. 
 Eastlake, that " In every case in Nature where fitness or utility can be traced, the 
 characteristic quality, or relative beauty, is found to be identical with that of 
 fitness." A. "W. Pugin (the father) : " How many objects of ordinary use are 
 rendered monstrous and ridiculous simply because the artist, instead of seeking the 
 most convenient form, and then decorating it, has embodied some extravagance to 
 
ADAPTATION TO PURPOSE. 
 
 21 
 
 conceal the real purpose for which the article has been made." And with the view 
 of pointing out how fitness for, or adaptation to, the end proposed is manifested in 
 the structure and disposition upon the earth of plants, I have written in a little work 
 now out of print : " Tlie trees which grow highest upon the mountains, and the 
 plants which grow wpon the unsheltered plain, have usually long, narrow, and rigid 
 leaves, which, owing to their form, are enabled to bear the fury of the tempest, to 
 which they are exposed, without injury. This is seen in the case of the species of 
 fir which grow at great altitudes, where the leaves are more like needles than leaves 
 such as commonly occur ; and also in the species of heath which grow upon exposed 
 moors : in both cases the plants are, owing to the form of the leaf, enabled to defy 
 the blast, while those with broad leaves would be shattered and destroyed. 
 
 " Not only is the form of leaf such as fits these plants to dwell in such 
 inhospitable regions, but other circumstances also tend to this result. The stems 
 are in both cases woody and flexible, so that while they bend to the wind they resist 
 its destroying influence by their strength and elasticity. In relation to the stem of 
 the papyrus," which is a plant constantly met with in Egyptian ornaments, " the late 
 Sir W. J. Hooker mentions an interesting fact which manifests adaptation to its 
 position. This plant grows in water, and attaches itself to the margins of rivers 
 and streams, by sending forth roots and evolving long underground stems in the 
 alluvium of the sides of the waters. Owing to its position it is exposed to the 
 influences of the current, which it has to withstand, and this it does, not only by 
 having its stems of a triangular form — a shape well adapted for withstanding 
 pressure — but also by having them so placed in relation to the direction of the 
 stream, that one angle always meets the current, and thus separates the waters as 
 does the bow of a modern steam-ship." 
 
 I might multi2)ly illustrations of this principle of fitness, or adaptation to 
 purpose, as manifested in plants, to an almost indefinite extent ; but when all had 
 been said we should yet have but the simple truth before us, that the chief 
 end which we should have in creating any object, is that of rendering it perfectly 
 fitted to answer the proposed end. If those works which are beautiful were but 
 invariably useful, as they should be ; if those objects which are most beautiful were 
 also the most convenient — and there is no reason why they should not be so — how 
 the beautiful would become loved and sought after ! Cost would be of little 
 moment, the price would not be complained of, if beautiful objects were works of 
 perfect utility. But, alas ! it is far otherwise : that which is useful is often ugly, 
 and that which is beautiful is often inconvenient to use. This very fact has given 
 rise to the highly absurd fashion of having a second poker in a drawing-room set of 
 fire-irons. The one poker is ornamental, possibly, but it is to be looked at ; the 
 other is for use, and as it is not to be looked at, it is hidden away in some corner, or 
 close within the fender. I do not wonder at the second poker being required ; for 
 
22 PIUNCIPLES OF DESIGN. 
 
 nineteen out of every twenty pokers of an ornamental (?) character which I have 
 seen during the last few years would hurt the hand so insufferably if they were used 
 to break a lump of coal with, that it would be almost impossible to employ them 
 constantly for such a purpose. But why not abolish the detestable thing altogether ? 
 If the poker is to be retained as an ornament, place it on the table or chimney-piece 
 of your drawing-room, and not down on the hearth, where it is at such a distance 
 from the eye that its beauties cannot be discovered. It is no use saying it would be 
 out of place in such a position. If to poke the fire with, its place is within the 
 fender ; if it is an ornament, it should be placed where it can be best seen — in a glass 
 case, if worthy of protection. 
 
 I hope that sufficient has now been said upon this all-important necessity, that 
 if an object is to be beautiful it should also be useful, to cause us to consider it as 
 a primary princij^le of design that all objects which we create mnsi be useful. To 
 this as a first law we shall constantly have to refer. When we construct a chair we 
 shall ask, is it useful ? is it strong ? is it properly put together ? could it be stronger 
 without using more, or anothei", material ? and then we should consider whether it 
 is beautiful. When we design a bottle we shall inquire, is it useful ? is it all that a 
 bottle should be ? could it be ' more useful ? and then, is it beautiful ? When we 
 create a gas-branch we shall ask, does it fulfil all requirements, and perfectly answer 
 the end for which it is intended? and then, is it beautiful? And in relation to 
 jjatterns merely we shall also have to make similar inquiries. Thus, if drawing a 
 carpet design, we shall inquire, is this form of ornament suitable to a woven fabric ? 
 is it suitable to the particular fabric for which it is intended ? is the particular treat- 
 ment of the ornament which we have adopted the best possible when w'e bear in mind 
 that the carpet has to be walked over, as it is to act in relation to our furniture as a 
 background does to a picture, and is to be viewed at some distance from the eye ? and 
 then, is it beautiful ? Such inquiries w« shall put respecting any object the formation 
 of which we may suggest : hence, in all our inquiries, I shall, as I love art, consider 
 utility before beauty, in order that my art may be fostered and not despised. 
 
 There are many subjects yet not named in these pages which we ought to 
 consider, but I must content myself by merely mentioning them, and you must be 
 willing to think of them, and consider them with such care as their importance may 
 demand. Some of them, however, we shall refer to when considering the various 
 manufactures. 
 
 A principle of great importance in respect to design is, that i//e material of which 
 an ohject is formed should be used in a manner consistent with its oicn nature, and in 
 that particular wai/ in which it can he most easily "worked." 
 
 Another principle of equal importance with that just set forth, is this : that 
 when an object is about to be formed, that material (or those materials) which is (or 
 are) most appropriate to its formation should be sought and employed. These two 
 
CURVES, PROPORTION, ORDER, REPETITION. 
 
 '23 
 
 propositions are of very great importance, and the principles which they set forth 
 should never be lost sight of by the designer. They involve the first principles of 
 successful designing, for if ignored the work produced cannot be satisfactory. 
 
 Curves will be found to le leautiful just as theij are subtle in character ; those 
 which are most subtle in character being most beautiful. 
 
 The arc is the least beautiful of curves (I do not here speak of a circle, but of 
 the line, as a line, which bounds the circle) ; being struck from one centre its origin 
 is instantly detected, while the mind requires that a line, the contemplation of which 
 shall be pleasurable, must be in advance of its knowledge, and call into activity its 
 powers of inquiry. The elliptic curve, or curve bounding the ellipse, is more beautiful 
 than the arc, for its origin is not so strikingly apparent, being formed from two 
 centres. The curve of the egg is more beautiful still, being formed from three 
 centres.* As the number of centres necessary to the formation of a cui've increases, 
 the difficulty of detecting its origin also becomes greater, and the variety which' the 
 curve presents is also proportionally great; the variety being obviously greater as 
 the number of the centres from which it is struck is increased. 
 
 Proportion, like the curve, must be of a subtle nature. 
 
 A surface must never be divided for the purpose of decoration into halves. The 
 propoi'tion of 1 to 1 is bad. As proportion increases in subtlety it also increases in 
 beauty. The proportion of 2 to 1 is little better ; the proportion of 3 to 8, or of 
 5 to 8, or of 5 to 13, is, however, good, the last named being the best of those which 
 I have adduced ; for the pleasure derived from the contemplation of proportion 
 increases with the difficulty of detecting it. This principle is true in relation to the 
 division of a mass into primary segments, and of primary segments into secondary 
 forms, as well as in relation to the grouping together of parts of various sizes ; hence 
 it is worthy of special note. 
 
 A pi'inciple of order must prevail in ererij ornamental composition. 
 
 Confusion is the result of accident, while order results from thought and care. 
 The operation of mind cannot well be set forth in the absence of this principle ; at 
 least, the presence of a principle of order renders the operation of mind at once 
 manifest. 
 
 The orderly repetition of parts frequently aids in the production of ornamental 
 effects. 
 
 The kaleidoscope affords a wonderful example of what repetition will do. The 
 mere fragments of glass which we view in this instrument would altogether fail to 
 please were they not repeated with regularity. Of themselves repetition and order 
 can do much. (Figs. 13 and 14.) 
 
 * The ellipse and egg-shape here spoken of are not those which are struck by compasses in any 
 way, for the curves of such figures are merely combined arcs, but such as are struck with string, or 
 a "tramel." 
 
24 
 
 PRINCIPLES OF DESIGN. 
 
 Alternation is a j^inci^de of jprinLarij iiiijjortance in certain ornamental com- 
 positions. 
 
 In the ease of a flower (as the buttercup, or chickweed, for example) the 
 coloured leaves do not fall over the green leaves (the petals do not fall over the 
 
 Fig. 14. - Fiff. 16. 
 
 sepals), but between them — they alternate with them. This pruiciple is not only 
 manifested in plants, but also in many ornaments produced m the best periods of art 
 (Fig. 15). 
 
 If plants arc employed as ornaments the// must not he treated imitatirelij, hut must 
 be conventionally treated, or rendered into ornaments (Fig. 10). 
 A monkey can imitate, man can create. 
 
KASTERK GROTESQUES. 
 
 ■25 
 
 These are the chief principles which we shall have to notice, as involved in the 
 production of ornamental designs. 
 
 Division III. 
 
 Some other principles of a less noble character than those which we have 
 already noticed as entering into ornament yet remain to be mentioned. Man will be 
 amused as well as instructed; he must be pleased as well as ennobled by what he sees. 
 I hold it as a first principle that ornamentation, as a true fine art, can administer 
 to man in all his varying moods, and under all phases of feeling. Decoration, if 
 properly understood, would at once be seen to be a high art in the truest sense of the 
 word, as it can teach, elevate, refine, induce lofty aspirations, and allay sorrows ; but 
 we have now to notice it as a fine art, administering to man in his various moods, 
 rather than as the handmaid to relig'ion or morals. 
 
 Humour seems to be as much an attribute of our nature as love, and, like it, 
 varies in intensity with different individuals. There are few in whom there is not a 
 certain amount of humour, and in some this one quality predominates over all others. 
 It not unfrequently happens that men who ai'e great thinkers are also great humorists 
 — great talent and great humour being often combined in the one individual. 
 
 Tlie feeling for humour is ministered to in ornament by the grotesque, and the 
 grotesque occurs in the works of almost all ages and all peoples. The ancient 
 Egyptians employed it, so did the Assyrians, the Greeks, and the Romans ; but none 
 of these nations used it to the extent of the artists of the Celtic, Byzantine, and 
 " Gothic " periods. Hideous " evil spirits " were portrayed on the outside of 
 almost every Christian edifice at one time, and much of the Celtic ornament produced 
 by the early monks consisted of an anastomosis, or network, of grotesque creatures. 
 
 The old Irish crosses were enriched with this kind of ornamentation,* and some 
 of the decorative embellishments of these works are of extraordinary interest ; but 
 those who have access to the beautiful work of Professor Westwood on Celtic manu- 
 scripts will there see this grotesque form of ornament to perfection. As regards the 
 Eastern nations, while nearly all have employed the grotesque as an element of 
 decorative art, the Chinese and Japanese have employed it most largely, and for it 
 they manifest a most decided partiality. The drawings of dragons, celestial lions 
 (always spotted), mythical birds, beasts, fishes, insects, and other supposed inhabi- 
 tants of the Elysian plains, which these people produce, are most interesting and 
 extraordinary. 
 
 Without in any way going into a history of the grotesque, let us look at the 
 characteristic forms which it has assumed, and what is necessary to its successful 
 
 * Casts of one or two of these can be cccn in the central transept of the Crystal Palace at 
 Sydenham. 
 
 E 
 
26 
 
 PRINCIPLES OF DESIGN. 
 
 production. We have said that the grotesque in ornament is the analogue of 
 humour in literature. This is the case ; but the grotesque may represent the truly 
 horrible or repellent, and be simply repulsive. This form is so seldom required in 
 ornamentation that I shall not dwell upon it, and when required it should always 
 be associated with power ; for if the horrible is feeble 
 it cannot be corrective, but only revolting, like a 
 miserable deformed animal. 
 
 I think it may be taken as a principle, that the 
 further the grotesque is removed from an imitation of 
 a natural object the better it is, provided that it be 
 energetic and vigorous — lifelike. Nothing is worse 
 
 Fig. 17. 
 
 Fig. 18. 
 
 than a feeble joke, unless it be a feeble grotesque. The amusing must appear to 
 be earnest. 
 
 In connection with this subject I give here a series of grotesques, with the 
 view of illustrating my meaning, and I would fain give more, but space will not 
 permit me to do so. 
 
 The initial letter S, formed of a bird, is a characteristic Celtic grotesque 
 (Fig. 17). It is quaint and interesting, and is sufficiently unlike a living creature 
 to avoid giving any sense of pain to the beholder, while it is yet in a most unnatural 
 position. It is, in truth, rather an ornament than a copy of a living creature, yet 
 
NATURE OF GROTESQUES. 
 
 27 
 
 Fig. 19. 
 
 it is so suggestive as to call forth the thought of a bird. It should be noticed, 
 in connection with this figure, that the interstices between certain portions of the 
 creature are filled by a knot. 
 This is well — the whole 
 thing being an ornament, 
 and not a naturalistic repre- 
 sentation. 
 
 Fig. 18 is a Siamese 
 grotesque head, and a fine 
 sample it is of the curious 
 form of ornament which it 
 represents. Mark, it is in 
 no way a copy of a human 
 head, but is a true orna- 
 ment, with its parts so ar- 
 ranged as to call up the idea 
 of a face, and nothing more. 
 Notice the volutes forming 
 the chin ; the grotesque, yet 
 highly ornamental, lines 
 forming the mouth and the 
 upper boundary of the fore- 
 head, and the flambeauant 
 ears ; the whole thing is 
 worthy of the most careful 
 study. 
 
 Fig. 19 is a Gothic foli- 
 ated face ; but here we have 
 features which are much too 
 naturalistic. We have, in- 
 deed, only a hideous human 
 face with a marginal ex- 
 crescence of leafage. This 
 is a type to be avoided; it 
 is not droll, nor quaint ; but 
 is simply unpleasant to look 
 upon. 
 
 Fig. 20 is a fish, with the feeling of the grotesques of the Middle Ages, 
 a good type, being truly ornamental, and yet sufficiently suggestive. 
 
 In order that I convey to the reader a fuller idea of my views respecting the 
 
 Fig. 20. 
 
 It is 
 
28 
 
 PIUNCIPLES Ol'' DESIGN. 
 
 grotesque than I otherwise could, I have sketched one or two orig-inal ilhistrations — • 
 Fig-. 21 being- sug-g-estive o£ a face, Fig. 22 of a skeleton (old bogey), and Fig. 23 
 of an impossible animal. They are inten- 
 tionally far from imitative. If naturalistic 
 some w^ould awaken a sense of pain, as they 
 are contorted into curious positions, whereas 
 that which induces no thoug-ht of feelina- 
 induces no sense of pain. 
 
 Of all grotesques with which I am ac- 
 quainted, the di-agons of the Chinese and 
 
 Fig. 21. 
 
 Japanese are those which represent a com- 
 bination of power, vigour, energy, and passion 
 most fully. This is to be accounted for by 
 the fact that these peoples are believers in 
 dragons. When the sun or moon is eclipsed 
 they believe that the luminous orb has ben 
 swallowed by some fierce monster, which they 
 give form to in the dragon, and upon the occurrence of such a phenomenon they, 
 with cans and kettles, make rough music, and thus cause the monster to disgorge 
 the luminary, the brilliancy of which it would otherwise have for ever extinguished. 
 I can understand a believer in dragons drawing* these monsters with the power and 
 spirit that the Chinese and Japanese do; but I can scarcely imagine that a disbeliever 
 could do so — a man's very nature must be saturated wdth a belief in their existence 
 and mischievous power, in order that he embody in his delineation such expres- 
 
 Tig, 22. 
 
HUMOUR IN ORNAMENT. 
 
 29 
 
 sion o£ the assumed character of this imaytuary creature as do the Cliinese and 
 Japanese. 
 
 Although I am not 
 now considering the struc- 
 ture of objects, I may say 
 that the grotesque should 
 frequently be used where 
 we meet with naturalistic 
 imitations. We not unfre- 
 quently see a figure, naturally 
 imitated, placed as a support 
 to a superincumbent weight 
 — a female figure as an 
 architectural pillar bearing 
 the weight of the entab- 
 lature above, men crouched 
 in the most painful positions 
 supporting the bowl of some 
 colossal fountain. Natural- 
 istic figui'es in such positions 
 are simply revolting, how- 
 ever perfect as works of 
 sculpture. If weight has 
 to be supported by that 
 which has a resemblance to 
 a living creature of any 
 kind, the semblance should 
 only be suggested ; and the 
 more unreal and woodeny (if 
 I may make such a word) 
 the support, if possessing 
 the quaintness and humour 
 of a true grotesque, the 
 better. 
 
 It is not the business 
 of the ornamentist to pro- 
 duce that which shall induce the feeling of continued pain, unless there is some 
 exceptional reason for his so doing, and such a reason is of rare occurrence. 
 
 9 
 
* 
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 
 COLOUR. 
 
 Having considered some of the chief princijiles involved in the production of 
 decorative design so far as " expression " goes^ we come to notice that constant 
 adjunct of form which has ever played an important part in all decorative schemes 
 ■ — namely, colour. 
 
 Form can exist independently of colour, but it never has had any important 
 development without the chromatic adjunct. From a consideration of history, we 
 should be led to conclude that form alone is incapable of yielding such enrichments 
 as satisfy ; for no national system of decoration has ever existed in the absence of 
 colour. Mere outline-form may be good, but it is not satisfying ; mere light and 
 shade may be pleasing, but it is not aU that we require. With form our very nature 
 seems to demand colour ; and it is only when we get well-proportioned forms which 
 are graceful, or noble, or vigorous, in combination with colours harmoniously 
 arranged, that we are satisfied. 
 
 Possibly this feeling results from our contact with nature. The flowers appear 
 in a thousand hues, and the hills are of ever-varying tints. What a barren world 
 ours would appear, were the ground, the hills, the trees and the flowers, the sky and 
 the waters all of one colour ! Form we should have, and that in its richest variety ; 
 light and shade we should have, with ever-varying intensity and change ; but colour 
 would be gone. There would be no green to cheer, no blue to soothe, no red to 
 excite ; and, indeed, there would be a deadness, although the world be full of life, 
 so appalling that we can scarcely conceive of it, and cannot feel it. 
 
 Colour alone seems to have greater charms than form alone. A sunset is 
 entrancing when the sky glows with radiant hues; the blue is almost lost in red, the 
 yellow is as a sea of transparent gold, and the whole presents a variety and blending 
 of tints which charm, and soothe, and lull to reverie; and yet all form is indistinct 
 and obscure. If so charming when separate from form, what is colour when properly 
 combined with beautiful shapes ? It is difficult, indeed, for many of those for 
 whom I write to answer this question, even by a mental conception, save by 
 reference to nature ; for I could scarcely point to a single building in England 
 which would be in any way a satisfactory illustration of what may be done by the 
 combination of forms and colours. There is a beauty in Art which we in England 
 do not even know of : it does not exist around us, it is little talked of, rarely 
 thought about, and never seen. A decorator is called in to beautify a house, and 
 
OBJECT OF APPLYING COLOUR. 
 
 31 
 
 yet not one in fifty of the so-called decorators know even the first principles of their 
 art, and would not believe were they told of the power of the art which they employ. 
 They place on the walls a few sickly tints — so pale that their want of^ harmony is 
 not very apparent. The colours of the wall become the colours of the cornice and 
 of the doors, because they know not how to produce a harmony of hues ; and the 
 result is a house which may be clean, but which is in every other respect an offence 
 against good taste. I do not wonder that persons here in England do not care to 
 have their houses " decorated," nor do I wonder at their not appreciating the 
 " decorations " when they are done. Colour, lovely colour, of itself would make our 
 rooms charming. 
 
 There are few objects to which colour may not be applied, and many articles 
 which are now colourless might be coloured with advantage. Our reasons for apply- 
 ing colour to objects are twofold, and here, in fact, we see its true use. 1st. 
 Colour lends to objects a new charm — a charm which they would not possess if 
 without it ; and, 2nd, Colour assists in the sejjaration of objects and parts of objects, 
 and thus gives assistance to form. These, theji, are the two objects of colour. 
 Mark, first, it is to bestow on objects a charm, such as they could not have in 
 its absence. In the hands of the man of knowledge it will do so — it will make an 
 object lovely or lovable, but the mere application of colour will not do this. Colour 
 may be so applied to objects as to render them infinitely more ugly than they were 
 without it. I have seen many a bowl so coloured at our potteries as to be much 
 less satisfactory when coloured than when white — the colouring having marred, 
 rather than improved, its general effect. Here, again, it is knowledge that we want. 
 Knowledge will enable us to transmute base materials into works of marvellous 
 beauty, worth their weight in gold. Knowledge, then, is the true philosopher's 
 stone ; for, we may almost say, if possessed by the artist it does enable him to 
 transmute the baser metals into gold. But a little knowledge will not do this. In 
 order that we produce true beauty, we require much knowledge, and this can only 
 be got by constant and diligent labour, as I have before said ; but the end to be 
 gained is worth the plodding toil. Believe me, there is a pleasure in seeing your 
 works develop as things of beauty, delighting all who see them — not the illiterate 
 only, but also the educated thinker — such as woi'ds fail to express. Although 
 there is no royal road to art-power, and although the road is long, and lies through 
 much toil and many difficulties, yet as you proceed there is pleasui-e in feeling 
 that one obstacle after another is cleared from your path, and at the end there is 
 inexpressible satisfaction. The second object of colour is that of assisting in the 
 separation of form. If objects are placed near to one another, and these objects are 
 all of the same colour, the beholder will have much more diificulty in seeing the 
 boundaries or terminations of each than he would were they variously coloured; he 
 would have to come nearer to them in order to see the limits of each, were all 
 
3Z 
 
 PRINCirLES OF DESIGN. 
 
 coloured in the same manner, than he would were they variously coloured : thus 
 colour assists in the separation of form. This quality which colour has of separating 
 forms is often lost sight of, and much confusion thereby results. If it is worth while 
 to produce a decorative form, it is worth while to render it visible ; and yet, how 
 much ornament, and even good ornament, is lost to the eye through not being ren- 
 dered manifest by colour ! Colour is the means by which we render form apparent. 
 
 Colours, when placed together, can only please and satisfy the educated when 
 combined harmoniously, or according to the laws of harmony. What, then, are the 
 laws which govern the arrangement of colours ? and how are they to be applied ? 
 We shall endeavour to answer these questions by making a series of statements in 
 axiomatic form, and then we shall enlarge upon these propositions. 
 
 GENERAL CONSIDERATIONS. 
 
 1. Hcgarded from an art point of view, there are but three colours — i.e., blue, 
 red, and yellow. 
 
 2. Blue, red, and yellow have been termed primary colours ; they cannot be 
 formed by the admixture of any other colours. 
 
 3. All colours, other than blue, red, and yellow, result from the admixture of 
 the primary colours. 
 
 4. By the admixture of blue and red, purple is formed; by the admixture of 
 red and yellow, orange is formed ; and by the admixture of yellow and blue, green 
 is formed. 
 
 5. Colours resulting from the admixture of two primary coloui-s are termed 
 secondarij : hence purple, orange, and green are secondary colours. 
 
 6. By the admixture of two secondary colours a tertiary colour is formed : thus, 
 purple and orange produce russet (the red tei'tiary) ; orange and green produce citrine 
 (the yellow tertiary) ; and green and purple, olive (the blue tertiary); russet, citrine, 
 and olive are the three tertiary colours. 
 
 CONTRAST. 
 
 7. When a light colour is juxtaposed to a dark colour, the light colour appears 
 lighter than it is, and the dark colour darker.* 
 
 8. When colours are juxtaposed, they become influenced as to their hue. Thus, 
 when red and green are placed side by side, the red aj)pears redder than it actually 
 is, and the green greener ; and when blue and black are juxtaposed, the blue mani- 
 fests but little alteration, while the black assumes an orange tint or becomes "rusty." 
 
 9. No one coloiir can be viewed by the eye without another being created. 
 Thus, if red is viewed, the eye creates for itself green, and this green is cast upon 
 
 * If a dark grey tint be mixed upon a white slab it will appear dark in contrast with the 
 white, but if a small portion of this same grey is applied to black paper it will appear almost white. 
 
COLOUR — CONTRAST AND HARMONY. 
 
 33 
 
 whatever is near. If it views green^ red is in like manner created and cast upon 
 adjacent objects ; thus, if red and green are juxtaposed, each creates the other in 
 the eye, and the red created by the green is cast upon the red, and the green created 
 by the red is cast upon the green ; and the red and the green become improved by 
 being juxtaposed. The eye also demands the presence of the three primary colours, 
 either in their pm-ity or in combination ; and if these are not present, whatever is 
 deficient will be created in the eye, and this induced colour will be cast upon what- 
 ever is near. Thus, when we view blue, orange, which is a mixture of red and 
 yellow, is created in the eye, and this colour is cast upon whatever is near; if black 
 is in juxtaposition with the blue, this orange is cast upon it, and gives to it an 
 orange tint, thus causing it to look " rusty.^' 
 
 10. In like manner, if we look upon red, green is formed in the eye, and is 
 cast upon adjacent colours ; or, if we look upon yellow, purple is formed. 
 
 HARMONY. 
 
 11. Harmony results from an agreeable contrast. 
 
 12. Colours which perfectly harmonise improve one another to the utmost. 
 
 13. In order to perfect harmony, the three colours are necessary, either in their 
 purity or in combination. 
 
 14. Red and green combine to yield a harmony. Red is a primary colour, and 
 green, which is a secondary colour, consists of blue and yellow — ^the other two 
 primary colours. Blue and orange also produce a harmony, and yellow and purple, 
 for in each case the three primary colours are present. 
 
 15. It has been found that the primary colours in perfect purity produce exact 
 harmonies in the proportions of eight parts of blue, 5 of red, and 3 of yellow ; that 
 the secondary colours harmonise in the proportions of 13 of purple, 11 of green, 
 and 8 of orange ; and that the tertiary colours harmonise in the proportions of olive 
 24, russet 21, and citrine 19. 
 
 16. There are, however, subtleties of harmony which it is difficult to understand. 
 
 17. The rarest harmonies frequently lie close on the verge of discord. 
 
 18. Harmony of colour is, in many respects, analogous to harmony of musical 
 sounds. 
 
 QUALITIES OF COLOURS. 
 
 19. Blue is a cold colour, and appears to recede from the eye. 
 
 20. Red is a warm colour, and is exciting ; it remains stationary as to distance. 
 
 21. Yellow is the colour most nearly allied to light ; it appears to advance 
 towards the spectator. 
 
 22. At twilight blue appears much lighter than it is, red much darker, and 
 yellow slightly darker. By ordinary gaslight blue becomes darker, red brighter, 
 and yellow lighter. By this artificial light a pure yellow appears lighter than 
 white itself, when viewed in contrast with certain other colours. 
 
 V 
 
34 
 
 PUmCIPLES OF DESIGN. 
 
 23. By certain combinations colour may make glad or depress, convey the idea 
 of purity, richness, or poverty, or may affect the mind in any desired manner, as 
 does music. 
 
 TEACHINGS OF EXPERIENCE. 
 
 24. When a colour is placed on a gold ground, it should be outlined with a 
 darker shade of its own colour. 
 
 25. When a gold ornament falls on a coloured ground, it should be outlined 
 with black. 
 
 26. When an ornament falls on a ground which is in direct harmony with it, it 
 must be outlined with a lighter tint of its own colour. Thus, when a red ornament 
 falls on a green ground, the ornament must be outlined with a lighter red. 
 
 27. When the ornament and the ground are in two tints of the same colour, if 
 the ornament is dai-ker than the ground, it will require outlining with a still darker 
 tint of the same colour ; but if lighter than the ground no outline will be required. 
 
 ANALYTICAL TABLES OF COLOUR. 
 
 WTien commencing my studies both in science and art, I found great advantage 
 from reducing all facts to a tabular form so far as possible, and this mode of study I 
 would recommend to others. To me this method appears to have great advantages, 
 for by it we see at a glance what otherwise is difficult to understand ; if carefully 
 done, it becomes an analysis of work ; and by preparing these tabular arrangements 
 of facts the subject becomes impressed on the mind, and the relation of one fact to 
 another, or of one part of a scheme to another, is seen. 
 
 The following analytical tables will illustrate many of the facts stated in our 
 propositions. The figures which follow the colours represent the proportions in 
 which tliey harmonise : — • 
 
 Primary Colours. Secondary Colours. Tertiary Colours. 
 
 Blue . . 8 Pnrple . . 13 Olive . . 21 
 
 Eed . . 5 Green . . 11 Eusset . . 21 
 
 Yellow . . 3 Orange . . 8 Citrine . . 19 
 
 Primary Colour!^. Secondary Colours. Tertiary Colours. 
 
 Eed . 
 
 Yellow 
 
 Bine . 
 Yellow 
 
 Blue . 
 Eed . 
 
 Eed . 
 
 I Orange . . . 8 | 
 
 , Citrine, or Yellow Tertiary 19 
 [• Green . . ■ H ) 
 
 Yellow 3) 
 Blue . 
 
 ?J Purple ... 13 
 Orange ... 8 
 
 Eusset, or Eed Tertiary . 21 
 
 ,, ■ or Green . . 11 ) 
 
 ^'^''o^^ • ^ Olive, or Bhxo Tertiary . 24 
 
 Blue . . 8f -p , ,o 1 
 
 Eed . . 5| ^'^'■P''^ • • • 
 
\ 
 
 COLOl'R PROPORTIONS THAT HARMONISE. 
 
 This latter table shows at a glance how each of the secondary and tertiary 
 colours is formed, and the proportions in which they harmonise. It also shows 
 why the three tertiary colours are called respectively the yellow tertiary, the red 
 tertiary, and the hhie tertiary, for into each tertiary two e(iuivalents* of one primary 
 enter, and one equivalent of each of the other primaries. Thus, in citrine we find 
 two equivalents of yellow, and one each of red and blue ; hence it is the yellow 
 tertiary. In russet we find two equivalents of red, and one each of blue and of 
 yellow ; and in olive two of blue, and one each of red and yellow. Hence they are 
 respectively tljp red and blue tertiaries. 
 
 BLUE 8. 
 
 PURPLE 13. 
 
 PURPLE 13 
 
 GRE^N 11, 
 
 OLIVE 24. 
 
 RUSSET 21. 
 
 RED 5. 
 
 YELLOW 3. 
 
 GREEN II. 
 
 ORANGE 8. 
 
 ORANGE 8. 
 Fig. 24. 
 
 CITRINE 19. 
 Fig. 25. 
 
 Figs 24 and 25 are diagrams of harmony. I have connected in the centre, by 
 three similar lines, the colours which form a harmony; thus, blue, red, and yellow 
 harmonise when j)laced together. Purple, green, and orange also harmonise (I have 
 connected them by dotted lines in the first of the two diagrams). But when two 
 colours are to produce a harmony, the one will bo a primary colour, and the other a 
 secondary formed of the other two ])rimary colours (for the ])resence of the three 
 primary colours is necessary to a harmony), or the one will be a secondary, and the 
 other a tertiary colour formed of the two remaining secondary colours. Such 
 harmonies I have j)laced opposite to each other ; thus blue, a primary, harmonists 
 with orange, a secondary ; yellow with purple ; and red with green ; and the secondary 
 colour is placed between the two primary colours of which it is formed; thus, orange 
 is formed of red and yellow, between which it stands; green, of blue and yellow; 
 and purple, of blue and red. In the second of the two diagrams we see that jwrijle, 
 green, and orange produce a harmony, so do olive, russet, and citrine. We also see 
 that purple and citrine harmonise, and green and russet, and orange and olive. 
 
 Continuing this diagrammatic form of illustration, we may set forth the 
 quantities in which the various colours harmonise : thus : — 
 
 * An equivalent of blue is 8, of red 5, of yellov,- S. 
 
36 
 
 PRINCIPLES OF DESIGN. 
 
 Blue. 
 O O O O 
 O O O O 
 
 Bed. 
 
 O O O O 
 O 
 
 Yellow. 
 O O O 
 
 Blue. 
 O O O O 
 O O O O 
 
 Bed. 
 
 O O O O 
 O 
 
 Yelloiv. 
 
 o o o 
 
 harmonises with 
 
 harmonises with 
 
 harmonises with 
 
 Orange. 
 O O O O 
 O O O O 
 
 Green. 
 
 o o o 
 o o o o 
 o o o 
 
 Purple. 
 O O O O 
 O O O O 
 O O O O 
 O 
 
 Purple. Citrine. 
 O O O O harmonises with O O O O 
 
 OOOO OOOO 
 OOOO OOOO 
 O OOOO 
 
 O O O 
 
 Green. Bussrt. 
 OOOO harmonises with OOOO 
 
 OOOO OOOO 
 GOO OOOO 
 
 OOOO 
 OOOO 
 
 o 
 
 Orange. Olive. 
 OOOO ' harmonises with OOOO 
 
 OOOO OOOO 
 
 OOOO 
 OOOO 
 OOOO 
 OOOO 
 
 To those who are about to practise ornamentation^ it is very important that 
 they have in the mind's eye a tolerably accurate idea of the relative quantities of 
 the various colours necessary to harmony, even where the colours are considered 
 as existing in a state of absolute purity. We have rarely, however, to use the 
 brightest blues, reds, and yellows which pigments furnish, and even these are but 
 poor representatives of the potent colours of Kght as seen in the rainbow, and with 
 
TRUE COLOURS AND PIGMENTS. 
 
 37 
 
 the agency o£ the pi'ism ; nevertheless, a knowledge of the quantities in which these 
 pure colours harmonise is very desirable. The proportions in which we have stated • 
 that colours perfectly harmonise, and in which the primary colours combine to form 
 the secondaries, and the secondaries the tertiaries, are given in respect to the colours 
 of light, and not of pigments or paints, which, as we have just said, are more or less 
 base representatives of the pure colours of light. Yet certain pigments may, for 
 our purpose, be regarded as representing pure colours. Thus, the purest real 
 ultramarine we will regard as blue (cobalt is rather green, that is, it has a little 
 yellow in it, and the French and German ultramarines are generally rather purj^le, 
 or have a little red in them, yet the best of these latter is a tolerably pure colour) , 
 the purest French carmine as red (common carmine is frequently rather crimson, 
 that is, has blue in itj vermilion is much too yellow), and lemon-chrome as yellow 
 (the chrome selected must be without any green shade, and without any orange 
 shade, however slight) ; and these pigments will be found to represent the colours 
 of the prism as nearly as any that can be found. I would recommend the learner to 
 get a small quantity of these colours in their powder form, substituting the best 
 pale German ultramarine for real ultramarine, as the latter is of high price,* and to 
 fill the various circles of our diagrams, which represent the primary colours, with 
 these pigments, mixing them with a little dissolved gum arable and water — just 
 sufficient to prevent the colours from rubbing ofE the paper. The secondary 
 colours will be fairly represented by pale-green lake, often called drop-green, 
 by orange-chrome — that of about the colour of a ripe, rather deep-coloured, 
 orange-rind — and the purjile by the admixture of pale German ultramarine and 
 crimson-lake, in about equal proportions, with a little white to bring it to the same 
 depth as the green. I cannot name any pigments which would well represent the 
 tertiary colours. Citrine is about the colour of candied lemo7i-j)GQ[ ; olive about the 
 colour of candied citron-peel, and russet is often seen on the skin of certain apples 
 called "russet apples," in the form of a slight roughness; but this russet is in many 
 cases not quite sufficiently red to represent the colour bearing the same name. Iron 
 rust is rather too yellow. This colour should bear the same relation to red that 
 the candied lemon-peel does to yellow. 
 
 If the student will try carefully to realise these colours, and will fill up the 
 circles in our diagrams with them, he will thereby be much assisted in his studies; 
 but it will be still better if he prepare fresh diagrams on a larger scale, and use 
 squares instead of circles. I should recommend, and that I do strongly, that the 
 
 * Real ultramarine is sold at .£8 per ounce. The best imitation, or German ultramarine, is 
 procurable at any oil-shop at about 3s. to 4s. per pound. The best carmine should be procurable 
 at 6s. per ounce, but artists' colourmen often charge .£1 Is., owing to the small demand for this 
 pigment. The best chrome yeUow (chrome yellow is kept in many shades) is about Is. 6d. per 
 pound. 
 
PRINCIPLES OF DESIGN. 
 
 student work out all the diagrams which I have suggested on a tolerably large 
 ' scale^ using the colours where I have used words. I should also advise him to do 
 an ornament, say in red on a gold ground, and outline this red ornament with a 
 deeper red ; to do a gold ornament on a coloured ground, and outline it with black ; 
 and indeed to carefully work out an ornamental illustration of our propositions, Nos. 
 24, 25, 26, and 27, and to keep these before him till he is so impressed by them as 
 to feel the principle which they set forth. This should be done on a large scale in 
 all our designing-rooms and art-workshops. 
 
 As we shall have to refer to colours by naming pigments, and as I am 
 constantly asked what pigments I employ, I shall enumerate the paints in my 
 colour-box ; but I shall place a dagger against those which I have in my private 
 box, and which I do not supply in my offices ; but these I seldom use. Of yellows 
 I have fking's yellow (not a permanent colour), fvery pale chrome, lemon-chrome 
 (about the colour of a ripe lemon), middle-chrome (half-way between the lemon and 
 orange-chrome), orange-chrome (about the colour of the rind of a ripe orange), 
 tyellow-lake, flndian yellow. Of reds — vermilion, carmine, crimson-lake. Of 
 blues — fcobalt, German ultramarine, both deeji and pale, Antwerp blue, indigo. 
 Of greens — emerald, green -lake, pale and deep. Of browois — raw Turkey umber, 
 Vandyke, Venetian red, purple-brown, brown-lake. Besides these I have what is 
 called celestial blue, which is a very jjure and intense turquoise, vegetable black, 
 flake white, and gold bronze.* 
 
 There are certain facts connected with the mixing of colours which must never 
 be lost sight of ; thus, while the colours of light co-mingle without any deterioration, 
 or loss of brilliancy, ])igments or paints will not do so, but by admixture tend to 
 destroy one another. This takes place only to a small extent when but two primary 
 colours are combined ; but if any of the third primary enters into the composition 
 of a tint, a decided deterioration, or loss of intensity, occurs. 
 
 For this reason we employ many pigments, so as to avoid as far as possible the 
 mixing of colours. But there is another reason why the great admixture of colours 
 is undesirable. Colours are chemical agents, and in some cases the various pigments 
 act chemically on one another. Of all colours yellows suffer most by admixture 
 with other colours; but this is accounted for by their delicacy and purity. For this 
 reason I use a greater variety of yellow pigments than of red or blue.f 
 
 Were it possible to procure three pigments devoid of chemical affinities, and 
 
 * Some of these colours are not of a permanent character and could not be used in work 
 intended to be lasting. I use them for patterns for our manufactures, where when the drawing is 
 once copied in a fabric it is destroyed. Some of the brightest colours are unfortunately the most 
 fleeting. 
 
 t Of all mediums in which colours can be mixed, parafRne is the safest; ib is without 
 cheu;icul affinitits, and is therefore well calculated to preserve pif^ments in their original condition. 
 
COLOUR SHADES, TINTS, AND HUES. 
 
 39 
 
 each of the same physical constitution, as of equal degrees of transparency or 
 opacity, one truly representing the blue of light, another the red, and another 
 the yellow, we should need no others, for of these we could form all other colours ; 
 but as no pigments come even near to the fulfilment of these conditions, we have 
 to employ roundabout and clumsy methods of arriving at desired results. 
 
 There is one statement which I have made that, perhaps, needs a little 
 elucidation, although the careful student may have seen the reason of my asser- 
 tion. I said that purple harmonised with citrine, green with russet, and orange 
 with olive. I might have expressed it (and many would have done so) thus : — 
 The complement of citrine is purple, the complement of russet is green, and the 
 complement of olive is orange. A colour which is complementary to any other 
 is that which, with it, completes the presence of the three primary colours : thus 
 green is the complement of red, and red of green, for each, together with the colour 
 to which it is the complement, completes the presence of the three colours. But in 
 order to a harmony, the complement must be made up in certain proportions. Let 
 us now refer to our second diagrammatic table, and we there see that citrine is 
 formed of two equivalents of yellow and only one equivalent of red and of blue. 
 Now, in order to a harmony, each primary should be present in two equivalents, 
 as one is present in this quantity — i.e., the yellow. One equivalent of blue and 
 one of red (both of which are wanting in the citrine) form purple ; hence purple 
 is the complement of citrine, or the colour that with it produces a harmony. In 
 russet one equivalent of blue and one of yellow are wanting, and these in com- 
 bination are green — green, then, is the complement of russet. And in olive one 
 equivalent of red and one of yellow are wanting — red and yellow form orange, hence 
 orange is the complement of olive. 
 
 I have spoken of all colours as of full intensity and purity, but we have to deal 
 also with other conditions. All colours may be darkened by black, when shades are 
 produced ; or reduced by white, when iiuls are produced. Besides these alterations 
 in intensity, a portion of one colour may be added to another. Thus, if a small 
 portion of blue be mingled with red, the red becomes a crimson or blue-red ; or if a 
 small portion of yellow be added to the red, the latter becomes a scarlet or yellow- 
 red. In like manner, when yellow is in excess in a green, we have a yellow-green ; 
 or when blue is in excess, a blue-green ; and so with the other colours. Such 
 alterations produce hues of colour. 
 
 We now come to the subtleties of harmony. Thus, if we have a yellow-red or 
 scarlet — a red with yellow in it — the green that will harmonise with it will be a 
 blue-green ; or if we have a blue-red or crimson — a red with blue in it — the green 
 that will harmonise with it will be a yellow-green. This is obvious, for the following 
 reasons : — Let us suppose a red I'epresented by the equivalent number, five, with one 
 part of blue added to it, thus causing it to be a blue-red or crimson. Were the red 
 
40 
 
 PIltNCIPLES OF DESIGN. 
 
 pure, there should be eleven parts of green as a complement to the five of red, of 
 which green eight parts would be blue and three yellow ; but the blue-red occurs in 
 six parts, one of which is blue — there are, then, but seven parts of blue remaining 
 in the equivalent quantity to combine with the three of yellow, one being already 
 used; hence the green formed is a yellow-green, one of the equivalents of blue 
 necessary to the formation of a true green being already in combination with the 
 red, and thus absent from the green. 
 
 The same reasoning will apply to the scarlet-red and blue-green, and, indeed, to 
 all similar cases ; but to take the case of the crimson-red and yellow-green, as just 
 given, and carry it a stage further, we might add two parts (out of the eight) of 
 blue to the red, and make it more blue, and then form the complementary green of 
 six parts of blue' and three of yellow, and thus make it more yellow. Or we may go 
 further still, and add to the red six of the eight parts of blue, when the admixture 
 would appear as a red-purple rather than as a blue-red, in which Case the com- 
 plementary green — or, rather, green-yellow — would consist of two parts of blue and 
 three of yellow. These facts are diagrammatically expressed in the following : — 
 
 Bed. 000007^. , . Yelloiv- ( O O O Yellow. 
 
 r Urimson harmonises with < 
 
 Blue. O ) Green- (^OOOOOOO Slue. 
 
 Or, 
 
 Bed. 00000 7 S^'^''- , . . , ^'^''2/ C 000 Yellow. 
 
 ?- harmonises with Yellow -< 
 
 Blue.. 00) Crimson ^^^^^^ ) O O O O O O Slue. 
 
 Or, 
 
 Bed. 000007 Green- C O O O Yellow. 
 
 r „ , harmonises with „ „ -{ ^, 
 
 Blue. 000000 ) Pwrple Yellow. I O O Slue. 
 
 In all these cases it will be seen that we have eight parts of blue, five of red, 
 and three of yellow, only the mode of combination varies. This variation may occur 
 to any extent, provided the totals of each be always the equivalent proportions. 
 
 These remarks will apply equally to hues of colour, shades, and tints, and to 
 shades and tints of hues. 
 
 Care, and a little practice, will enable the leai'ner to arrange colours into 
 a number of degrees of depth, or shades, as they are generally called. (We do 
 not here use the term as signifying pure colours darkened with black.) Ten shades 
 of each colour differing obviously in degree of depth can readily be arranged by the 
 experienced, the ten shades being equidistant from each other as regards dej^th — that 
 is, shade 3 will be as mucli darker than shade 2 as shade 2 is darker than shade 1, and 
 so on throughout the whole. Pm-ple is a colour intermediate between blue and red. 
 Imagine ten hues between tbe purple and the red, and ten more between the purple 
 and the blue : thus we should have purple, then a slightly red purple, then a rather 
 redder purple, then a purple still redder, and so on till we get purple-reds, and 
 
COLOUR — DIAGRAMS OP HARMONY. 
 
 41 
 
 finally the pure rod ; and the same variations of hue at the blue side also. Imagine, 
 further, the green having ten hues extending towards the blue, and ten more stretch- 
 ing towards the yellow ; and the orange having ton hues towards the red, and ten 
 towards the yellow — in all cases I count the colour from which we start as one of 
 the ten, thus : — 
 
 Blue Purple Red 
 
 0987654321234567890 
 — and we shall have 54 colours and hues of colour. Of each of these 54 colours 
 and hues imagine 10 degrees of depth, and we get 540 colours, hues, tints, and 
 shades, all differing from one another to an obvious degree. 
 
 Mark this fact, that any colour, tint, hue, or shade of such a diagram has its 
 complement in one other of the colours, tints, hues, or shades of the diagram, and 
 that only two of this series of 540 are complementary to each other; thus, if you 
 fix on any one colour of the 540, there is but one colour in the whole that is 
 complementary to it, and it is complementary to but this one other colour. 
 
 The student will do well to try and make a colour-diagram of this kind, 
 of a simple character, say such as the following, only using pigments for my 
 numbers ; but in doing so he must exercise the utmost care, in order that he secure 
 some degree of accuracy of tint or shade, and if he can call to his aid an experienced 
 colourist it will be of great assistance to him. 
 
 Jted- 
 
 <5> 
 
 <0 
 
 CP 
 
 ■red 
 
 A5 
 
42 
 
 PUTNCIPLES OF DESIGN. 
 
 This table is hig-hly valuable^ as it gives ninety harmonies, if carefully prepared 
 in colour ; and the preparation of such a table is the very best practice that a student 
 can possibly have. 
 
 Let us for a moment consider this table, and suppose that we want to find the 
 complement to some particular colour, as the third shade of red. We find the com- 
 plement of this in the third shade of green opposite. If we want the complement 
 of the second shade of orange-yellow, we find it in the second shade of blue-purple 
 opposite, and so on. Thus we have a means of at once judging of the harmony of 
 colours. 
 
 It must ever be borne in mi ad that pigments mixed in the proportions given 
 will not yield results such as would occur when the coloured rays of light are 
 combined ; thus three parts, either by weight or measure, of chrome yellow when 
 combined with eight parts of ultramarine would not form a colour representing 
 the secondary green, nor would the result be more satisfactory were other pigments 
 combined in the proportions given. What we have said in respect to the proportions 
 in which colours combine to form new colours applies only to the coloured rays 
 of light. 
 
 It must now be noticed that while colours harmonise in the proportions stated, 
 the areas occupied by the different colours may vary if there be a corresponding 
 alteration in intensity. Thus eight of blue and eight of orange form a perfect 
 harmony when both colours are of prismatic intensity ; but we shall still have a 
 perfect harmony if the orange is diluted to one-half its strength with white, and 
 thus formed into a tint, provided there be sixteen parts of this orange of half strength 
 to the eight parts of blue of full strength. 
 
 The orange might be further diluted to one-third of its full power, but then 
 twenty-four parts would be necessary to a perfect harmony with eight parts of 
 prismatic blue ; or to one-fourth of its strength, when thirty-two parts would be 
 necessary to the harmony. 
 
 It is not desirable that I occupy space with diagrams of these quantities, but 
 the industrious student will prepare them for himself, and will strive to realise 
 a true half-tint, quarter-tint, etc., which is not a very easy thing to do. By 
 practice, however, it will readily be accomplished, and anything achieved is a 
 new power gained. 
 
 What I have said respecting the harmony of blue with tints of orange will 
 apply in all similar cases. Thus red will harmonise with tints of green, provided 
 the area of the tint be increased as the intensity is decreased; and so will yellow 
 harmonise with tints of piirple under similar conditions. 
 
 But we may reverse the conditions, and lower the primary to a tint retaining 
 the secondary in its intensity. Thus blue, if reduced to a half -tint, will harmonise 
 with orange of prismatic intensity in the proportion of sixteen of blue to eight of 
 
COLOUR HARMONY OF SHADES AND TINTS. 
 
 43 
 
 orange ; or, if reduced to a quarter-tint, in the proportion of tliirty-two of blue to 
 eight of orange. Red, if reduced to a half-tint, will harmonise in the proportion of 
 ten red to eleven of green ; and yellow as a half-tint in the proportion of six yellow 
 to thirteen of purple. 
 
 The same remarks might be made respecting the harmony of shades of colour 
 with colours of prismatic intensity. Thus, if orange is diluted to a shade of half 
 intensity with black, it will harmonise with pure blue in the proportion of sixteen 
 of orange to eight of blue, and so on, just as in the case of tints ; and this principle 
 applies to the harmony of all hues of colour also. 
 
 To go one step further : we scarcely ever deal with pure colours or their shades 
 or tints, or even come as near them as we can. With great intensity of colour we 
 seem to require an ethereal character, such as we have in those of light; but 
 our pigments are coarse and earthy — they are too real-looking, and are not ethereal 
 — they may be said to be corporeal rather than spiritual in character. For this 
 reason we have to avoid the use of our purest pigments in such quantities as render 
 their poverty of nature manifest, and to use for large surfaces such tints as, through 
 their subtlety of composition, interest and please. A tint the composition of which 
 is not apparent is always preferable to one of more obvious formation. Thus we are 
 led to use tints which are subtly formed, and such as please by their newness and 
 bewilder by the intricacy of formation. 
 
 To do what I here mean it is not necessary that many pigments be mixed 
 together in order to the formation of a tint. The effect of which I speak can 
 frequently be got by two well-chosen pigments. Thus a fine series of low-toned 
 shades can be produced by mixing together middle-chrome and brown-lake in various 
 proportions, and in all of the shades thus formed the three primary colours will Ije 
 represented, but in some yellow will predominate, and in othei's red ; while in many 
 it will not be easy to discover to what proportionate extent the three primary colours 
 are present. 
 
 Let us suppose that we make a tint by adding white to cobalt blue. This blue 
 contains a small amount of yellow, and is a slightly green blue. But to this tint 
 we add a small amount of raw umber with the view of imparting a greyness* or 
 atmospheric character. Raw umber is a neutral colour, leaning slightly to yellow — 
 that is, it consists of red, blue, and yellow, with a slight excess of the latter. In 
 order that an orange harmonise with this grey-blue of a slightly yellow tone, 
 the orange must be slightly inclined to red, so as to form the complement of 
 the little green formed by the yellow in the blue. It may harmonise with the 
 grey-blue as a pure tint if the area of the diluted and neutralised primary is 
 
 * Cobalt, raw umber, and white make a magnificent grey, both in oil-colours, in tempera 
 (powder- colours mixed with gum-water), and in distemper (powdei'-colours mixed with size). 
 
44 
 
 PRINCIPLES OF DESIGN. 
 
 sufficiently extended, or may itself be likewise reduced to a tint of tlie same 
 depth, when both tints would have the same area. 
 
 I might g-o on multiplying cases of this character to almost any extent, 
 but these I leave the student to work out for himself, and pass to notice that while 
 it is desirable to use subtle tints (often called "broken tints it is rarely expedient 
 to make up the full harmony by a large area of a tertiary tone and a single positive 
 colour. Thus, we might have a shade or a tint of citrine sjireading over a large 
 surface as a ground on which we wished to place a figure. This figure would 
 harmonise in pure purple were it of a certain size, and yet if thus coloured it would 
 give a somewhat common-place effect when finished, for the harmony would be too 
 simple and obvious. It would be much better to have the nineteen parts of citrine 
 reduced, say, to half intensity, when the area would be increased to thirty-eight, 
 with the figm-e of eight parts of blue and five of red, than of thirteen parts of 
 purple. 
 
 But it would be better still if there were the thirty-eight parts of reduced 
 citrine, three parts of pure yellow, thirteen of purple, five of red, and eight of blue, 
 together with white, black, or gold, or all three (these may be added without altering 
 the conditions, as all act as neutrals), for here the harmony is of a more subtle 
 character. 
 
 If we count up the equivalents of the colours emjiloyed in this scheme of 
 harmony, we shall see that we have, in the citrine — 
 
 Yellow . . . . . .6 (two equivalents). 
 
 Blue . . . . . .8 (one equivalent). 
 
 Red . . . . . .5 (one equivalent). 
 
 In the purple — 
 
 Blue . . . . . .8 (one equivalent). 
 
 Red . . . . . .6 (one equivalent). 
 
 Of the nure colours — 
 
 Yellow • . . . . .3 (one equivalent). 
 
 Red . . . . . .5 (one equivalent). 
 
 Blue . . . . . .8 (one equivalent). 
 
 Thus we have three equivalents of each primary, which give a perfect harmony. 
 
 I must not say more respecting the laws of harmony, for in the space of 
 a small work it is impossible to do so, but proceed to notice certain effects or 
 properties of colours, which I have as yet only alluded to, or have passed altogether 
 unnoticed. 
 
 I have said that black, white, and gold are neutral as regards colour. This 
 is the case, although many would suppose that gold was a yellow. Gold will act 
 as a yellow, but it is generally employed as a neutral in decorative work, and 
 
COLOUR — TEACHINGS OF EXPERIENCE. 
 
 45 
 
 it is more of a neutral than a yellow, for both red and blue exist largely in it. 
 The pictorial artist frames his picture with gold because it, being a neutral, does 
 not interfere with the tints of his work. It has the further advantage of being 
 rich and costly in appearance, and thus of giving an impression of worth where 
 it exists. 
 
 Black, white, and gold, being neutral, may be advantageously employed to 
 separate colours where separation is necessary or desirable. 
 
 Yellow and purple harmonise, but yellow is a light colour and purple is dark. 
 These colours not only harmonise, but also contrast as to depth, the one being 
 light and the other dark. The limit of each colour, wherever these are used in 
 juxtaposition, is therefore obvious. 
 
 It is not so with red and green, for these harmonise when of the same depth. 
 This being the case, and red being a glowing colour, if a red object is placed on a 
 green ground, or a green object on a red ground, the " figure and ground will 
 appear to " swim" together, and will produce a dazzling efEect. Colour must assist 
 form, and not confuse it. It will do this in the instance just named if the figure is 
 outlined with black, white, or gold, and there will be no loss of harmony. But 
 experience has shown that this effect can also be averted by outlining the figure 
 with a lighter tint of its own colour. Thus, if the figure is red and the ground 
 green, an outline of lighter red (pink) may be employed. (See Proposition 26, 
 page 34.) 
 
 A blue figure on a red ground (as ultramarine on carmine), or a red figure on a 
 blue ground, will also produce this swimming and unsatisfactory effect, but this is 
 again obviated by an outline of black, white, or gold. 
 
 Employing the outline thus must not be regarded as a means of merely ren- 
 dering what was actually unpleasant endurable, for it does much more — it affords 
 one of the richest means of effect. A carmine ground well covered with bold green 
 ornament having a gold outline is, if well managed, truly gorgeous ; and were 
 the figure blue on the red ground, the lavish use of gold would render the employ- 
 ment of yellow unnecessary' as the yellow formed in the eye and cast upon the 
 gold would satisfy all requirements. 
 
 It is a curious fact that the eye will create any colour of which there is a de- 
 ficiency. This it will do, but the colour so created is of little use to the composition 
 unless white or gold is present; if, however, there be white or gold in the com- 
 position, the colour which is absent, or is insufficiently represented, will be formed 
 in the eye and cast upon these neutrals, and the white or the gold, as the case 
 may be, will assume the tint of the deficient or absent colour. (See Propositions 
 8 and 9, page 32.) 
 
 While this occurs (and sometimes it occurs to a marked degree, as can be shown 
 by experiment), it must not be supposed that a composition in which any element is 
 
46 
 
 PRINCIPLKS OF DESIGN. 
 
 wanting is as perfect as one which reveals no want. It is far otherwise; only Nature 
 here comes to our assistance, and is content to help herself rather than endure our 
 short-comings ; but in the one case we give Nature the labour of completing the 
 harmony; while in the other, all being prepared, we receive a sense of satisfaction 
 and repose. 
 
 In Proposition 8 we showed that when blue and black are juxtaposed, the black 
 becomes " rusty,'"' or assumes an orange tint; and in Proposition 9 we gave the cause 
 of this effect. Let a blue spot be placed on a black silk necktie, and however black 
 the silk, it will yet appear rusty. This is a fact; but we sometimes desire to employ 
 blue on black, and wish the black to look black, and not an orange-black. How can 
 we do this ? Obviously by substituting for the black a very dark blue, as indigo. 
 The bright blue spot induces orange (the complement of blue) in the eye. This 
 orange, when cast upon black, causes the latter to look " rusty ; " but if we place in 
 the black an amount of blue sufficient to neutralise the orange cast upon it, the 
 effect will be that of a jet-black. 
 
 We have now considered those qualities of colour, and those laws of contrast and 
 harmony, which may be said to be of the grosser sort ; but we have scarcely touched 
 on those considerations which pertain to special refinement or tenderness of effect. 
 But let me close the part of my subject of which I have treated, by repeating a 
 statement already made — a statement, let me say, which first led me to perceive 
 really harmony of colour — that those colours, and those particular hues of colour, 
 which improve each other to the utmost, are those which perfectly harmonise. (Consider 
 this statement in connection with Propositions 8, 9, 10, and 14, pages 32 and 33.) 
 
 We come now to consider delicacies and refinements in colour effects, which, 
 although dependent upon the skilful exercise of the laws enunciated, are yet of a 
 character, the power to produce which only results from the consideration of the 
 works of the masters of great art-nations ; but of these effects I can say little beyond 
 pointing out what should be studied. 
 
 This principle however I cannot pass without notice — namely, that the fijiest 
 colour effects are those of a rich, mingled, bloomy character. 
 
 Imagine a luxuriant garden, the beds in which are filled with a thousand 
 flowers, having all the colours of the rainbow, and imagine these arranged as closely 
 together as will permit of their growth. When viewed from a distance the effect is 
 soft and rich, and full and varied, and is all that is pleasant. This is Nature's 
 colouring. It is our work humbly to strive at producing like beauty with her. 
 
 This leads me to notice that primary colours (and secondary colours, also, when 
 of great intensity) should be used chiefly in small masses^ together with gold, white, 
 or black. 
 
COLOUR — REFINEMENTS OF HARMONY. 
 
 47 
 
 Visit the Indian Museum at Whitehall^* and consider the beautiful Indian 
 shawls and scarves and table-covers ; or, if unable to do so, look in the windows of 
 our large drapers in the chief towns, and see the true Indian fabrics,t and observe 
 the manner in which small portions of intense reds, blues, yellows, greens, and a 
 score of tertiary tints, are combined with white and black and gold to produce a very 
 miracle of bloom. I know of nothing in the way of colour combination so rich, so 
 beautiful, so gorgeous, and yet so soft, as some of these Indian shawls. 
 
 It is curious that we never find a purely Indian work otherwise than in good 
 taste as regards colour harmony. Indian works, in this respect — whether carpets, 
 or shawls, or dress materials, or lacquered boxes, or enamelled weapons — are almost 
 perfect — perfect in harmony, perfect in richness, perfect in the softness of their 
 general effect. How strangely these works contrast with ours, where an harmonious 
 work in colours is scarcely ever seen. 
 
 By the co-mingling (not co-mixing) of colours in the manner just described, 
 a rich and bloomy effect can be got, having the general tone of a tertiary colour of 
 any desired hue. Thus, if a wall be covered with little ornamental fiowerets, by 
 colouring all alike, and letting each contain two parts of yellow and one part of blue 
 and one of red, as separate and pure colours, the distant hue will be that of citrine : 
 the same effect will result if the flowers are coloured variously, while the same 
 proportions of the primaries are preserved throughout. I can conceive of no 
 decorative effects more subtle, rich, and lovely than those of which I now speak. 
 
 Imagine three rooms, all connected by open archways, and all decorated with a 
 thousand flower-like ornaments, and these so coloured, in this mingled manner, that 
 in one room blue predominates, in another red, and in another yellow; we should 
 then have a beautiful tertiary bloom in each — a subtle mingling of colour, an ex- 
 quisite delicacy and refinement of treatment, a fulness such as always results from 
 a rich mingling of hues, and an amount of detail which would interest when 
 closely inspected ; besides which, we should have the harmony of the general effect 
 of the three rooms, the one appearing as olive, another as citrine, and the other as 
 russet. 
 
 This mode of decoration has this advantage, that it not only gives richness and 
 beauty, but it also gives purity. If pigments are mixed together they are thereby 
 reduced in intensity, as we have already seen ; but if placed side by side, when 
 viewed from a distance the eye will mix them, but they will suffer no diminution of 
 brilliancy. 
 
 With the view of cultivating the eye, Eastern works cannot be too carefully 
 studied. The Indian Museum should be the home of all who can avail themselves of 
 tlie opportunity of study which it affords ; and the small Indian department of the 
 
 * This museum is open free to tbe public. f These will only be seen in very first-class shops. 
 
48 
 
 PRINCIPLES OF DESIGN. 
 
 South Kensington Museum should not be neglceted, small though it is* Chinese 
 works must also be considered, for they likewise supply most valuable examples of 
 colour harmony ; and although they do not present such a perfect colour bloom as do 
 the works of India, yet they are never inharmonious, and give clearness and sharp- 
 ness, together with great brilliancy, in a manner not attempted by the Indians. 
 
 The best works of Chinese embroidery are rarely seen in this country; but these 
 are unsurpassed by the productions of any other people. For richness, splendour, 
 and purity of colour, together with a delicious coolness, I know of nothing to equal 
 them. 
 
 The works of the Jajianese are not to be overlooked, for in certain branches of 
 art they are inimitable, and as colourists they are almost perfect. On the commonest 
 of their lacquer trays we generally have a bit of good colouring, and their coloured 
 pictures ai-e sometimes marvels of harmony. 
 
 As to the styles of colouring adopted by the nations referred to, I should say 
 that the Indians produce rich, mingled, bloomy, warm effects — that is, effects in 
 which red and yellow prevail ; that the Chinese achieve clearness, repose, and 
 coolness — a form of colouring in which blue and white prevail; and that the Japanese 
 effects are warm, simple, and quiet. 
 
 Besides studying the works of India, China, and Japan, study those also of 
 Turkey and Morocco, and even those of Algeria, for here the colouring is much better 
 than with us, although not so good as in the countries first named. No aid to 
 progress must be neglected, and no help must be despised. f 
 
 With the view of refining the judgment fui-ther in respect to colour, get a good 
 colour-top,J and study its beautiful effects. See also the ''gas tubes" illuminated 
 
 * It. may not be generally known, bnt nearly all our large mannfactnring towns liave, in 
 connection with the Chamber of Commerce, a collection of Indian fabrics, filling several large 
 volumes, which were prepared, at the expense of Government, under the superintendence of 
 Dr. Forbes Watson, and which -were given to the various towns on the condition that they be 
 accessible to all persons who are trustworthy. Although these collections do not embrace the 
 costly decorated fabrics, yet much can be learned from them, and the combinations of colour are 
 always harmonious. A much larger collection is now in course of formation. 
 
 f The South Kensington Museum has a very interesting collection of art-works from China 
 and Japan ; but the latter are chiefly lent. It is a strange thing that the perfect works of the 
 East are so poorly illustrated in this national collection, while costly, yea, very costly works of 
 inferior character, illustrative of Eenaissance art, swarm as thickly as flies in August. This can 
 only be accounted for by the fact that the heads of the institution have a feeling for pictorial 
 rather thaa decorative art, and the Renaissance ornament is that which has most of the pictorial 
 element. To me, the style appears to owe its very weakness to this fact, for decorative ai-t shou d 
 be wholly ideal. Pictorial art is of necessity more or less imitative. 
 
 X Not the so-called colour or "chameleon" top sold in the t' y-shops, but the more scientific 
 toy procurable of opticians, together with the perforated discs of Mr. John Graham, M.E.C.S., of 
 Tunbridge, Kent. 
 
COLOURING — EASTERN METHODS. 
 
 49 
 
 by electricity, as sold by opticians, and let tlie prism yield you daily instruction. 
 Soap-bubbles may also be blown, and the beautiful colours seen in tliem carefully 
 noted. These and any other available means of cultivating- the eye should constantly 
 be resorted to, as by such means only can we become great colourists. 
 
 As to works on colour, we have the writings of Field, to whom we are indebted 
 for valuable discoveries; of Hay, the decorator, and friend of the late David Roberts, 
 but some of his ideas are wild and Utopian ; of Chevreul, whose work will be most 
 useful to the student ; and the small catechism of colour by Mr. Redgrave, of the 
 South Kensington Museum, which is excellent. The student will also do well to 
 carefully study the excellent manual of "Colour'"' by Professor Church, of Cirencester 
 College. 
 
 H 
 
CHAPTER III. 
 
 FURNITURE. 
 
 Having considered those principles which are of primary importance to the orna- 
 mentistj we may commence our notice of the various manufactures, and try to 
 discover what particular form of art should be applied to each, and the special manner 
 in which decorative principles should be considered as applicable to various materials 
 and modes of working. 
 
 We shall first consider furniture, or cabinet-work, because articles of furniture 
 occupy a place of greater importance in a room than carpets, wall-papers, or, perhaps, 
 any other decorative works ; and, also, because we shall learn from a consideration of 
 furniture those structural principles which will ])e of value to us in considering the 
 manner in which all art-objects should be formed if they have solid, and not simply 
 superficial, dimensions. 
 
 In the present chapter, I shall strive to impress the fact that design and 
 ornamentation may be essentially different things, and that in considering the 
 formation of works of furniture these should be regarded as sejDarate and distinct. 
 " Design," says Redgrave, " has reference to the construction of any work both for 
 use and beauty, and therefore includes its ornamentation also. Ornament is merely 
 the decoration of a thing constructed." 
 
 The construction of furniture will form the chief theme of this chapter, for 
 unless such works are properly constructed they cannot possibly be useful, and if not 
 useful they would fail to answer the end for which they were contrived. 
 
 But before commencing a consideration of the principles involved in the 
 construction of works of furniture, let me summarise what is required in such works 
 if they are to assume the character of art-objects. 
 
 1. The general form, or mass form, of all constructed works must be carefully 
 considered. The aspect of the " sky-blotch " of an architectural edifice is very 
 important, for as the day wanes the detail fades and parts become blended, till the 
 members compose but one whole, which, when seen from the east, appears as a solid 
 mass drawn in darkness on the glowing sky ; this is the sky-blotch. If the edifice 
 eit masse is pleasing, a great point is gained. Indeed, the general contour should 
 have primary consideration. In like manner, the general form of all works of 
 furniture should first bo cared for, and every effort should be made at securing to the 
 general mass beauty of shape. 
 
FURNITURE — GENERAL PRINCIPLES. 
 
 51 
 
 2. After having cared for the general furm, the manner in which the work 
 shall be divided into primary and secondary parts must be considered with reference 
 to the laws of proportion, as stated in a former chapter. 
 
 3. Detail and enrichment may now be considered; but while these cannot be 
 too excellent, they must still be subordinate in obtrusiveness to the general mass, or 
 to the aspect of the work as a whole. 
 
 4. The material of which the object is formed must always be worked in the 
 most natural and appropriate manner. 
 
 5. The most convenient or appropriate form for an object should always be 
 chosen, for unless this has been done, no reasonable hope can be entertained that the 
 work will be satisfactory; for the consideration of utility must in all cases precede 
 the consideration of beauty, as we saw in our first chapter. 
 
 Having made these few general remarks, we must consider the structvire 
 of works of furniture. The material of which we form our furniture is wood. 
 Wood has a " grain,'' and the strength of any particular piece largely depends upon 
 the direction of its grain. It may be strong if its grain runs parallel with its 
 length, or weak if the grain crosses diagonally, or very weak if the grain crosses 
 transversely. However strong the wood, it l^ecomes comparatively much weaker if 
 the grain crosses the piece ; and however weak the wood, it becomes yet weaker if the 
 grain is transverse or diagonal. These considerations lead us to see that the grain 
 of the wood must always be parallel vj'iJh its length whenever strength is required. 
 
 For our guidance in the formation of works of furniture, I give the following 
 short table of woods arranged as to their strength : — 
 
 Iron-tvood, from Jamaica — very strong, bearing great lateral pressure. 
 
 Box of Illawarry, New South Wales — very strong, but not so strong as iron-wood. 
 
 Mountain ash, New South Wales — about two-thirds the strength of iron-wood. 
 
 Beech — nearly as strong as mountain ash. 
 
 Mahogany, from New South Wales — not quite so strong as last. 
 Blade dog-wood of Jamaica — three-fourths as strong as the mahogany jtist 
 named. 
 
 Box-wood, Jamaica — not half as strong as the box of New South Wales. 
 Cedar of Jamaica — half as strong as the mahogany of New South Wales.* 
 Wood can be got of sufllcient length to meet all the requirements of furniture- 
 making, yet we not unfrequently find the arch structurally introduced into furniture, 
 while it is absurd to employ it in wooden construction of any kind. The arch is 
 a most ingenious invention, as it affords a means of spanning a large space with 
 small portions of material, as with small stones, and at the same time gives great 
 
 * For full parlicul irs on this subject see ' Catalogue of the Collection illustrating Construction 
 and Building Matoiial," in the South Kensington Museum, and the manual of " Techuiciil Drawing 
 for Cabinetmakers," by E. A. Davidson. 
 
b-2 
 
 PRINCIPLES OF DESIGN. 
 
 streng'th. It is, therefore, of the utmost utility in constructing stone buildings; but 
 in works of furniture, where we have no large spaces to span, and where wood is of 
 the utmost length required, and is stronger than our requirements demand, the use 
 of the arch becomes structurally foolish and absurd. The folly of this mode of struc- 
 ture becomes more apparent when we notice that a wooden arch is always formed of 
 one or two pieces, and not of very small portions, and when we further consider that, 
 in order to the formation of an arch, the wood must be cut across its grain throughout 
 the greater portion of its length, whereby its strength is materially decreased ; while 
 if the arch were formed of small pieces of stone great strength would be secured. 
 Nothing can be more absurd than the practice of imitating in one material a mode of 
 construction which is only legitimate in the case of another, and of failing to avail 
 ourselves of the particular mode of utilising a material which secures a maximum 
 of desirable results. 
 
 While I protest against the arch when structurally used in furniture, I see no 
 objection to it if used only as a source of beauty, and when so situated as to be free 
 from strain or pressure. 
 
 One of the objects which we are frequently called upon to construct is a chair. 
 The chair is, throughout Europe and America, considered as a necessity of every 
 house. So largely used are chairs, that one firm at High Wycombe employs 5,000 
 hands in making common cane-bottomed chairs alone; and yet we see but few chairs 
 in the market which are well constructed. All chairs having curved frames — whether 
 the curve is in the wood of the back, in the sides of the seat, or in the legs — are 
 constructed on false principles. They are of necessity weak, and being weak are not 
 useful. As they are formed by using wood in a manner which fails to utilise its 
 qualities of strength, these chairs are offensive and absurd. It is true that, through 
 being surrounded by such ill-formed objects from our earliest infancy, the eye often 
 fails to be offended with such works as would offend it were they new to it; but this 
 does not show that they are the less offensive, nor that they are not constructively 
 wrong. Besides, whenever wood is cut across the grain, in order that we get any- 
 thing approaching the requisite strength, it has to be much thicker and more bulky 
 than would be required were the wood cut with the grain ; hence such f urnitm-e is 
 unnecessarily heavy and clumsy. 
 
 Fig. 26 represents a chair which I have taken the liberty of borrowing from Mr. 
 Eastlake's work on household art.* This chair Mr. Eastlake gives as an illustration 
 of good taste in the construction of furniture ; but I give it as an illustration of that 
 which is essentially bad and wrong. The legs are weak, being cross-grained 
 
 * The title of tine work is " Hints on Household Taste." It is well worth reading, as much may 
 be learned from it. I think Mr. Ea?tlake right in many views, yet wrong in others, but I cannot 
 help regarding him somewhat as an apostle of ugliness, as he appears to me to despise finish 
 and refinement. 
 
FUllNITUKE — CHAIRS. 
 
 throughout, and the mode of uniting- the upper and lower portions o£ the 
 two semicii'cles) by a circular boss 
 is defective in the highest degree. 
 Were I sitting in such a chair, I 
 should be afraid to lean to the 
 right or the left, for fear of the 
 chair giving way. Give me a 
 Yorkshire rocking-chair, in pre- 
 ference to one of these, where I 
 know of my insecurity, much as 
 I hate such. 
 
 A chair is a stool with a 
 back-rest, and a stool is a board 
 elevated from the ground or floor 
 by suj^ports, the degree of eleva- 
 tion being determined by the 
 length of the legs of the person 
 for whom the seat is made, or by 
 the degree of obliquity which the 
 body and legs are desired to take 
 when the seat is in use. If the 
 seat is to su2ii)ort the body when 
 in an erect sitting posture, about 
 seventeen to eighteeu inches will 
 be found a convenient height for 
 the average of persons ; but if the 
 legs of the sitter are to take an 
 oblique forward direction, then tlie 
 seat may be lower. 
 
 A stool may consist of a thick 
 piece of wood and of three logs 
 inserted into holes bored in this 
 thick top. If these legs pass to 
 the upper surface of the seat, and 
 are properly wedged in, a usefid 
 yet clumsy seat results. In order 
 that the top of the stool be thin 
 and light, it will be necessary that 
 the legs be connected by frames, 
 
 and it will be well that they be Fio-. 27. 
 
 legs 
 
 Fig. 2t>. 
 
54. 
 
 PRINCIPLES OF DESIGN. 
 
 connected twice, once at the top of each leg-, so that the seat may rest upon this 
 frame, and once at least two-thirds of the distance from the top. The frame would 
 now stand alone, and although the seat is formed of thin wood it will not crack, as 
 it is supported all round on the upper frame. 
 
 A chair, I have said, is a stool with a back. There is not one chair out of fifty 
 that we find with the back so attached to the seat as to g-ive a maximum of strength. 
 It is usual to make a back leg and one side of the chair-back out of one piece of 
 wood — that is, to continue the l)ack legs up above the seat, and cause them to become 
 
 the sides of the chair-back. 
 When this is done the wood 
 is almost invariably curved 
 so that the back legs and 
 the chair-back both incline 
 outwards from the seat. 
 There is no objection what- 
 ever to the sides of the back 
 and the legs being formed 
 of the one piece, but there 
 is a great objection to either 
 the supports of the back or 
 the legs being formed of 
 cross-grained wood, as much 
 of their strength is thereby 
 sacrificed. Our illustrations 
 (Figs. 27 to 32) will give 
 several modes of construct- 
 ing- chairs such as I think legitimate ; but I will ask the reader to think for 
 himself ujion the construction of a chair, and especially upon the proper means of 
 giving" due support to the back. 
 
 I have given, in an axiomatic form, those principles which should guide us in 
 the construction of works of furniture, and endeavoured to impress the necessity of 
 using wood in that manner which is most natural — that is, "working" it with the 
 grain (the manner in which we can most easily work it), and in that way which 
 shall secure the greatest amount of strength with the least expenditure of material. 
 I wish to impress my readers with the importance of these considerations, for they 
 lie at the very root of the successful construction of furniture. If the legs of chairs, 
 or their seat-frames, or the ends or backs of couches, are formed of wood cut across 
 the grain, they must either be thick and clumsy, or weak ; but, besides this, the 
 rightly constituted mind can only receive pleasure from the contemplation of works 
 which are wisely formed. Daily contact, as we have before said, with ill-shaped 
 
 Fig. 28. 
 
FURNITURE — CHAIRS. 
 
 55 
 
 objects may have more or less deadened our senses, so that we are not so reiidiJy 
 offended by deformity and error as we might be ; yet, happily for us, directly we 
 seek to separate truth from error, the beautiful from the deformed, reason assists the 
 judgment, and we learn to feel when we are in the presence of the beautiful or in 
 contact with the degraded. 
 
 My illustrations will show how I think chair^ should be constructed. Fig. 26 
 is essentially bad, although it has traditional sanction, hence I pass it over without 
 further comment. Fig. 27 is in the manner of an Egyptian chair. It serves to 
 show the careful way in which the Egyptians constructed their works. The curved 
 
 Fia. 29. 
 
 Fig. 30. 
 
 rails against which the back w^ould rest are the only parts which are not thoroughly 
 correct and satisfactory in a wood structure. Were the curved back members metal, 
 the curvature would be desirable and legitimate. The back of this chair, if the side 
 members were connected by a straight rail, would have immense strength (the backs 
 of some of our chairs are of the very weakest), and if well made it is a seat which 
 would endure for centuries. Fig. 28 is a chair of my own designing, in which I 
 have sought to give strength to the back by connecting its upper portion with a 
 strong cross-rail of the frame. 
 
 Fig. 29 is a chair slightly altered from one in l^lv. Eastlake's work on 
 " Household Taste ; " as shown in our illustration, it is a correctly formed work. 
 Fig. 30 is an arm-chair in the Greek style, which I have designed. Fig. 31 is a 
 lady's chair in the Gothic style ; Fig. 32, a lady's chair in early Greek. These I 
 have prepared to show different modes of structure ; if the legs are fitted to a frame 
 
56 
 
 PKINCIPLES 01'' DESIGN. 
 
 (the seat-frame), as in the early Greek chair just alluded to, they should be very 
 short, as in this instance, or they must be connected by a frame below the seat, as in 
 Figs. 33 and 34;. The best general structure is that in which the front legs pass to 
 the level of the upper surface of the seat. 
 
 Fig. 33 is a copy of a chair shown by Messrs. Gillow and Co., of Oxford Street, 
 in the last Paris International Exhibition. In maiiy respects it is admirably 
 constructed. The skeleton brackets holding the back to the seat are very desirable 
 
 Fig. 31. Fig. 32. 
 
 adjuncts to light chairs; so are the brackets connecting the legs with the seat-frame, 
 as these strengthen the entire chair. The manner in which the upper rail of the 
 back passes through the side uprights and is " pinned " is good. The chief, and 
 only important, fault in this chair is the bending of the back legs, involving their 
 being cut against the grain of the wood. 
 
 Fig. 31. is a chair from Mr. Talbert's very excellent work on " Gothic Fur- 
 niture." It shows an admirable method of supporting the back. Fig. 35 I have 
 designed as a high-backed lounging chair. With the view of giving strength to the 
 back, I have extended the seat, and arranged a support from this extension to 
 the upper back-rail, and this extension of the seat I have supported by a fifth leg. 
 
yUENITURE — COUCHES. 57 
 
 There is no reason whatever why a chair should have four legs. If three would be 
 better, or five, or any other number, let us use what would be best.* 
 
 I have now given several illustrations of modes of forming chairs. I might 
 have given many more, but it is not my duty to try and exhaust a subject. What 
 1 have to do is simply point out principles, and call attention to facts. It is the 
 reader who must thinlv for himself — first, of the principles and facts which I adduce j 
 secondly, of the illustrations which I give ; thirdly, of other works which he may 
 
 Fig. 33. 
 
 meet with ; and fourthly, of further means of producing desirable and satisfactory 
 results than those set forth in my illustrations. 
 
 As it cannot be doubted that a well-constructed work, however plain or simj^le 
 it may be, gives satisfaction to those who behold it — while a work of the most 
 elaborate character fails to satisfy if badly constructed — we shall give a few further 
 illustrations of structure for other articles of furniture, besides chairs, which have 
 become necessary to our mode of life. 
 
 Fig. .3G is one of my sketches for Greek furniture, designed for a wealthy 
 client. It was formed of black wood. Here the frame of the seat is first formed, 
 
 * In my drawing, the stuffing of the back has been accidentally shown too much rounded. 
 
 I 
 
58 
 
 PRINCIPLES OF DESIGN. 
 
 and the legs are inserted beneath it, and let into it, while the wood-worlc of the 
 end of the couch stands upon it, being- inserted into it. This appears to have been 
 the general method with' the Greeks of forming their furniture, yet it is not so 
 correct structurally as P'ig. 37, another of my sketches, where the end and the leg 
 are formed of one piece of wood. The first formation (that of Fig. 3G) would bear 
 any amoimt of pressure from above, but it is not well calculated for resisting lateral 
 pressure; while the latter would resist this lateral pressure, but would not bear quite 
 
 the same amount of pressure from above. 
 The latter, however, could bear more 
 weight than would ever l)e required of it, 
 and would be the more durable piece of 
 furniture. 
 
 Fig. 38 gives a legitimate formation 
 for a settee; the cutting-out, or hollowing, 
 of the sides of the legs is not carried to an 
 extreme, but leaves a sufficiency of strong 
 wood with an upright grain to resist all 
 the pressure that would be placed on the 
 seat, and the lower and upjier thickened 
 portions of the legs act as the brackets 
 beneath the seat in Fig. 33. The arch 
 here introduced is not used structurallv, 
 but for the sake of a curved line, and acts 
 simply as a pair of brackets. This illus- 
 tration is also from Mr. Talbert's work. 
 Fig. 39 is a table such as we occasionally 
 Fig- 35. meet with. I see no objection to the legs 
 
 leaning inwards at the top; indeed, we have 
 here a picturesque and useful table of legitimate formation. Fig. 40 is the end 
 elevation of a sideboard from Mr. Talbert's work. Mark the simplicity of the 
 structure. The leading or structural lines are straight and obvious. Although 
 Mr. Talbert is not always right, yet his book is well worthj^ of the most careful 
 consideration and study ; and this I can truly say, that it compares favourably with 
 all other works on furniture with which I am acquainted. 
 
 The general want which we perceive in modern furniture is simplicity of 
 structure and truthfulness of construction. If persons would but think out the 
 easiest mode of constructing a work before they commence to design it, and would 
 be content with this simplicity of structure, we should have very different furniture 
 from what we have. Think first of what is wanted, then of the material at 
 command. 
 
Fl'RNITrRE TRI THFl'L CONSTRUCTION. 59 
 
 I fear that I have very feebly enforced and very inefficiently illustrated the 
 true princii)les on which works of furniture should be constructed ; and yet I feel 
 that the structure of such works is of importance beyond all other considerations. 
 
 Fisr. 36. 
 
 Space is limited, however, and I must pass on ; hence T only hope that I have 
 induced the reader to think for himself, and if 1 have done so I shall have fulldlcd 
 my desire, for his progress will then be sure. 
 
 Respecting' structure 1 have but a few general remarks further to make, and 
 
 Fig. 37. 
 
 all these are fairly embraced in the one expression, "Be truthful." An obvious and 
 true structure is always pleasant. Let, then, the "tenon" and the "mortise" pass 
 through the various members, and let the parts be "pinned" together by obvious 
 wooden pins. Thus, if the frame of a chair-seat is tenoned into the legs, let the 
 tenon pass through the leg and be visible on the outer side, and let it be held in 
 its place by glue and wooden pins — the pins being visible. Yet they need not 
 protrude beyond the surface ; but why hide them ? In this way that old furniture 
 
60 
 
 PETXCTPT.KS OF DESIGN'. 
 
 Fig. 38. 
 
 was made which has endured while piece aftei- piece of modern furniture, made 
 with invisible joints and concealed nails and screws, has perished. This is a true 
 
 structural treatment, and is honest in 
 expression also. 
 
 I do not give this as a principle 
 applicable to one class of furniture only, 
 but to all. When we have "pinned''^ 
 furniture with an open structure (see 
 the back of chair, Fig. 33), the mode of 
 piitting- together must of necessity be 
 manifest ; Init in all other cases the 
 tenons should also go through, and the 
 pins by which they are held in their 
 place be driven from one surface to the 
 other side right through the member. 
 
 In the commencement of this 
 chaj^ter on furniture, I said that after 
 the most convenient form has been chosen for an object, and after it has been 
 arranged that the material of which it is to be formed shall be worked in the 
 most natural or befitting way, that then the block-form must be looked to, after 
 
 which comes the divi- 
 sion of the mass into 
 primary parts, and 
 lastly, the considera- 
 tion of detail. 
 
 As to the block- 
 form, let it be simj^le, 
 and have the aj^pear- 
 ance of appropriateness 
 and consistency. Its 
 character must be re- 
 gulated, to an extent, 
 by the nature of the 
 house for which the 
 furniture is intended, 
 and by the character 
 
 o£ the room in which it is to be placed. All I can say to the student on this part of 
 the subject is this : Carefully consider good works of furniture whenever oppor- 
 tunity occurs, and note their general conformation. A fine work will never have 
 strong architectural qualities — that is, it will not look like pai-t of a building formed 
 
 Fig. 39. 
 
rURNITUllE PROPORTION AND ENRICHMENT. 
 
 61 
 
 o£ wood instead of stone. There is but small danger of committing' any great 
 error in the block-form, if it be kept simple, and to look like a work in wood, 
 provided that the proportions of height to width and of width and height to 
 thickness are duly cared for (see page 23) . 
 
 After the general form has been considered, the mass may be broken into 
 
 primary and secondary parts. Thus, if we 
 
 have to construct a cabinet, the upper part 
 of which consists of a cupboard, and the 
 lower portion of drawers, we should have to 
 determine the proportion which the one part 
 should bear to the other. This is an in- 
 variable rule — that the work must not consist 
 of equal jiarts ; thus, if the whole cabinet be 
 six feet in height, the cupboards could not 
 be three feet while the drawers occupied 
 three feet also. The division would have to 
 be of a subtle character— of a character which 
 could not be readily detected. Thus the cup- 
 board might be three feet five inches, and 
 the drawers collectively two feet seven inches. 
 If the drawers are not all to be of the same 
 ^epth, then the relation of one drawer, as 
 regards its size, to that of another must be 
 considered, and of each to the cupboard above. 
 In like manner the proportion of the panels 
 of the doors to the styles nuist be tliought 
 out ; and until all this has been done no 
 work should ever be constructed. 
 
 Next comes the enrichment of parts. 
 Carving sh6uld be sparingly used, and is 
 best confined to mouldings, or projecting or 
 terminal ends. If employed in mouldings, 
 
 those membei's should be enriched which are more or less comjiletely guarded 
 from dust and injury by some overhanging member. If more carving is used, 
 it should certainly be a mere enrichment of necessary structure — as we see on 
 the legs and other uprights of Mr. Grace's sideboard, by Pugin (Fig. 41). I am 
 not fond of caiwed panels, but should these be employed the caiwing- should never 
 project beyond the styles surrounding them, and in all cases of carving no pointed 
 members must protrude so as to injure the person or destroy the dress of those who 
 use the piece of furniture. If carving is used sparingly, it gives us the impression 
 
FX'RNITUUE — MODES OF ENKICHING. 
 
 63 
 
 that it is valuable ; if it is lavishly employed, it appears to be comparatively worth- 
 less. The aim of art is the production of repose. A large work of furniture which 
 is carved all over cannot produce the necessary sense of repose, and is therefore 
 objectionable. 
 
 There may be an excess of finish in works of carving connected with cabinet- 
 work ; for if the finish is too delicate there is a lack of effect in the result. A piece 
 of furniture is not a miniature work, which is to be investigated in every detail. 
 It is an object of utility, wliieh is to appear beautiful in a room, and is not to 
 command undivided attention ; it is a work which is to combine with other works 
 in rendering an apartment beautiful. The Soiith Kensington Museum purchased in 
 the last Paris International Exhibition, at great cost, a cabinet from Fonrdonois ; but 
 it is a very unsatisfactory specimen, as it is too delicate, too tender, and too fine for 
 a work of utility — it is an example of what should be avoided rather than of what 
 should be followed. The delicately carved and beautiful panels of the doors, if cut 
 in marble and used as mere pieces of sculpture, would have been worthy of the 
 highest commendation ; but works of this kind wrought in a material that has a 
 ''gi-ain,^'' however little the grain may show, are absurd. Besides, the subjects are 
 of too pictorial a character for " applied work" — that is, they are treated in too 
 pictorial or naturalistic a manner. A broad, simple, idealised treatment of the 
 figure is that which is alone legitimate in cabinet work. 
 
 Supports or columns carved into the form of human figures are always 
 objectionable. 
 
 Besides carving, as a means of enrichment, we have inlaying, painting, and 
 the applying of plaques of stone or earthenware, and of brass or ormolu enrich- 
 ments, and we have the inserting of brass into the material when buhl-work 
 is formed. 
 
 Inlaying is a very natural and beautiful means of enriching works of furniture, 
 for it leaves the flatness of the surface undisturbed. A great deal may be done in 
 this way by the emj)loyment of simple means. A mere row of circular dots of 
 black wood inlaid in oak will often give a remarkably good effect ; and the dots 
 can be " worked with the utmost ease. Three dots form a trefoil, four dots a 
 quatrefoil, six dots a hexafoil, and so on, and desirable effects can often be produced 
 by such simple inlays. 
 
 Panels of cabinets may be painted, and enriched with ornament or flatly- 
 treated figure subjects. This is a beautiful mode of decoration very much 
 neglected. The couch (Fig. 37) I intended for enrichment of this kind. If this 
 form is employed, care should be exercised in order that the painted work be in all 
 cases so situated that it cannot be rubbed. It should fill sunk panels and hollows 
 and never appear on advancing members. 
 
 I am not fond of the application of plaques of stone or earthenware to works 
 
64 
 
 PKINCIPLES OF DESIGN. 
 
 of furniture. Anything that is brittle is not suitable as an enrichment of wood- 
 workj unless it can be so placed as to be out of danger. 
 
 Ormolu ornaments^ when applied to cabinets and other works in wood^ are 
 also never satisfactory. They look too separate from the wood of which the work is 
 formed — too obviously applied ; and whatever is obviously applied to the work^ and 
 
 is not a portion of its general 
 fabric, whether a mass of flowers 
 even if carved in wood or an 
 ormolu ornament, is not pleasant. 
 
 Buhl-work is often very 
 clever in character and skilfully 
 wrought, but I do not care for it. 
 It is of too laborious a nature, 
 and thus intrudes upon us the 
 sense of labour as well as that of 
 skill. As a means of enrichment, 
 I approve of carving-, sparingly 
 used, of inlays, and of painted 
 ornament in certain eases ; and 
 by the just employment of these 
 means the utmost beauty in 
 cabinet-work can be achieved. 
 Ebony inlaid with ivory is very 
 beautiful. 
 
 In order to illustrate my 
 remarks respecting cabinets, side- 
 boards, and similar pieces of 
 furniture, I give an engraving of 
 a sideboard executed by ]Mr. Grace, 
 from the design of Mr. A. Welby 
 Pugin (the father), to which I 
 have before alluded (Fig. 41), and 
 a painted cabinet by Mr. Burgess (Fig. 42), the well-known Gothic architect, whose 
 architecture must be admired. Both of these works are worthy of study of a very 
 careful kind. 
 
 In the sideboard, notice first the general structure or construction of the 
 work, then the manner in which it is broken into parts, and lastly, that it is the 
 structural members which are carved. If this work has faults, they are these : 
 first, the carving is in excess — thus, the panels would have been better plain ; and, 
 second, in some parts there is a slight indication of a stone structure, as in the 
 buttress character of the ends of the sideboard. 
 
THE FALSE IN FURNITURE. 
 
 65 
 
 To the cabinet much more serious objections may be taken. 
 1st. A roof is a means whereby the weather is kept out o£ a dwelling", and 
 tiles afford a means whereby small pieces of material enable us to form a perfect 
 covering to our houses of a weather-proof character. It is very absurd, then, to 
 treat the roof of a cabinet, which is to stand in a room, as if it were an entii-e 
 house, or an object which were to stand in a garden. 
 
 "2nd. The windows in the roof, which in the case of a house let light into 
 those rooms which are placed in this part of the building, and are formed in a 
 particular manner so as the more perfectly to exclude rain, become simply stupid 
 when placed in the roof of a cabinet. These, together with the imitation tiled 
 roof, degrade the work to a mere doll's house in appearance. 
 
 3rd. A panelled structure, which is the strongest and best structure, is ignored; 
 hence strong metal bindings are necessary. 
 
 The painting of the work is highly interesting, and had it been more flatly 
 treated, would then have been truthful, and would yet have lent the same interest 
 to the cabinet that it now does, even if we consider the matter from a purely 
 pictorial point of view. 
 
 Before we pass from a consideration of furniture and cabinet-work generally, 
 we must notice a few points to which we have as yet merely referred, or which we 
 have left altogether unnoticed. Thus we have to consider upholstery as applied to 
 works of furniture, the materials employed as coverings for seats, and the nature of 
 picture-frames and curtain-poles ; we must also notice general errors in furniture, 
 strictly so called. 
 
 When examining certain wardrobes and cabinets in the International Exhibi- 
 tion of 1862, I was forcibly impressed with the structural truth of one or two of 
 these works. One especially commended itself to me as a fine structural work of 
 classic character. Just as I was expressing my admiration, the exhibitor threw open 
 the doors of this well-formed wardrobe to show me its internal fittings, when, fancy 
 my feelings at beholding the first door bearing with it, as it opened, the two 
 pilasters that I conceived to be the supports of the somewhat heavy cornice above, 
 and the other door bearing away the third support, and thus leaving the super- 
 incumbent mass resting on the thin sides of the structure only, while they appeared 
 altogether unable to perform the duty imposed upon them. " Horrible ! horrible ! 
 was all I could exclaim. 
 
 Some of the most costly works of furniture shown by the French in the last 
 Paris International Exhibition were not free from this defect ; and this is strange, 
 for to the rightly constituted mind this one defect is of such a grave character as to 
 neutralise whatever pleasure might otherwise be derived from contemplating the 
 work. We see a man, a genius perhaps — a man having qualities that all must 
 admire; but he has one great vice — one sin which easily besets him. While the 
 
 J 
 
66 
 
 PRINCIPLES OF DESIGN. 
 
 man has excellent and estimable qualities, we yet avoid him, for we see not the 
 excellences but the vice. It is so with such works o£ furniture as those of which we 
 have been speaking-, for their defects are such as impress us more powerfully than 
 their excellences. 
 
 Respecting these works of furniture, this should be said : they are more or less 
 imitative of works of a debased art-period — of a period in which structural truth was 
 utterly disregarded — yet this is no reason why we should copy the defects of our 
 ancestors. 
 
 Infinitely worse than the works just spoken of, is falsely constructed Gothic 
 furniture, where the very truthfulness of structure is openly set before us. Not long 
 since I was staying with a client whose house is of Gothic style. Being about to 
 furnish drawings for the decorations of this mansion, I was carefully noting the 
 character of the architecture and of the furniture, which latter had been designed and 
 manufactured expressly for the house by a large Yorkshire firm of cabinet-makers. 
 The structure of the furniture appeared just, the proportions tolerably good, the wood 
 honest, and the inlays judicious ; but, can it be imagined, the whole was a mere 
 series of frauds and shams — the cross-grain ends of what should be supports were 
 attached to the fronts of drawers, pillars came away, and such falsity became 
 apparent as I never before saw. How any person could possibly produce such 
 furniture, be he ever so degraded, I cannot think. I have seen works that are bad, 
 I have seen falsities in art, but I never before saw such falsity of structure and such 
 uncalled-for deception as these works presented. The untrue is always offensive ; 
 but when a special effort is made at causing a lie to appear as truth, a double sense 
 of disappointment is experienced when the untruthfulness is discovered. 
 
 In his work on " Household Taste," to which I have before alluded, Mr. Eastlake 
 objects, and I think very justly, to the character of an ordinary telescopic dining- 
 table. He says : "Among the dining-room appointments, the table is an article of 
 furniture which stands greatly in need of reform. It is generally made of planks of 
 polished oak or mahogany laid upon an insecure framework of the same material, and 
 supported by four gouty legs, ornamented by the turner with mouldings which look 
 like inverted cups and saucers piled upon an attic baluster. I call the framework 
 insecure, because I am describing what is commonly called a ' telescope ' table, or 
 one which can be pulled out to twice its usual length, and, by the addition of extra 
 leaves in its middle, accommodate twice the usual number of diners. Such a table 
 cannot be soundly made in the same sense that ordinary furniture is sound ; it must 
 depend for its support on some contrivance which is not consistent with the material 
 of which it is made. Few people would like to sit on a chair the legs of which slid 
 in and out, and were fastened at the required height by a pin ; there would be a 
 sense of insecurity in the notion eminently unpleasant. You might put up with 
 such an invention in camp, or on a sketching expedition, but to have it and use it 
 
THE FALSE IN VTTRNITUEE. 
 
 67 
 
 under your own roof, instead of a strong- and scrvieealjle cliair, would be absurd. 
 Yet this is very much what we do in the case of the modern dining-room table. 
 When it is extended it looks weak and untidy at the sides ; when it is reduced to its 
 shortest length the legs appear heavy and ill-proportioned. It is always liable to 
 get out of order, and from the very nature of its construction must be an inartistic 
 object. Why shoiild such a table be made at all ? A dining-room is a room to dine 
 in. Whether there are few or many people seated for that purpose, the table might 
 well be kept of a uniform length, and if space is an object it is always possible to 
 use in its stead two small tables, 
 each on four legs. . These might 
 be placed end to end when dinner 
 parties are given, and one of them 
 would suffice for family use. A 
 table of this kind might be solidly 
 and stoutly framed, so as to last 
 for ages, and become, as all fur- 
 niture ought to become, an heir- 
 loom in the family. When a man 
 builds himself a house on freehold 
 land, he does not intend that it 
 shall only last his lifetime ; he 
 bequeaths it in sound condition 
 to posterity. We ought to be 
 ashamed of furniture which is 
 continually being replaced ; at all 
 events, we cannot possil^ly take 
 any interest in such furniture. In former days, when the principles of good 
 joinery were really understood, the legs of such a large table as that of the dining- 
 room would have been made of a very different form from the lumpy, pear-shaped 
 things of modern use." 
 
 In nearly all these remarks I agree with Mr. Eastlake, and especially in his 
 remark that, owing to the very nature of its construction, a modern dining-table 
 must.be an inartistic object. No work can be satisfactory in which any portions of 
 the true supporting structure or frame are drawn apart; and this occurs to a marked 
 degree in this table, as is sho-«Ti in Mr. Eastlake's illustration, which we here copy 
 (Fig. 43). 
 
 Falsities of structure, althougli not so glaring as that of the telescopic dining- 
 table, are everywhere met with in our shops, and, curious as it may appear, the great 
 majority of the works offered to the public are not only false in structure, but are 
 utterly offensive to good taste in every way, and are formed almost exclusively of 
 
68 
 
 PRINCIPT.ES OF DESIGN. 
 
 wood cut across the g-vain^ which secures to the article the maximum amount of 
 weakness. Tig's. 44', 45, 46, and 47 are examples of utterly bad furniture. 
 
 Fig. 46. Fi^. 47. 
 
 Another falsity in furniture is veneering — a practice which should be wholly 
 abandoned. Simple honesty is preferable to false show in all cases ; truthfulness in 
 utterance is always to be desired. It was customary at one time to veneer almost 
 
VENEERING. 
 
 every work of furniture, and even to place the grain of tlie veneer in a manner totally 
 at variance ■with the true structure of the framework which it covered. This was a 
 method of making works, which might in tlieir unfinished state be satisfactory, 
 appear when finished as most unsatisfactory objects. Since this time much progress 
 has been made in a knowledge of truthful structure and of truthful expression, yet 
 this method of giving a false surface by means of veneer is not wholly abandoned as 
 despicable and false. 
 
 A few months back I had occasion to visit a cabinet warehouse in Lancashire, 
 and the owner called my attention to the fine grain of some old English oak, and 
 remarked that certain pieces of furniture were of solid wood. Ujwn investigation, 
 however, I discovered that while the furniture in question was made throughout of 
 oak, the bulk of the structure was of common wainscoting, and the surface was 
 veneered with English oak. I confess that I would miich rather have had the 
 furniture without its false exterior, and daily my love for fine grain in wood gets 
 less. I think that this arises from the fact that strong grain in wood takes from 
 the " unity " of the work into which it is formed, and tends to break it up into 
 parts, by rendering every member conspicuous. What is wanted in a work of 
 furniture, before all other considerations, is a fine general form — a harmony of all 
 parts— so that no one member usurps a primary place — and this it is almost im- 
 possible to achieve if a wood is employed having a strongly marked grain. 
 
 With us a room is considered as almost unfurnished if the wiudows are not 
 hung with some kind of drapery. The original object of this drapery was that of 
 keeping out a draught of air, which found its way through the imperfectly fitting 
 windows ; and the antitype of our window-hangings was a simple curtain, formed of 
 a material suitable to achieve the purpose sought. Such a curtain was legitimate 
 and desirable, and would contrast strangely with the elaborate festooning and 
 quadrupled curtains of our present windows. We daily see yards of valuable 
 material, arranged in massive and absurd folds, shutting out that light which is 
 necessary to our health and well-being ; a pair of heavy stuff curtains and a pair 
 of lace curtains being hung at each window, each curtain consisting of a sufil- 
 cient amount of material to more than cover the window of itself. An excess of 
 drapery is always vulgar, while a little drajiery usefully and judiciously employed 
 is pleasant. 
 
 Many windows that are well made, and thus keep out all currents of air, need 
 no curtains. If the window mouldings are of an architectural character, and are 
 coloured much darker than the wall, so as to become an obvious frame to the window, 
 and thus do for the window what a picture-frame does for a picture, no curtains will 
 be required. I have recently had a wonderfully striking illustration of this. Two 
 adjoining rooms are alike in their architecture^ one is decorated, and has the window 
 casement of such colours as strongly contrast, while they are yet harmonious, with 
 
70 
 
 PIHNCIPLES OF DESinX. 
 
 the wall. Before the I'oom was decorated^ and the windows were thus treated, a 
 general light coloui* prevailed, both on the wood-work and on the walls of the room, 
 
 and curtains were hung at the windows in 
 the usual way. With the altered decora- 
 tions, the windows became so effective that I 
 at once saw the undesirability of re-hanging 
 the curtains, and yet not one of all my 
 Fig. 48. friends has observed that there are no cur- 
 
 tains to the windows; while i£ the curtains 
 are removed from the adjoining room, where the window-frames are as light as the 
 walls, the first question asked is, " Where are your curtains 
 
 Curtains should be hung on a simple and obvious jjole (Fig. 48). All means 
 
 of hiding this pole are foolish and 
 useless. This pole need not be very 
 thick, and is better formed of wood 
 than of metal, for then the rings to 
 which the cm-tains are attached pass 
 along almost noiselessly. Tlie ends 
 of the pole may be of metal, but I 
 prefer simple balls of wood. The 
 pole may be grooved, and any little 
 ./ enrichments mny be introduced into 
 ^ these grooves, providing the carving 
 does not come to the surface, and 
 thus touch the ring-s, which l>y their 
 ^ motion would injure it. Whatever 
 
 is used in the way of enrichment 
 should lie of simple character, for 
 ' ' ~ ^ the height at which the curtain pole 
 
 is placed would render fine work 
 I altogether ineffective. 
 
 ^^^fc As to upholstery, I would say, 
 
 never indulge in an excess. A wood 
 Fig-. 4y. frame should appear in every work 
 
 of furniture, as in the examples we 
 have given. Sofas are now made as though they were feather beds ; they are so 
 soft that you sink into them, and become uncomfortably warm by merely resting 
 upon them, and their gout.y forms are relieved only by a few inches of wood, 
 which appear as legs. Stuffing should be employed only as a means of rendering 
 a properly constructed seat comfortably soft. If it goes beyond this it is vulgar 
 
UPHOLSTERING OF FURKITURE. — PICTURE-FEAMES. 
 
 rig. 50 
 
72 
 
 PRINCIPLES or DESIGN. 
 
 and objectionable. Spring stuffing is not to be altogether commended ; a good 
 old-fashioned hair-stuffed seat is more desirable, as it will endure when springs have 
 perished. As to the materials with which seats may be covered I can say little, for 
 they are many. Hair cloth, although very durable, is altogether inartistic in its 
 effect. Nothing is better than leather for dining-room chairs ; Utrecbt velvet, 
 either j^lain or embossed, looks well on library chairs ; silk and satin damasks, 
 rep, plain cloth, and many other fabrics are appropriate to drawing-room furniture. 
 Chintz I am not fond of as a chair covering, and in a bed-room I would rather 
 have chairs with plain wooden seats than with cushions covered with this glazed 
 material. 
 
 With a mere remark nY>on picture-frames I will finish this chapter. Picture- 
 frames are generally elaborately carved mouldings, or are simple mouldings covered 
 with ornaments, which, whether carved or formed of putty, are overlaid with 
 gold leaf; they are, indeed, highly ornamented gilt mouldings. I much prefer 
 a well-formed, yet somewhat simple, black polished moulding, on the interior of 
 which runs a gold bead (Fig. 49). A fanciful yet good picture-frame was figured 
 in the Buildiiir; Neivs of September 7th, 18G6, which we now repeat (Fig. 50). 
 
CHAPTER IV. 
 
 DECORATION OF BUILDINGS. 
 
 Division I. — General Considerations — Ceilings. 
 
 Having considered furniture, the formation of which requires a knowledge of 
 construction, or of what we may term structural art, we pass on to notice principles 
 involved in the decoration of surfaces, or in " surface decoration,^' as it is usually 
 called. We commence by considering how rooms should be decorated; yet, in so 
 doing, we are met at the very outset with a great difficxilty, as the nature of the 
 decoration of a room should be determined by the character of its architecture. 
 My difficulty rests here. How am I to tell you what is the just decoration for a 
 room, when the suitability of the decoration is often dependent upon even structural 
 and ornamental details ; and when, in all cases, the character of the decoration 
 should be in harmony with the character of the architecture ? Broadly, if a building 
 is in the Gothic style, all that it contains in the way of decoration, and of furniture 
 also, should be Gothic. If the building is Greek, the decorations and furniture 
 should be Greek. If the building is Italian, all its decorations and furniture should 
 be Italian, and so on. 
 
 But there are further requirements. Each term that I have now employed, as 
 expressive of a style of architecture, is more or less generic in character, and is 
 therefore too broad for general use. What is usually termed Gothic architecture, is 
 a group of styles having common origin and resemblances, known to the architect 
 as the Semi-Norman or Transition style, which occurred in the twelfth century 
 under Henry II. (it was at this time that the jwinted arch was first employed). 
 The Early English, which was developed in the end of the twelfth and early part of 
 the thirteenth century, under Richard I., John, and Henry III. ; the Decorated, 
 which occurred at the end of the thirteenth, and early portion of the fourteenth 
 centur}'', under Edward I., Edward II., and Edward III. ; the Perpendicular, which 
 occurred at the latter part of the foui'tcenth, and through the greater portion of the 
 fifteenth century, under Richard II., Henry IV., V., and VI., Edward IV. and V., 
 and Richard III. ; and, lastly, the Tudor, which occurred at the end of the fifteenth, 
 and the beginning of the sixteenth century, under Henry VII. and Henry VIII. 
 All these styles are popularly spoken of as one, and are expressed by the one term — 
 Gothic. It is so also, to an extent, with the Greek, Roman, and Italian styles, for 
 each of these appears in various modifications of character, but into such details we 
 
 K 
 
74 
 
 PRINCIPLES OF DESIGN. 
 
 will not enter ; it must suffice to notice that the character of the decoration must he 
 not only hroadly in the style of the architecture of the building which it is intended 
 to beautify, but it must be similar in nature to the ornament produced at precisely 
 the same date as the architecture which has been employed for the building'. 
 
 It must not be supposed that I am an advocate of reproducing works, or even 
 styles of architecture, such as were created in times gone by, for I am not. The 
 peoples of past ages carefully sought to ascertain their wants — the wants resulting 
 from climate — the wants resulting from the nature of their religion — the wants 
 resulting from social arrangements — the wants imjjosed by the building material at 
 command. We, on the contrary, look at a hundred old buildings, and without 
 considering our wants, as differing from those of our forefathers, take a bit from one 
 and a bit from another, or we reproduce one almost as it stands, and thus we bungle 
 on, instead of seeking to raise such buildings as are in all respects suited to our 
 modern requirements. 
 
 Things are, however, much better in this respect than they were. Bold men 
 are dealing with the Gothic style in its various forms. Scott, Burgess, Street, and 
 many others are venturing to alter it ; and thus, while it is losing old characteristics, 
 and is acquiring new elements, it is already assuming a character which has nobility 
 of expression, truthfulness of structure, and suitability to our special requirements. 
 In time to come, further changes will doubtless be made ; and thus the style which 
 arose as an imitation of the past will have become new, through constantly departing 
 from the original type, and as constantly adopting new elements. 
 
 I have said that the decoration of a building should be brought about by the em- 
 ployment of such ornament as was, in time past, associated with the pai'ticular form 
 of architecture employed in the building to be decorated, if a precisely similar 
 form of architecture previously existed. Let not the ornament, however, be a mere 
 servile imitation of what has gone before, but let the designer study the ornament of 
 bygone ages till he understands and feels its spirit, and then let him strive to 
 produce new forms and new combinations in the sjjirit of the ornament of the past. 
 
 This must also be carefully noted — that the ornament of a particular period 
 does not consist merely of the forms employed in the architecture, drawn in colour 
 on the wall, or the ceiling, as the case may be. The particular form of ornament 
 used in association with some forms of Gothic architecture was very different in 
 character from what we might expect from the nature of the architecture itself, and 
 did not to any extent consist of flatly-treated crockets, gable ends, trefoils, cinque- 
 foils, etc. The ornament of the past must be studied in its purity, and not from 
 those wretched attempts at the production of Gothic decoration which we often see. 
 
 In what we may call the typical English house of the present day there is really 
 no architecture, and if such a building is to be decollated it is almost legitimate 
 to emj^loy any style of ornamentation. In such a case I should choose a style 
 
DECORATION OF CEILINGS. 
 
 75 
 
 which has iio very raarked features — which is not strongly Greek, or strong-ly 
 Gothic, or strongly Italian ; and if there is the necessary ability, I should say try 
 and produce ornaments having novelty of character, and yet showing your knowledge 
 of the good qualities of all styles that are past. If this is attempted, care must be 
 exercised in order to avoid getting a mere combination of elements from various 
 styles as one ornament. Nothing can be worse than to see a bit of Greek, a 
 fragment of Egyptian, an Alhambraic scroll, a Gothic flower, and an Italian husk 
 associated together as one ornament ; unless this were done advisedly and in order to 
 meet a very special want, such an ornamental composition would be detestable. 
 What I recommend is the production of new forms ; but the new composition may 
 have the vigour of the best Gothic ornament, the severity of Egyptian, the intri- 
 cacy of the Persian, the gorgeousness of the Alhambra, and so on, only it must not 
 imitate in detail the various styles of the past. 
 
 Now as to the decoration of a room. If one part only can be decorated, let that 
 one part be the ceiling. Nothing appears to me more strange than that our ceilings, 
 which can be properly seen, are usually white in middle-class houses, while the Avails, 
 which are always in part hidden, and even the floor, on which we tread, should have 
 colour and pattern applied to them ; and of this I am certain, that, considered from 
 a decorative point of view, our ordinary treatment is wrong. 
 
 We glory in a clear blue sky overhead, and we speak of the sky as increasing in 
 beauty as it becomes deeper and deeper in tint. Thus the depth of the tint of the 
 Italian sky is familiar to us all. Why, then, make our ceilings white ? I often ask 
 this question, and am told that the whiteness I'enders the ceiling almost invisible ; 
 hence it is preferred. This idea is very absurd ; first, because blue is the most 
 ethereal and most distant of all colours (see Chap. II., page 33) ; and, second, do we 
 not build a house with the view of procuring shelter ? hence why do we seek to 
 realise the feeling that we are without a covering over our heads ? We only like a 
 white ceiling because we have been accustomed to such from infancy, and because 
 we have been taught to regard a clean white ceiling as all that is to be desired. I 
 knew a Yorkshire lady who, upon being asked by her husband whether she would 
 like the drawing-room ceiling decorated, replied that she thought not, as she could 
 not then have it re-whitewashed every year. The idea was clean certainly. Blue, I 
 have said, is ethereal in character; it is so, and may become exceedingly so if of 
 medium depth and of a grey hue ; hence, if a mere atmospheric effect was sought, 
 it would be desirable that this colour be used on the ceiling rather than white. But, 
 as we have just said, invisibility of the ceiling is absurd, as it is our protection from 
 the weather. Further, the ceiling may become an object of great beauty, and it can 
 be seen as a whole. Why then neglect the opjiortunity of arranging a beautiful 
 object when there is no reason to the contrary? We like a beautiful coloured vase, 
 or, if we do not, we can have it whitewashed, or even dispense with it altogether. 
 
7(1 
 
 PRINCIPLES OF DESIGN. 
 
 We like beautiful walls, or we would have them whitewashed also ; indeed, we like 
 our surrounding-s generally beautiful. Why not, then, have beautiful ceilings. 
 
 Fig. 51. 
 
 especially as they can be seen complete, while the wall is in part hidden by furniture 
 and pictures ? 
 
 I will suppose that we have an ordinary room to deal with. First, take awaj 
 
PAIEIiS FOP. CEILIXGS. 
 
 77 
 
 the wretched plaster ornament in the centre of the ceiling, for it is sure to be bad. 
 There is not one such ornament out of a thousand that can be so treated as to make 
 the ceiling look as well as it would do without it. Now place all over the ceiling a 
 flat painted or stencilled pattern, a pattern which repeats equally in all directions (as 
 Fig. 51), and let this pattern be in blue (of any depth) and white, or in blue (of any 
 depth) and cream-colour, and it is sure to look well (the blue being the ground, and 
 the cream-colour or white the ornament) . 
 
 Simple patterns in cream-colour on blue ground, but having a black outline, 
 also look well (Fig. 52); and these 
 might be prepared in paper, and 
 hung on the ceiling as common 
 paper-hangings, if cheapness is 
 essential. Gold ornaments on a 
 deep blue ground, with black out- 
 line, also look rich and efl'ective. 
 These are all, however^ simple treat- 
 ments, for any amount of colour 
 may be used on a ceiling, provided 
 the colours are employed in very 
 small masses, and perfectly min- 
 gled, so that the effect produced 
 is that of a rich coloured bloom 
 (see Chap. II., page 4G). A ceiling 
 should be beautiful, and should also 
 be manifest ; but if it must be 
 somewhat indistinct, in order that 
 the caprices of the ignorant be 
 humoured, let the pattern be in 
 middle-tint or pale blue and white 
 only. 
 
 I like to see the ceiling of a 
 room covered all over with a suitable pattern, but I do not at all object to a large 
 central ornament only, or to a centre ornament and corners ; especially if the 
 cornice is heavy, so as to give compensating weight to the margin. I have recently 
 designed and seen carried out one or two centre ornaments for drawing-rooms, 
 which ornaments were twenty-one feet in diameter. A centre ornament, if properly 
 treated, may be very large without looking heavy ; it may, indeed, extend at least 
 two-thirds of the way from the centre to the margin of the ceiling. I do not speak 
 of plaster ornaments, but of flat decorations. 
 
 If the ceiling is flat all ornament j^laced upon it must not only be flat also, but 
 
 Fig. 
 
78 
 
 PRIXCTPLES or DESIGN. 
 
 must not fictitiously represent relief^ for no shaded ornament can be pleasant when 
 l^laced as the decoration of a flat architectural surface. 
 
 I have already noticed that the decoration of a room should be in character 
 with its architecture, but that while this should be so, the ornament applied by way 
 of enrichment should not be a servile copy of the decorative forms employed in 
 
 Fig 53. 
 
 ages gone by, but should be such as is new in character, while yet of the spirit 
 of the past. 
 
 Many circumstances tend to determine the nature of the decoration which 
 should be applied to a ceiling : thus, if a ceiling is structurally divided into square 
 panels, the character of the ornament is thereby restricted, and should these panels 
 be large it will probably be desirable that each be fitted with the same ornament ; 
 while if they are small three or four different patterns may be employed, if arranged 
 in some orderly or methodical manner. 
 
TREATMEXT OP JOISTS IN A CEILING. 79 
 
 A ceiling may also have the joists or beams visible upon it : in this case the 
 decoration would have to be of a very special character. The bottoms of the joists 
 
 Fig. 54. 
 
 mig'ht have a string" pattern upon them (a running pattern), as the " Greek key," or 
 guilloche ; whilst the sides might have either a running pattern, or a pattern with 
 an upward tendency, as the ''Greek honeysuckle;" and the ceiling intervening 
 
80 
 
 PRINCIPLES or DESIGIf. 
 
 between the joists might have a nnming pattern, or better, a star, or diaper pattern, 
 or it mig-ht have bands running in the opposite direction to the joists, so as, with 
 them, to form scjuares, which squares mig-ht be filled with ornament. 
 
 If, however, the ceiling is flat, and is not divided into sections structurally, 
 
 Fig. 55. 
 
 almost any " setting out" of the surface may be employed, as Fig. 53; or a large 
 centre ornament, as Figs. 54' and 55 ; or a rosette distributed over the entire surface, as 
 Fig. 56. In any case it is not necessary or even desirable that the ornament be in 
 relief upon the ceiling. Flatly treated ornaments may be employed with advantage, 
 and all fictitious appearance of relief, as we have already said, must be avoided. 
 
COLOl'RIXG OF FLAT CEILINGS. 
 
 81 
 
 f There are so many different ways of setting out ceilings, that I cannot attempt 
 even to make any suggestions. I would simply say, however, Avoid an archi- 
 tectural setting out, if there are no structural members ; for ornament which is flat 
 may spread in any manner over a surface without even appearing to need structural 
 supports. As to the colour of a ceiling if there is to be no ornament upon it, let it 
 be a cream-colour (formed of white with a little middle-chrome) rather than white. 
 Gream-colour always looks well upon a ceiling, and gives the idea of purity. A 
 grey-blue is also a veiy desirable colour for a ceiling, such as is formed of pale 
 ultramarine, white, and a 
 little raw umber, just suffi- 
 cient to make the blue 
 slightly grey (or atmos- 
 pheric) . In depth this blue 
 should be about half-way 
 between the . ultramarine 
 and white. Another effect 
 which I like is produced by 
 the full colour of pure (or 
 almost pure) ultramarine. 
 In this case the cornice 
 should be carefully coloured, 
 and pale blue and white 
 should prevail "in it, but a 
 little pure red must be 
 present. 
 
 A further and very de- 
 sirable effect is produced by 
 placing pale cream-coloured 
 stars irregularly over the pale blue, or even the deep blue ceiling, or by placing 
 pale blue stars upon the cream-coloured ceiling. The stars should vary for an 
 ordinary room ceiling (say a room sixteen feet square by ten feet high) from 
 about three inches from point to point down to one inch ; the larger stars having 
 six points ; others being smaller and with five points ; and the small ones having, 
 some four points, and some three. If such stars are irregulai-ly (without order) 
 intermixed over the ceiling, and yet are somewhat equally dispersed, a very pleasing 
 and interesting effect will thereby be produced. This effect is in much favour with 
 the Japanese. The stai's, however, should be smaller if placed on a deep, than on a 
 pale, blue ground. 
 
 Another good effect is produced by giving the ceiling the colour of Bath, or 
 Portland, stone, and starring it with a deeper tint of the same colour. This effect 
 
 L 
 
 Fig. 56. 
 
82 
 
 PRINCIPLES OF DESIGN. 
 
 is improved by each star having a very fine outline of a yet darker tint of the same 
 colour. 
 
 I should recommend those interested in the decoration of ceilings to study 
 carefully the Egyptian^ Alhambra, and Greek Courts at the Crystal Palace, 
 Sydenham^ especially the two last named ; also to notice the ceiling in St. Jameses 
 Great Hall, Piccadilly, London, and the ceiling of Ushaw College chapel near 
 Durham. The ceilings in the Oriental Courts, by Mr. Owen Jones, at the South 
 Kensington Museum are worthy of careful notice ; but the Renaissance ceilings in 
 other parts of the Museum are both wrong in principle and are bad examples of their 
 style. The structurally formed glass ceiling of the Crystal Palace Bazaar in Oxford 
 Street, London, and still better, the ceiling of Mr. Osier's glass warehouse in 
 Oxford Street, are well worthy of note. 
 
 On the Continent we very frequently meet with ceilings on which large 
 pictures have been painted, as in the Louvre and the Luxembourg in Paris ; and the 
 authorities of the South Kensington Museum are making efforts to introduce this 
 style into England, but such pictorial ceilings are in every way wrong. 
 
 1st. A ceiling is a flat surface, hence all decoration placed upon it should 
 be flat also. 
 
 2nd. A picture can only be correctly seen from one point, whereas the deco- 
 ration of a ceiling should be of such a character that it can be properly seen from 
 any part of the room. 
 
 3rd. Pictures have almost invariably a right and wrong way upwards. A 
 picture placed on a ceiling is thus wrong way upwards to almost all the guests in 
 the room. 
 
 4th. In order to the proper understanding of a picture, you must see the whole 
 of its surface at one time ; this is very diflScult to do without almost breaking your 
 neck, or being on your back on the floor, if the picture is on the ceiling ; whereas an 
 ornament which consists of repeated parts may render a ceiling beautiful without 
 requiring that the whole ceiling be seen at the one g-lance. 
 
 Most of the French pictorial ceilings are so painted that they are properly seen 
 when the spectator stands with his back close to the fire. This is very awkwai*d, as 
 the rules of society do not allow us to stand in this position before company. 
 Pictorial works are altogether out of place on a ceiling ; they ought to be framed 
 and hung right way upwards upon walls where they can be seen. We have a well- 
 known painted ceiling at the Greenwich Hospital. 
 
 Arabesque ceilings, such as that of the Roman Court at the Crystal Palace, are 
 also very objectionable. 
 
 What can be worse than festoons of leafage, like so many sausages, painted 
 upon a ceiling, with grifiins, small framed pictures, impossible flowers, and feeble 
 ornament, all with fictitious light and shade ? But not fx)ntent with such absm'dities 
 
WALL DECORATIONS. 
 
 83 
 
 and incongruities^ the festoons often hang upwards on vaulted or domed ceilings, 
 rather than downwards. Such ornaments arose when Rome, intoxicated with its 
 conquests, yielded itself up to luxury and vice rather than to a consideration of 
 beauty and truth. 
 
 Decorations like these were to an extent again revived by the great painter 
 Raphael ; but it must ever be remembered that Raphael, while one of the greatest 
 of painters, was no ornamentist. It requires all the energy of a life to become a 
 great painter; and it requires all the energy of a life to become a great ornamentist; 
 hence it is not expected that the one man should be great at the two arts. 
 
 In all ages when decorative art has flourished, ceilings have been decorated. 
 The Egyptians decorated their ceilings, so did the Greeks, the Byzantines, the 
 Moors, and the people of our Middle Ages, and a light ceiling appears not to have 
 been esteemed as essential, or as in many cases desirable. It is strange that so few 
 of our houses and public buildings contain rooms vnth decorated ceilings ; but the 
 want is already felt, the fashion has set in, and many are at this present moment 
 being prepared. We must get simple modes of enrichment for general rooms — 
 modes of treatment which shall be effective, and yet not expensive — and then we 
 may hope that they will become general. 
 
 Division II. — Decorations op Walls. 
 
 We must now devote ourselves to the consideration of wall decoration, or to the 
 manner in which ornament should be applied to walls with the view of rendering 
 them decorative. 
 
 It will appear absurd to say that all ornament that is applied to a wall should 
 be such as will render the wall more beautiful than it would be without it ; but this 
 statement is needed, for I have seen many walls ornamented in such a manner, that 
 they would have looked much better if they had been perfectly plain, and simply 
 washed over with a tint of cJour. 
 
 To ornament is to beautify. To decorate is to ornament. But a surface cannot 
 be beautified unless the forms which are drawn upon it are graceful, or bold, or 
 vigorous, or true, and unless the colours applied to it are harmonious. Yet how 
 many walls do we meet with even in good houses — walls of corridors, walls of stair- 
 cases, walls of dining-rooms, walls of libraries, and, indeed, walls of every kind of 
 room — which are rendered offensive, rather than pleasing, by the decorations they bear. 
 
 A wall may look well without decoration strictly so called, and this statement 
 leads me to notice the various ways in which walls may be treated with the view of 
 rendering them beautiful. 
 
 A wall may be simply tinted either with "distemper" colour, or oil colour 
 " flatted." Distemper colour gives the best effect, and is much the cheajiest, but it 
 is not durable, and cannot be washed. Oil colour when flatted makes a nice wall, 
 
'84 PRINCIPLES OF DESIGN'. 
 
 whether "stippled" or plain, and is Ijoth duraljle and washable. An entire wall 
 . should never be varnished. 
 
 I say that a wall can look well even i£ not decorated. Let me give one or two 
 
 Fig. 57. 
 
 instances ; but, perhaps, I had better g-ive treatments for the entire room, including 
 the ceiling, and not for the wall simply. 
 
 A good effect of a very plain and inexpensive character would be produced 
 by having a black skirting, a cream-colour wall (this colour to be made of the 
 
 Fig. .09. 
 
 colour called middle-chrome and white, and to resemble in depth the best pure 
 cream), a cornice coloured with pale blue of greyish tint, with deep blue, white, 
 and a slight line of red, and a ceiling of blue of almost any depth. The ceiling 
 colour to be pure French ultramarine, or this ultramarine mixed with white and 
 a touch of raw umber (the cornice blues to be made in the same way). The red 
 
Decorative design. 
 
WALL DECORATIONS. 
 
 85; 
 
 in the cornice to be deep vermilion if very narrow (one-sixteenth of an inch), or 
 carmine if broad.* 
 
 A room of a slightly more decorative character would be produced by making 
 the lower three feet of the wall of a difPerent colour (by forming a dado) from the 
 upper part of the wall : thus, if the other parts of the room were coloured as in the 
 example just given, the lower three feet might be red (vermilion toned to a rich 
 Indian red with ultramarine blue) or chocolate (purple-brown and white, with a little 
 orange-chrome) ; this lower portion of the wall being separated from, the upper 
 cream-coloured portion by a line of 
 black an inch broad, or better by a 
 double line, the upper line being an 
 inch broad, and the lower line three- 
 eighths of an inch, the lines being 
 separated from each other by five- 
 eig'hths of the red or chocolate. 
 
 I like the formation of a dado, for 
 it affords an opportunity of giving 
 apparent stability to the wall by 
 making its lower portion dark ; and 
 furniture is invariably much improved 
 by being seen against a dark back- 
 ground. The occupants of a room 
 always look better when viewed in 
 conjunction with a dark background, 
 and ladies' dresses certainly do. The 
 dark dado gives the desired back- 
 ground without rendering it necessary 
 that the entire wall be dark. If the 
 furniture be mahogany, it will be wonderfully improved by being placed against 
 a chocolate wall. 
 
 The dado of a room need not be plain; indeed, it may be enriched to any 
 extent. It may be plain with a bordering separating it from the wall, such as 
 -Figs. 57, 58, and 59, or the coloured border on Plate I. (frontispiece) ; or it may 
 have a simple dower regularly dispersed over it ; or it may be covered with a 
 geometrical repeating pattern, in either of which cases it would have a border; or 
 it may be enriched with a specially designed piece of ornament, as Fig. 60. This 
 particular pattern should not, however, be enlarged to a height of more than twenty 
 
 * In some part? of the country it is customai-y to wash tlie cornice over with qnick-lime. 
 If this has been done the lime must be carefully removed, for lime will turn carmine black. 
 
86 
 
 PRINCIPLES OF DESIGN. 
 
 to twenty-four inches ; but if of this width, and above a skirting of twelve or 
 fifteen inehesj it would look well. 
 
 I have designed two or three narrow dado papers for Messrs. Wylie and 
 Lockhead, of Glasgow, which are about eighteen inches broad, and are printed in the 
 
 direction of the length of 
 the paper, so as to save 
 unnecessary joins ; and 
 Messrs. Jeffrey and Co., 
 of Essex Road, Islington, 
 are issuing a complete 
 series of my decorations 
 for walls, dados, and 
 ceilings. 
 
 If the dado is en- 
 riched with ornament, and 
 the cornice is coloured, 
 and a pattern spreads all 
 over the ceiling, the walls 
 can well be plain, but 
 they may be covered with 
 a simple "powdering" as 
 the patterns in Fig. 61, 
 if these are in soft colours, 
 or with patterns such as 
 those set forth in colours 
 on Plate I. ; but these, 
 especially that on the blue 
 ground, would only be 
 used where a very rich 
 effect is desired. 
 
 A good room would 
 be produced by pattern 
 Fig. 52 being on the 
 
 ceiling in dark bine and cream-colour, by the cornice being coloured with a pre- 
 valence of dark blue, the walls being cream-colour down to the dado ; the border 
 separating the dado from the wall being black ornament on a dull orange-colour; 
 and by the dado being chocolate with a black rosette upon it ; the skirting boards 
 being bright black. The dado may or may not be varnished; the upper part 
 of the wall can only be "dead" (not varnished — dull). If the room is high a 
 bordering ma}' run round the ujiper portion of the wall, about three to four inches 
 
 W' w 4m ' 
 
 Fipf. CI. 
 
WALL-PAPERS. 
 
 87 
 
 below the cornice ; such a border as Fig. 62 may be employed in dull orange 
 and chocolate. 
 
 A citrine wall comes well with a deep blue, or blue and white ceilings if blue 
 prevails in the cornice, and this wall may have a dark blue (ultramarine and black 
 with a little white) dado, or a rich maroon dado (brown-lake) . If the blue dado is 
 employed the skirting should be indigo, which, when varnished and seen in eon- 
 junction with the blue, will appear as black as jet. (See the coloured examples on 
 Plate II., and remarks on colour on pages 45 and 40.) 
 
 Walls are usually papered in middle-class houses. I must not object to this 
 universal custom ; but I do say, try to avoid showing the joinings of the various 
 strips. In all cases where possible cut the paper to the pattern, and not in straight 
 lines, for straight joinings are very objectionable. If you use paper for walls, use it 
 
 Fig. 62. 
 
 artistically, and not as so much paper. Let a dado be formed of one paper, the dado 
 bordering (dado rail) of a suitable paper bordering ; the upper part of the wall 
 being covered by another paper of simple and just design, and of such colour as 
 shall harmonise with the dado. Proceed as an artist, and not as a mere workman. 
 Think out an ornamental schema, and then try to realise the desired effect. Avoid 
 all papers in which huge bunches of flowers aiid animals or the human figure are 
 depicted. The best for all purposes are those of a simple geometrical character, or 
 in which designs similar to those in Fig. 61 are "powdered" or placed at regular 
 intervals over a plain ground. 
 
 Just as the ceiling ornament must accord in character with the architecture of the 
 room in which it is placed, so must the wall decoration be of the same style as the 
 architecture of the room. Indeed, whatever we have said respecting the harmony of 
 the ceiling decoration with the architectm-e of the building, applies equally to the 
 ornamentation of the wall. 
 
 It has been customary to arrange walls into panels when decorating them, and 
 
88 
 
 PRINCIPLES OF DESIGN. 
 
 of this mode of treatment we give one illustration (Fig. 63) j yet nothing can be more 
 absurd than such a treatment^ unless the wall is architecturally (structurally) arched. 
 A wall may be so formed that some parts are thick^ so as to give the required strength, 
 while other jwrtions are thin. In such a case the wall would be formed of arched 
 
 recesses and thickened piers alternately. This being the ease, the decoration should 
 be so applied as to emphasise, or render apparent, this arched structure ; but if the 
 wall is of one thickness throughout, its division into arches is absurd and foolish. 
 
 We sometimes see great follies, and even gross untruths, perpetrated with the 
 view of bi-inging about the so-called decoration of a room. Thus it is not 
 
SIIAJrS IN DECOEATION'. 
 
 89 
 
 unfrequently that we meet with imitation pillars, recesses, and arches as the so-called 
 ornamentation of a room. 
 
 In low music halls we are not surprised hj such decorations, for we do not look 
 for truth or any manifestation of delicacy of feeling' in such places. Falsity and the 
 untrue appear in natural juxtaposition with the debased and the vulgar. Sham 
 marble pillars, a fictitious and merely imitative architecture, an assumed and unreal, 
 yet coarse and vulgar, gorgeousness, are the natural adjuncts of immorality and vice ; 
 but such falsities cannot be tolerated in the abodes of those who pretend to purity 
 and truth, nor in the buildings which they frequent; yet even the new Albert Hall 
 has sham marble pillars (I say this to our shame), and but recently I visited a 
 church near Edgware, in which there is a display of false decoration such as I never 
 before saw. Here we find sham pillai-s, giving a false architecture ; sham nichesj 
 containing sham statues ; sham clouds, forming an absurd ceiling j and almost every 
 falsity which a falsely constituted mind could perpetrate. 
 
 How strange it is that in a church, where purity and truth are taught, the 
 whole of the decorations should be a sham ! It is said that if you want to hear a 
 fierce quarrel, and to see true hatred, you must seek it in religious sects and among 
 theological discussionists. On the same principle, I siippose, we must prepare 
 ourselves for a display of the worst art-falsity in the sacred edifice. Perhaps the 
 idea is that of contrast. As the teetotal lecturer had a drunken man by him as 
 a frightful example of what was to be avoided, so the decorations of this church may 
 be intended as a warning, rather than as an example of what should be followed. 
 Happily such churches as this are rare, and it can be truly said that ecclesiastical 
 architecture and decoration has made great strides with us in recent years, and that 
 in very many instances it is rigidly truthful as well as beautiful. 
 
 Before leaving the consideration of wall decorations, I must object to all 
 imitations, as sham marbles, granites, etc., for no wall can be satisfactory which is to 
 any extent a display of false grandeur ; and this is curious, that in many cases it 
 costs more to produce an imitation marble staircase than it would to line the same 
 walls with the marbles imitated. I have known a case in which the imitation has 
 cost double what the genuine stone would have cost, and such a case is not 
 exceptional, for hand-polished work is always expensive. To imitations of marbles 
 and granites, as I have already said, I strongly object, and of the genuine stone I am 
 not fond, unless sparingly and judiciously used. My objections to its free use are 
 these : — 1st. Harmony of colour depends upon great exactness of tint. This 
 exactness is rarely attainable in the case of two marbles. One stone may, however, 
 be brought into direct and perfect harmony with a coloured wall, by the tint of the 
 wall being carefully suited to the marble. 2nd. The true artist thinks less of the 
 costliness of the material of which he forms his works than of the art-effect produced. 
 Thus the old Greeks, who were full of art-feeling and refinement, coloured the 
 
 M 
 
90 
 
 PRINCIPLES OF DESIGN. 
 
 buildings •wliicli they constructed of wliito marble, and they certainly thereby 
 ■improved them ; for colour, if harmoniously employed, lends to objects a new 
 charm — a charm which they would not without it possess. I must further say, 
 before leaving- our present subject, that all walls, however decorated, should serve as 
 a background to whatever stands in front of them. Thus they must retire even 
 behind the furniture by their unobtrusiveness. 
 
 The order of arrangement in furnishing must be this. The living beings in a 
 room should be most attractive and conspicuous, and the dress of man should be of 
 such a character as to secure this. Ladies can now employ any amount of colour in 
 their attire ; but poor man, however noble, cannot by his dress be distinguished 
 from his butler ; and, worst of all, both are dressed in an unbecoming and inartistic 
 manner. Next come the furniture and draperies — the one or the other having 
 prominence according to circumstances ; then come the wall and floor, both of which 
 are to serve as backgrounds to all that stands in front of them. In decorating walls, 
 or in judging of the merit or suitability of wall decorations, this must always be 
 taken into consideration, that they are but enriched backgrounds ; and it should also 
 be remembered that the nature of the enrichment applied is determined, to a great 
 extent, by the character of the architecture of the building of which the wall forms 
 a part. 
 
 We come now to consider wall-papers, which are hangings prepared with the 
 view of enabling us to decorate our walls at comparatively small cost. I may 
 confess that I am not very fond of wall-papers under any circumstances. I prefer a 
 tinted or painted wall. Yet they are largely used, and will be for a long time to 
 come. I have already said that if wall-papers are used they should not be joined 
 together with straight lines, and that we ought to consider them as so much 
 art-material which should be used artistically. 
 
 As to the nature of the pattern which a wall-paper should have, it is almost 
 impossible to speak, as there are endless varieties ; but as a rule it may be said that 
 those consisting of small, simple, repeated parts, which are low-toned or neutral in 
 colour, are the best. Most wall-paper patterns are larger than is desirable. The 
 pattern can scarcely be too simple, and it should in all cases consist of flat ornament. 
 
 If the ornament is very g'ood, and the pattern is the work of a true artist, it 
 may be larger, for then the parts will be balanced and harmonised in a manner that 
 could not be expected from a less skilful hand; but even if by the most talented 
 designer, it must ever be remembered that he has designed it at random, and not as 
 a suitable decoration for any particular room. The man who selects the pattern for 
 a particular wall must choose that which is suitable to the special case. 
 
 The effect of a wall-paper is materially affected by many circumstances. Thus, 
 by the quantity of light admitted to the room — whether the room is dark or light ; by 
 the aspect, whether it receives the sun's rays direct or docs not ; by the character 
 
WAI.T.-I'APER PATTETiNS. 
 
 91 
 
 of the lig'ht, as whether direct from the sky, or reflected from a green lawn, or 
 red-l)rick wall. All these thin.<?g must be considered, and what looks well iii the 
 ])attern-ljook ma}' look had ou a wall. 
 
 As to colour, the best wall-paper patterns are those which consist of somewhat 
 strong' colours in very small masses — masses so small that the general efPect of the 
 paper is rich, low-toned, and neutral, and yet has a glowing colour-bloom; but these 
 are rarely to be met with. 
 
92 
 
 PKINCIPLES OF DESIGN. 
 
 It was a fashion some time since to make wall-papers in imitation of woven 
 f abricSj and this fashion has not wholly disappeared yet^ absurd though it be. It arose 
 through the accident of a designer of wall-paper patterns having been a shawl pattern 
 designer^ and having a number of small shawl patterns on hand, which he disposed 
 of as wall-j)aper patterns. A pattern which is suitable for a woven fabric is rarely 
 suitable to a printed fabric, and especially when the one pattern is to be seen in folds 
 on a moving object, and the other flat on a fixed surface. And at all times imitation 
 
 by one material of another is 
 untruthful, and it becomes 
 specially absurd when we think 
 that almost every material is 
 capable of producing some 
 good art-efEect which no other 
 material can. We should al- 
 ways seek to make each material 
 as distinctive in its art-character 
 as we can, and to cause each to 
 appear as beautiful as possible 
 in that particular manner in 
 which it can most naturally be 
 worked. 
 
 A word should be said 
 about the particular character 
 which a wall-paper pattern 
 should have, but the remarks 
 which I am now about to make 
 will apply equally to all patterns 
 employed as wall decorations. 
 If we view trees or plants, as we see them against the sky as a background, they are 
 objects which point upwards and have a bilateral symmetry — their halves are alike 
 (Figs. 64 and 65) — or are more or less irregular in form, and when seen in this 
 view we may regard them as natural wall decorations. Our wall patterns, then, 
 may point upwards, as in Fig. 61, and be bilateral or otherwise; but it must be 
 remembered that when the flowers of a primrose protrude from a bank they are 
 regular radiating, or star, ornaments. I think that it is legitimate for us to use 
 on a wall star, or regular radiating ornaments, as well as those having an upward 
 tendency. 
 
 I have said that when seen from the side plants are bilateral, or are more or less 
 irregular. As I have referred to plants as furnishing us with types of ornament, I 
 should not be doing rightly were I to leave this statement in its present form; for 
 
COLOURING OP CORNICES. 
 
 93 
 
 the tendency of the vital force of all plants is to produce structures of rigidly 
 symmetrical character ; but insects^ which eat buds and leaves^ and blig-hts, winds, 
 and frosts, so act upon plants as to destroy their normal symmetry, hence we find an 
 apparent want of symmetry in the arrangement of the parts of plants. 
 
 Respecting the colouring of cornices, a few words should be said. 1st. Bright 
 colours may here be employed. 2nd. As a rule, get red in shadow or in shade, blue 
 on flat or hollow surfaces, especially those that recede from the eye, and yellow on 
 rounded advancing members. 3rd. Use for red either vermilion or carmine ; for 
 blue, ultramarine either pure or with white ; for yellow, middle chrome much diluted 
 with white. 4th. Use red very sparingly, blue abundantly, the pale yellow in 
 medium quantity. 
 
 Besides primary colours, none others need be used on the cornice. It is a 
 mistake to use many, or dull, colours, here, but gold may be used instead of yellow. 
 With the view of explaining the principles which we have just enunciated by 
 diagrams, we give four illustrations (Figs. 66, 67, 68, 69), which I advise the 
 student to try and colour in accordance with the principles just set forth. 
 
CHAPTER V. 
 
 CARPETS. 
 
 It is not my intention in this chapter to consider in detail the various kinds of 
 carpet which are common in our market^ nor even to review the history of their 
 manufacture^ interesting as it would be to do so; for we must confine ourselves more 
 particularly to an examination of the art-qualities which they present, and to the 
 particular form of pattern which may be applied to them with advantage. 
 
 Although we cannot here enter into a consideration of the manufacture of 
 carpets, I cannot too strongly recommend all who intend preparing designs for them 
 to consider minutely the powers of the carpet loom ; for the nature of the effect 
 "produced will depend to a larg-e extent upon the knowledge which the designer 
 possesses of the capabilities of the manufacture for which he desig-ns patterns. In 
 the case of any manufacture it is highly desirable, if not absolutely essential, that 
 the designer of the patterns to be wrought shoiild be acquainted with the process by 
 which his design is to be converted into the particular material for which the pattern 
 has been prepared ; for this knowledge, even when not absolutely essential, gives an 
 amount of freedom and power which nothing else can supply. 
 
 The carpets most extensively in use are " Brussels but there are many other 
 kinds both of better and inferior qualities. " Kidderminster carpet" (a carj^et not 
 now made by even one Kidderminster manufacturer) is a common fabric suited to the 
 bedrooms of middle-class houses ; but the art-capabilities of this material are very 
 small, as it can only have two colours in any line running throughout its length. 
 This carpet consists of two thicknesses, which are imperfectly united, and is not 
 durable. " Brussels carpeting," now made chiefly in Great Britain, is a good carpet 
 for general purposes. Its surface consists of loops, and it may have five, or, if made 
 of extra quality, six colours in any line running throughout its length. If with five 
 colours in the same line the carj^et will, in a sense, consist of five thicknesses of 
 worsted; yet these are united into one fabric. In some cases a " Brussels carpet" is 
 woven of very close texture, with the loops cut through; thus we have a " velvet 
 pile" or "Wilton carpet"- — a fabric which is very rich-looking, and durable. 
 
 Those called real " Axminster " carjiets are, perhaps, the best made. They are 
 formed by the knotting together of threads by hand, consequently any number of 
 colours may be used in their formation ; but such are necessarily most costly. A 
 
VARIETIES OF CARPETS. 
 
 95 
 
 " patent Axininster " carpet is made by a double process of hand-weaving', by which 
 fine results are achieved, and any number of colours used. In the first weaving a 
 rough " cloth " is formed, which is cvit into strips called " chenille threads," and 
 these are again woven into the carpet. This process is most ingenious, and the 
 carpets produced by it are very good ; but they are costly. 
 
 Some few years since a most ingenious process of manufacturing what are known 
 as " tapestry " carpets was patented — a process resembling in its nature that of the 
 patent Axminster manufacture, but differing in this particular, that the "warp" 
 threads are coloured by printing, and thus the first process of weaving is dispensed 
 with. These carpets are, like Brussels, made with a looped surface, and also with a 
 pile. They cannot be said to compare in any way with the patent Axminster carpets, 
 which are of a pretentious and costly character, nor even with a good " Brussels ; " 
 but they are low in price, and meet a want, as is proved by their enormous sale. 
 
 Besides these varieties of carpet there are a number of kinds of foreign produc- 
 tion^ most of which are hand-made, and are very beautiful. By far the greater 
 number of these have a " pile," although this is sometimes rough and uneven, yet 
 rarely, if ever, inartistic; but a few are without pile; still these are not without that 
 indescribable something which renders them estimable in the eye of an artist. 
 
 Having hastily noticed the chief kinds of carpet in use in this country, and we 
 might say in almost all countries, we come to the question — what form of pattern, 
 or what character of ornament, should form the "enrichment" of such a fabric? 
 
 When speaking in a previous chapter (see page 92) of wall decorations, we 
 noticed that a wall-paper pattern, or, indeed, a wall pattern of any kind, might 
 desirably have an ujiward direction and a bilateral symmetry. This can never be the 
 case, however, with a carpet pattern, which must be equally extended all over the 
 surface, or have a simple radiating symmetry, as Fig. 5(3 ; and this rule will apjily 
 whether the pattern be simple or complicated. It is not wrong, as we have said 
 before, to have a radiating pattern on a wall, but it is wrong to have a bilateral 
 pattern on a floor. 
 
 The reason of this is obvious. If such an object as we have indicated is placed 
 on a wall, from whatever point the occupants of the room may view it, it is yet right 
 way upwards to them; but if such an object were placed on a floor it would be wrong 
 way upwards, or sideways, or oblique to most of those who viewed it; and to employ 
 a pattern of this chai\acter in such a position is highly absurd, when a pattern can as 
 readily be formed which will avoid this unpleasantness. What would we think were 
 we asked to view a picture, or even to visit an aj^artment containing such, were this 
 work of art presented to our view in an inverted manner? We should feel astonished 
 at the absurdity; yet this would be no worse than expecting us to view a carpet 
 while the pattern is to us in an inverted position. 
 
 And the principle which we have just set forth is one taught by a consideration 
 
96 PKINCIPLES OF DESIfiN. 
 
 of plants. If we wander over the moor, where we tread on Nature's carpet, we find 
 that all the little plants which nestle in the short mossy grass are " radiating orna- 
 ments " — that is, they are pretty objects which consist of parts spreading regularly 
 from a centre. 
 
 I cannot too strongly advise the young ornamentist to study the principles on 
 which Nature works. Knowledge of the laws which govern the develojiment of 
 plant-growth is very desirable ; but it is not our place to iniitate even the most 
 beautiful of plant-forms — this being the work of the pictorial artists. Yet it is ours 
 
 Fig. 70. Fig. 71. Fig. 73. 
 
 to study Nature's laws, and to observe all her beauty, even to her most subtle effects, 
 and then we may safely pillage from her all that we can consistently adapt to our own 
 purposes. But in order that we produce ornament, we must infuse mind or soul into 
 whatever we borrow from her. (See jrage 2.) 
 
 With the view of more fully impressing the manner in which Nature teaches us 
 principles which we may apply in art, and of aiding the student in his inquiries, we 
 will give one or two illustrations. Thus Fig. 64 is a drawing of a spray of the 
 guelder rose {Vltjurnmti ojndiis) when seen from the side, or, as I might express it, 
 when viewed as a \vall decoration; and Fig. 70 is the same spi'ay as seen from al)ove, 
 or, to use the same manner of expression, when seen as a Hoor pattern. Further, 
 
TREATMENT OF NATURAL VOTXMS IN CARPET PATTERNS. 
 
 97 
 
 Fis". 71 represents a young' plant o£ a species of speedwell [Veronica) as a wall orna- 
 ment, and Fig. It, the same plant when seen as a floor ornament ; and Figs. 6.5 and 
 73 represent a portion of the goosegrass {Galium Aparine) as seen in the same two 
 views. 
 
 Fig. 74. Figr. 75. Fig. 76. 
 
 From these illustrations we see that plants furnish us with types of two 
 essentially different ornaments, which are adapted to the decoration of the two 
 positions of wall and floor, and may he introduced with truthful expression and effect 
 into wall-paper or carpet. 
 
 Even when the leaves appear somewhat dispersed upon the stem, a principle of 
 
 Fig. 77. Fig. 78. Fig. 79. 
 
 order can yet he distinctly traced in the manner of their arrangement, as is 
 diagrammatically expressed in Fig-s. 7-1, 75, 76; and here, also, the toji view gives 
 us a regular radiating ornament.* 
 
 The same law prevails in the flower that we have traced as existing in the 
 arrangement of leaves upon the stem : thus Fig. 77, which represents the London 
 pride {Saxi/raga niiihrosa), affords an example of a regular radiating flowei', which 
 
 * The spray here represented is that of the oak, and the diagram (Fig 74) shows the orderly 
 spiral manner in which the leaves spring from the stem. 
 
 N 
 
98 PRINCIPLES OF DESIGN. 
 
 we find so placod, in different examples, as to appear as a floor or wall ornament ; and 
 Fig-s. 78 and 79, the former being the flower of the speedwell {Veronica), and the 
 latter that of the common pansy [Viola tricolor), furnish us with illustrations of 
 bilateral flowers intended only as wall ornaments. In order to secure our seeing the 
 pansy only laterally, it is furnished with a bent stalk ; hence it never rests horizon- 
 tally upon the summit of its stem, but always hangs so that it is perfectly seen only 
 from the side. 
 
 There are cases, however, in which bilateral flowers are placed horizontally ; but 
 it is very interesting to notice that when this occurs the disposition or arrangement 
 of the flowers is such as to restore the radiating symmetry. Thus, if we take the 
 candytuft {Herts) or the common hemlock {Conium), we find that while each flower 
 is bilateral in character, the flowers are yet arranged around a centre in such a manner 
 that the smaller portion of each flower points to the centre of the flower-head, while 
 the larger parts point outwards from the centre of the group. These, then, are the 
 teachings of plants, to which we are called upon to hearken. 
 
 The above illustrations are not only useful examples of the suggestions of 
 plant-forms to the ornamentist, but form excellent material to the art-student for 
 the conventional treatment of leaves and sprays, buds and blossoms. They will also 
 serve to indicate the kind of plant-forms that should be chosen for decorative purposes. 
 Students of this branch of art would find it a useful practice to make a collection of 
 flowers and plants or parts of plants that appear to offer features similar to those 
 of which we have been writing, and test their capabilities for decorative purposes, 
 by endeavouring to arrange them for the ornamentation of wall and floor, as we 
 have treated the plant-forms indicated in this chapter. 
 
 We have now seen the principle on which all carpet patterns should be 
 constructed as distinctive from wall patterns, and in order to impress the necessity 
 of giving a radiating basis to the ornaments placed upon carpets, and not a bilateral 
 structure, we have referred to the principle of plant growth, where we noticed 
 that all plants, when viewed as floor ornaments (when viewed from above), are of a 
 radiating character; whereas if they are seen as wall or vertical ornaments, they 
 are either radiating or bilateral. This is a necessity of a carpet pattern, that it have 
 a radiating structure, or, in other words, that it point in more than two directions. 
 
 Man naturally accustomed to tread on grass, when brought into a state of 
 civilisation, seeks some covering for his floor which shall be softer to the tread and 
 richer in colour than stone or brick. And in our northern climate he seeks also 
 warmth ; hence he chooses not a mere matting, or lattice of reeds, but a covering 
 such as shall satisfy his requirements. 
 
 In early times our floors appear to have been strewn with sand — a custom still 
 lingering in some country districts ; then came the habit of strewing reeds over the 
 floor, and on the part of the opulent, sweet-scented reeds [Acorns calamus). And it 
 
QUALITIES OF A GOOD CARPET PATTERN. 
 
 99 
 
 is curious to notice^ in connection with this subject, that one of the charges broug-ht 
 by Henry VIII. against Cardinal Wolsey was that of extravagance in the use of 
 sweet reeds. This use of reeds was succeeded by the employment of mats of simple 
 appearance, formed of a kind of grass, and these by the introduction of wool mats, 
 which, at first, were chiefly imported, but afterwards manufactured in our own 
 country. The wool mats were in their turn replaced by carpets, which gradually 
 increased in size till their proportions became such as to cover the entire floor 
 on which they were placed. 
 
 This brief history brings us to notice what is required of a carpet : — it should 
 be soft in texture, rich in appearance, and of "bloomy" effect. 
 
 We may add to these requirements by saying that a carpet should also be a 
 suitable background to all works of furniture or other objects placed upon it, and 
 that in character it should accord with the objects with which it is associated 
 in any particular apartment. 
 
 Considering more fully these requirements, we notice that a carpet should be 
 soft. This is very desirable, for softness gives a sense of comfort, and with softness 
 is generally combined durability of the fabric ; but softness can scarcely be regarded 
 as an art-quality. Yet as the art which an object bears is more leniently viewed 
 when the fitness of the object to the purpose for which it is intended is apparent, we 
 may safely regard softness as a very desirable quality of a carpet. 
 
 The Eastern carpets are pre-eminent in this quality of softness, and of English- 
 made carpets "Brussels" and tapestry are the least satisfactory in this way; as 
 usually made, they have a hard "backing." A kind of Brussels carpeting with 
 a soft back has recently been brought out, but at present it is not general in 
 the trade. If the carpet employed in any apartment as a floor covering is harsh in 
 character, it is desirable to place soft felt under it (felt for this purpose can be got 
 at carpet warehouses), or evenly spread soft hay, for by so doing the wear of the 
 fabric will be greatly increased, and the pleasure of walking on it will also be 
 correspondingly greater. 
 
 The next quality of a carpet is richness. No carpet is satisfactory which 
 is " washy" or faded in appearance. There must be "dei^th" of effect, a "fulness" 
 of art-quality. Hangings may be delicate, wall-docorations soft in tint, but a 
 carpet must be rich and " full" in effect, yet a general softness of tone is desirable. 
 
 But this richness must be of singular character, for the most desirable effect 
 which a carjiet can present is that of a glowing neutral bloom. 
 
 I hope that my language does not appear mystical to the general reader or 
 young student. To the ornamentist I think it will be intelligible. What I wish 
 to say is that the effect should be glowing, or radiant, or bright, as opposed to 
 dull, quiet, or heavy ; that it should be such as results from the use of a pre- 
 dominance of brig'ht and warm colours, rather than of cold and neutral hues ; that it 
 
100 
 
 PRINCIPLES OF DESIGN. 
 
 should be neutral, inasmuch as it should not present large masses of positive colour, 
 but should have an equality of rich harmonious colours throughout ; that it should 
 be " bloomy/' or have the effect of a garden full of flowers, or better, of the slope 
 of a Swiss alp, where the flowers combine to form one vast harmonious "o-low" of 
 
 b'hj,. iiU. 
 
 colour. This is the effect which a carpet should present, yet it should never present 
 flowers, imitatively rendered, as its ornamentation. Such imitative renderings are 
 not to be jiroduced by the ornamentist ; they must come from the pictorial artist, 
 for they are pictures. They cannot form suitable backgrounds to furniture and 
 living objects, for they are positive, and not neutral, in their general effect. A 
 picture, also, will not bear repetition : whoever heard of one pei'son having two 
 copies of the same jjicture in one room ? Yet a pictorial group of flowers may 
 
COLOUR-BLOOM IK CAE PETS. 
 
 101 
 
 be seen r pealed many times over a floor^ which is very objeetional)le. The effect to 
 be prodnced is that of a rich "colour-bloom;" but the skilled ornamentist will 
 achieve this without violating any laws of fitness^ and will gently and delicately 
 hint at the beauty of a profusion 
 of blossom throug-h his tenderly 
 formed pattern. 
 
 Yet a carpet must be neutral 
 in its general effect, as it is the 
 background on which objects 
 rest. Neutrality of effect is of 
 two kinds. Large masses of 
 tertiary or neutral colours will 
 achieve its production, so also 
 will the juxtaposition of the 
 primary colours in small Cjuan- 
 tities, either alone or with the 
 secondary coloiu's, and black or 
 white; but there will be this 
 difference between the two effects 
 — that produced by low-toned 
 colours will l^e simply neutral, 
 while that jircxluced l)y tlie pri- 
 mary colours will be "bloomy''' 
 as well as neutral, and if yellows 
 and reds slightly i)redominate in 
 the intermingling of colours, the 
 effect will be glowing or radiant. 
 
 The radiant, or glowing, 
 bloomy neutrality of effect is 
 that which it is most desirable 
 that a carpet should present. 
 
 This effect is rarely pro- 
 duced in English carpets, owing 
 either to the want of skill on 
 the part of the ornamentist, who 
 is unable to produce such works ; 
 the want of judgment on the part of the manufacturer, wherel)y he fails to produce 
 such patterns ; or the want of taste on the part of the consumer, owing to which he 
 buys works of a more vulgar character. I have designed carpets in which I hava 
 sought to realise as much of this effect as I could with six colours — the number to 
 
^"♦i PlilXCIPLES 01' DESION. 
 
 which I have been limited by the conditions of manufacture, and fortunately these 
 appear to be commanding a large sale, and to be setting- a fashion in carpets ; but 
 those who wish to study these bloomy effects in their more perfect forms, must do so in 
 the carpets of India, Persia, Smyrna, and Morocco, but especially in the Indian rugs. 
 Some of the carpets from India are perfect marvels of colour-harmony, aud'^of 
 
 radiant bloom. They ajjpear to glow 
 as a bed of flowers in the sunshine, 
 and yet they are neutral in their 
 general effect, and when placed in 
 an apartment do not usurp a primary 
 place, as does any pictorially treated 
 pattern. 
 
 This " bloom " was seen to per- 
 fection in one or two silk rugs which 
 were shown at the International Ex- 
 hibition of 18G2 in London, and it 
 was not mucli less apjiarent in some 
 of the carj^ets fi'om India shown in 
 the Paris Exhibition of 18G7. Most 
 Indian carpets have this colour-bloom 
 to some extent, and few are unworthy 
 of careful study. 
 
 Persian carpets (Fig. 80) are 
 also models of what carpets shoiild 
 be ; they are less radiant than many 
 of the Indian works, but are almost 
 more mingled in colour-effect. In 
 pattern many of the Indian and 
 Persian carpets are identical, being 
 traditional, yet in colour they diffei', and both are worthy of much consideration. 
 
 The Morocco carpets (Fig. 81) differ again from both those of India and 
 Persia, and even to a greater degree than the Persian carpet differs from the Indian, 
 In these there is often a prevalence of soft yellows and juicy yellow-greens, inter- 
 mingled with reds, blues, and grey-whites, in such a manner as to produce a most 
 harmonious and artistic effect. To the young student, and to any who may desire 
 to ciiltivate his taste in respect to such matters, I say, Study the carpets of the East 
 most carefully, especially those of India, Persia, and Morocco. 
 
 Indian carpets, such as we have just referred to, may be seen at the museum in 
 the building of the new India Othce at Whitehall, which museum is open free to the 
 public (for examples, see Figs. 82, 83^ 8-1). 
 
 Fig. 82. 
 
" ALL-OVER " AND GEOMETRICAL PATTERNS. 
 
 103 
 
 As to the nature of the pattern whicli may he ap])Hed to a carpet, we have 
 all-over'' patterns, or patterns spreading- regularly all over the surface; "geo- 
 metrical " patterns, or those which have an apparent regularity of structure ; and 
 panel patterns, or those in which particular parts are, as it were, framed off from 
 other parts. 
 
 First, as to " all-over " patterns. These are what we almost always find in 
 both Indian and Persian carpets, and are, undoubtedly, the true form of decoration 
 for a woven floor covering. What is desirable is an evenly spread pattern, such as 
 will give richness without destroying the unity of the entire effect. The pattern 
 may have parts slightly accentuated 
 or emphasised beyond other parts, 
 but not strongly so, and this em- 
 phasising of parts must be arranged 
 with the view of securing to the 
 pattern special interest. Thus, if a 
 carpet is viewed at a distance it 
 should not appear as devoid of all 
 pattern, but through the slight pre- 
 dominance of certain leading features 
 (in Indian carpets, generally of 
 ornamental flowers) the plan of the 
 design should be indicated. INIore 
 detail should be apparent when the 
 work is seen from a nearer point of 
 view, and still more upon close in- 
 spection ; but in no case should any 
 parts appear strongly pronounced, 
 or otherwise than refined and beautifid, and in no case should there be a want 
 of interest manifested by the pattern. 
 
 Carpet patterns are generally better if founded on a geometrical plan. In this 
 way most of the Indian and Persian patterns are constructed. A geometrical plan 
 secures to the design a manifestation of order and thought in its formation. Panel 
 patterns, unless very carefully managed, become coarse. In some Indian carpets we 
 find a sort of panel in which the colour of the ground is changed from that of the 
 general ground of the carpet, but here the panel has usually a truly ornamental 
 form, and is, indeed, rather a large ornament than a sort of frame enclosing a 
 distinct space. Whenever a panel occurs in an Indian, Persian, or Moorish carpet, 
 it is so managed, and its surroundings are such, as to cause it to appear as a part 
 natural to the general design; but it is far otherwise with the panel patterns which 
 we occasionally see in our shop-windows as the produce of native industry, and it is 
 
 Fig. 83. 
 
104 
 
 PRINCIPLES OF DESIGN. 
 
 far otherwise with those which are used in vast quantities by the Americans. 
 Judging- from the carpets which they order^ I imagine that nowhere on earth is taste 
 in matters of decorative art so dejM-aved as it is in America. It is true that the 
 great floral i^atterns have ceased to be demanded by them, but they are only replaced 
 
 Fig S4. 
 
 by coarse, raw-looking panel patterns, coloured in the most vulgar manner, and 
 without even a hint at refinement or harmony of colour. Let the pattern be "loud" 
 and inharmoniously coloured, and the chances of its sale in the American market 
 are great. 
 
 But \\-e must not forget that even in our owti country bad patterns sell equally 
 as well as good, inartistic patterns as well as those which are of a more refined 
 character, and that even here in Great Britain more of the indifferent, if not of the 
 
WAXT OF NOVELTY IN PATTERNS. 
 
 105 
 
 very bad, sells than of the good. Let us cast the beam, then, from our own 
 eye^ before we try to extract it from that of another. 
 
 The ground colour of a carpet may vary much, as we all know; it may be black, 
 blue, red, green, or white, or any other colour. If the ground of a carpet is pure 
 white, it is almost impossible that it look well. When I make this assertion I am 
 often told that some of the Indian carpets which I so much admire have white 
 grounds. This is a mistake. Some of them have light grounds, but not pure 
 white. They have light cream-grey, or green-white grounds, but not pure white, 
 and this variety of tone altogether alters the case. Yet even with a light-toned 
 ground it is not an easy matter to make a carpet which shall appear as a suitable 
 background to the furniture of a room ; it can be done, but it is a thing difficult to 
 achieve. The safest and best ground for a carpet is black or indigo blue. If on 
 this a closely fitting, well-studied pattern be arranged, drawn in small masses of 
 bright colour, a beautiful bloomy effect may be achieved, and a glance at our 
 best shop-windows will show that the most satisfactory carpets are coloured in 
 this way. 
 
 As to the size of the pattern we can say but little, as this will be determined by 
 the coarseness or fineness of the fabric. In a Brussels carpet each stitch is about 
 the one-tenth of an inch square. In some Turkey carpets each stitch is a quarter of 
 an inch square. It is obvious that a much smaller and finer pattern can be produced 
 in Brussels than in Turkey carpet. 
 
 A carpet pattern is best small, or at least small in detail if not in the extent of 
 the design. A pattern may repeat three or four times in the width of the fabric 
 (twenty-seven inches if Brussels), or but one figure may be shown, yet in this 
 latter case the detail of the pattern may be as great as in the former. That degree 
 of smallness which is compatible with tolerable distinctness of detail is desirable. 
 For this reason Turkey carpets are not altogether satisfactory ; no fine pattern can 
 be worked in them, and besides this they have no colour-bloom and little colour- 
 harmony. In some respects they are good, but altogether they are not satisfying. 
 
 Before I close these remarks \\Y>on carpets, let me say that, as designers, 
 manufacturers, and consumers, we are one and all timid of new thing-s. We want 
 daring — the energy to produce new things, to manufacture them, to use them. 
 What if the pattern is " extreme," if it is better than others ? what if Mrs. Grundy 
 should think us eccentric ? — better be eccentric than ever harping on one monotony. 
 If we could but bear calmly the derisive smiles of the ignorant, art-progress would 
 be easy. 
 
 With us carpets cover the entire floor. In London these carpets are nailed to 
 the boards, and but seldom taken up. In some parts of England we find rings sewn 
 around the under edge of the carpet, which rings are looped to the heads of nails. 
 Carpets so furnished can be more readily removed for cleaning than those which are 
 
 0 
 
lOG 
 
 rui>;cii'LEs OF dksigx. 
 
 nailed to the floor. Square carpets^ such as the Turkey^ Indian^ and Persian^ are 
 spread loosely on the boards, and can be taken up and shaken without diiliculty. 
 This is unquestionably the most healthy plan of using a carpet, and it is also an 
 artistic plan. If the outer portion of the room floor is formed of inlaid wood of 
 simple and suitable pattern, and a loose square carpet is spread in the centre, we 
 have an artistic effect, and the desirable knowledge that cleanliness is also attainable 
 with a reasonable expenditure of labour. 
 
 Before we leave the consideration of carpets we will state in axiomatic form 
 the conditions which govern the application of ornament to them, as reference 
 can more easily be made to short concise sentences than to more extended 
 remarks. 
 
 1st. Carpet patterns may with advantage have a geometrical formation, for this 
 gives to the mind an idea of order or arrangement. 
 
 2nd. When the pattern has not a geometrical basis, a general evenness of 
 surface should be preserved. 
 
 3rd. Carpets are better not formed into " panels,''^ as though they were works 
 of wood or stone ; on the contrary, they should have a general " all-over" effect 
 without any great accentuation of particular parts. The Indian and Persian carpets 
 meet this requirement. 
 
 4.th. While a carpet should present a general appearance of evenness, parts may 
 yet be slightly " pronounced^'' or emphasised, so as to give to the mind the idea 
 of centres from which the pattern radiates. 
 
 5th. A carpet should, in some respects, resemble a bank richly covered with 
 flowers; thus, when seen from a distance the effect should be that of a general 
 " bloom of colour ; when viewed from a nearer point it should present certain 
 features of somewhat sijecial interest; and when looked at closely new beauties 
 should make their appearance. 
 
 6th. As a floor is a flat surface, no ornamental covering placed on it should 
 make it appear otherwise. 
 
 7th. A carpet, having to serve as a background to furniture, should be of a 
 somewhat neutral character. 
 
 8th. Every carpet, however small, should have a border, which is as necessary 
 to it as a frame is to a picture. , 
 
 Having thus summarised the principles that govern the application of ornament 
 to carpets, we may proceed to notice the conditions governing the decoration of 
 other woven fabrics. 
 
CHAPTER VI. 
 
 CURTAIN MATERIALS, HAIfGINGS, AI^D WOVEN FABRICS GENERALLY. 
 
 In the consideration of hangings of various kinds, we have first to notice the nature 
 of the cloth on which the pattern is to be worked — whether it is of oi^en or close 
 texture. Fabrics of an open character should bear upon them a larger pattern 
 than those which are thicker or closer. The openness or closeness of the fabric 
 will thus determine, to an extent, the nature of the ornament which is to be placed 
 upon it. Muslins, being open in character, should have larger patterns than calicoes, 
 which are closer in texture, or the pattern will be indistinct in the one case or coarse 
 in the other. 
 
 But not only does texture influence the pattern when considered as to coarseness 
 or fineness, but also the nature of the cloth as regards material. Thus silk will bear 
 greater fulness of colour than muslins or calico-prints, owing to the fact that the 
 lustre of the material, by reflecting light to the eye of the observer, destroys a 
 certain portion of the intensity of the effect of colour which a less reflective material 
 would exhibit. Silk, as a material, also conveys to the mind an idea of costliness or 
 worth, and wherever the material does so the pattern may ho richer in colour than it 
 should be in cheaper and commoner fabrics. If a pattern is in two tints of the 
 same colour only, as in the case of those woven silks where the pattern is formed by 
 the contrast of "tabby" and satin, it may be considerably larger than in those cases 
 where it is rendered conspicuous by colours. 
 
 This latter remark will apply also to damask table-linen, and to all similar 
 materials, as well as to dress fabrics, and drajwries such as window hangings ; but of 
 these we shall say a word shortly. 
 
 The closeness or openness of a fabric should, then, be considered when we design 
 patterns for its enrichment, and so should the nature of the material, as this will 
 influence its deadness or lustre. But there are also other considerations which must 
 not be lost sight of. If the pattern is to be wrought by printing, then one class of 
 conditions must be complied with ; if by weaving, then another class of requirements 
 call for consideration. 
 
 The requirements of manufacture are much more numerous than might be 
 supposed, and are in some cases very restrictive. The size of the repeat, the manner 
 in which colour can be applied, the character of surface attainable, and many other 
 considerations have to be carefully complied with before a pattern can appear as a 
 manufactm-ed article. 
 
103 PRINCIPLES OF DESIGN. 
 
 The chief fault of j^atterns^ as applied to fabrics generally^ is their want of 
 simjjlieity — want of simple structure^ want of simple treatment^ want of simplicity 
 of effect ; and together with this we generally find largeness and coarsenesss 
 of parts. 
 
 These errors arise chiefly out of a want of consideration of the capabilities of 
 the material. What can be done with this or that particular fabric, is a question 
 that we should carefully ask ourselves before we think of preparing a design. Have 
 we colour at our disposal, or texture merely ? and if colour, can it be employed freely 
 or only sparingly? and can any desired colours be placed in juxtaposition or only 
 certain tints ? These are questions of great imj^ortance, and they should be asked and 
 carefully considered before the first step is taken towards the formation of a pattern. 
 ILiN ing ascertained what can be done with the material at command, let us ever 
 remember that we should always endeavom* to so employ the capabilities of a 
 material as to conceal its weakness and emphasise its more desirable effects. If this 
 consideration were always given by designers to the power which the material has 
 of yielding effects, we should see, in very many instances, effects strangely different 
 from those which we often encounter ; and this remark applies to no class of fabrics 
 more fully than to damask table-linen and coloured damask window hangings. 
 
 No satisfactory effect can be got in light and shade upon any woven or printed 
 fabric ; besides, to attempt such a mode of treatment is absurd. Lig'ht and shade 
 belong only to pictorial art. The ornamentist when enriching a fabric deals only 
 with a surface, and has no thought of placing pictures thereon ; he has simply to 
 enrich or beautify tbat which without his art would be plain and unornamental. A 
 picture will never bear repetition. "Who ever heard of a man having two copies of 
 one picture in a room ? Yet how much more absurd is it to repeat a little picture — 
 perhaps a pictorially rendered flower- — a hundred times over one surface ! Besides 
 this, a surface must always be treated, for decorative purposes, as a surface, and not 
 in a manner calculated to deceive by giving apparent relief, or thickness, to that 
 whicb is essentially without thickness. Take a common damask table-cover. This 
 is by custom almost always white, although it would be better if of a deep cream- 
 colour, or soft buff; and the pattern which it bears results from a change of surface 
 only (why a margin of " ingrain " colour is not added, I could never see) ; yet in 
 nine cases out of ten the pattern which is presented by such a fabric is a miserable 
 shaded- attempt at a pictorial treatment, and is also a thorough failure. 
 
 Simplicity of pattern naturally accords with a simple mode of production, and 
 the means of producing pattern in damasks is certainly most simple. That there is 
 a natural harmony between simplicity of pattern and simple means of producing an 
 art-effect is obvious, for of all patterns that I have ever seen ujion damask table- 
 linen the simple spot, or dot, is the most satisfactory. If, combined with this spot, 
 we have a border formed of a simple Greek " key-pattern," or of mere lines (a very 
 
DAMASK TABLE-LINEN. 
 
 109 
 
 usual border to g-ood cloths), the effect is perfectly satisfying-, and, as far as it goes, 
 is highly to be commended. 
 
 It is curious that this spot is only sold in the better quality of table-linen (at 
 least so they tell me in the City), and this shows that the wealthy, or, in other 
 words, the educated, buy such patterns, as they prefer the true to the meretricious, 
 while the false and showy devices which we see on the common cloths please only 
 the common people of vulgar taste. I am not sure, however, that many persons, 
 whose means are limited, would not buy spots and other simple, but correctly 
 treated, patterns, if such were to be got in common qualities of damask ; but when 
 the pocket must govern the purchase, it is hard to say that the false is preferred 
 to the true, if the true is not procurable with the means at command. 
 
 While I cannot withhold praise from this little spot, it must not be thought 
 that I thereby give to it a high place as an art-work. Little is here attempted, and 
 that little is done well. But let us analyse this pattern. First, the spots are of 
 one tint throughout, if I may thus express myself — a tint, shall we say, which is 
 the reverse of that of the ground. It is not shaded so that it may appear as a ball 
 or globe, and is not graduated in "colour" in any way (were it graduated or 
 shaded, feebleness of effect must inevitably accrue), but is a simple, honest spot, 
 treated as a surface ornament. Secondly, this spot is geometrically arranged, or, in 
 other words, has an orderly arrangement. 
 
 If an attempt is made at rendering a pictorial, or light-and-shade effect, in 
 damask, an absurd failure can alone result, for depth of shade is not obtainable in 
 the material ; and, besides this, what appears as shade, when the cloth is seen from 
 one point of view, appears as light if seen from another point of view. Nothing 
 could be more absurd, then, than seeking to produce shaded effects with such means 
 as are here at our disposal. But were the fabric capable of rendering such effects, 
 it would still be wrong to employ them, as we deal only with the surface, and are 
 seeking to enhance the value of, or beautify, a fabric, and not to cover it with 
 pictures. In our simple spot we have those elements which may be extended into 
 the richest and most artistic damask patterns. We have order — as indicated by the 
 geometrical plan of the pattern — and an honest and simple expression, or appli- 
 cation, of the capabilities of the material. 
 
 All table-covers should certainly have a border. Any object which is to be 
 used as a whole looks unsatisfactory if it appears as though it were part of a whole. 
 If a cloth is without border it is impossible to avoid the impression that it is a part 
 of a larger cloth, and in every respect the general effect is decidedly imsatisfactory. 
 
 It is perhaps well that we notice one peculiarity of a table-cover before we 
 dismiss the consideration of siich fabrics, which is this, that while the central 
 portion is seen flat, the border portion is viewed in folds ; and here we come to one 
 of the great peculiarities of most draperies, that of their being viewed not as flat 
 
no 
 
 PRINCIPLES OF DESIGN. 
 
 surfaces, hut in waves or folds. One portion of a table-clotli is, however, seen flat, 
 but this is almost an exception in the case of draperies. Another exception to this 
 
 Fig. 89. Fig. 90. 
 
 rule of hanging's appearing- in folds, and that of a very complete character, occurs in 
 silk damasks which are used as a rich lining to the walls of palaces and some 
 mansions ; but of table-cloths we will speak for the present. 
 
 The central part of a table-cloth, that portion which is always to be viewed as 
 
TABLE-CLOTH PATTERNS. 
 
 Ill 
 
 a flat surface^ may be enriched with any diaper j)attern that is simply treated^ and 
 this diaper pattern may be full of design, provided the parts are not too large or too 
 small. It may also be formed of gracefully curved parts, or of straight lines or 
 circles, or of any combination of these elements ; but, preferably, not wholly of 
 straight lines. 
 
 Were it not for the fact that much of this central portion of the cloth is to be 
 covered by articles of the dinner-table, it might well be furnished with a central 
 ornament, repeating only in 
 quarters ; but as such an orna- 
 ment, in order that it be satis- 
 fying, requires to be seen as a 
 whole, it is not desirable that 
 such be here employed. A diaper 
 pattern that repeats many times 
 in (he centre is preferable, as the 
 pattern can then be seen in a 
 satisfactory manner. 
 
 The border of a table-cloth, 
 like all fabrics that are to be 
 seen in folds, re<iuires special 
 treatment, for what looks well 
 when seen as a flat surface may 
 not look well when seen on a 
 waved surliice. Tender and 
 graceful curves are lost when 
 viewed upon folds, for they here 
 appear as mere wormy lines. Fig. 91. 
 
 On the contrary, right lines, 
 
 whether horizontal or diagonal, and circles, all look well when seen upon waved 
 grounds. These lines become, owing to the folds of the fabric, curves of a subtle 
 character. The manner in which lines become influenced by falling on a curved 
 surface can be readily illustrated by forming semicircles of paper, and folding them 
 into cones, after having ckawn upon them a series of circles (Fig. 85) or straight lines 
 (Fig. If these cones (Figs. 87 and 88) are now viewed from above, or in such 
 
 a manner that the eye rests over the apices, it will be seen that the circles have now 
 become richly varied curves, each having somewhat the form of a blunt heart or 
 cardioid (Fig. 89), and that the straight lines become horse-shoe-shaped (Fig. 90). 
 These illustrations will be sufficient to show that what is plain when seen upon a flat 
 surface may be delicate and satisfying if seen u^ron a curved surface ; and will also 
 lead us to understand that what mi\y be delicate and refined when seen upon a flat 
 
112 
 
 PRINCIPLES OF DESIGN. 
 
 surface may become feeble and unsatisfactory if falling upon a waved ground. I 
 have said that strij^es or straight lines, if cros/siiig a folded fabric, are satisfactory. 
 This is so in almost all cases, the only exception being in ladies' dresses. Here lines 
 crossing the fabric are not satisfactory, as they become rings around the body, which 
 
 appear to divide it into 
 hoop-like strata. The 
 patterns of dresses tiiai/ 
 consist of narrow, ver- 
 tical stripes, as these 
 are collected together 
 at the waist of the 
 figure, and fall into 
 graceful curves with 
 any motion of the 
 body, but the very op- 
 posite is the case with 
 window-hangings. All 
 vertical stripes are 
 here highly offensive, 
 while horizontal stripes 
 are thoroughly satis- 
 factory. 
 
 A consideration of 
 the window-hanging 
 materials made in 
 Spain, Algeria, and on 
 the Morocco coast, will 
 show us the beauty of 
 horizontal stripes; and 
 in some of the little 
 Algerian warehouses, 
 such as we have in 
 Regent Street, London, and in the Rue de Rivoli in Paris, we see some of these 
 fabrics of a most interesting character. 
 
 To state in a concise form the laws which should govern the application of 
 ornament to certain fabrics which are to be seen in folds, I should say — • 
 1st. Great simplicity of pattern is necessary. 
 
 2nd. Circles, straight lines crossing the fabric, and diagonal lines are all correct 
 in such a case, and are improved by the folds, which form them into subtle and 
 beautiful curves (Fig. 91). 
 
OllNAMENTATION OF FABRICS SEEN IN FOLDS. 113 
 
 3rd. If ciii-ves are tender and graceful, they become commonplace on a waved 
 or folded gTound. 
 
 4th. The size of the pattern should be considered in relation to the size of the 
 folds of the material. 
 
 Fig. 93. 
 
 In Germany a kind of ornament is applied to rich stiff fabrics which is almost 
 peculiar to the country. This ornament is rich, bold, hard or stiff in its lines, and 
 in every way adapted for the decoration of a costly fabric which falls in large folds, 
 the folds changing the hard and stiff lines into graceful curves. This should also be 
 noted respecting- these curious yet beautiful patterns, that they are always simple in 
 
 p 
 
114 
 
 PRINCIPLES OF DESIGN. 
 
 plan, however rich in detail, and are invariably founded on a geometrical basis. 
 "German Gothic" is a name by which such ornament may be distinguished (flat 
 Gothic ornament has always been quite distinct from the stone and metal ornaments 
 of Gothic buildings, which have solid and not merely superficial form), see Figs. 92 
 - - '"^'^ This parti- 
 
 cular class of ornament 
 forms the background 
 to many old pictures, 
 a most interesting col- 
 lection of which exists 
 in the museum of 
 Cologne, and is cer- 
 tainly worthy of the 
 most careful study. 
 
 As to flat silk 
 wall -damasks, which 
 are used in some of 
 the upper-class houses 
 as wall-papers are used 
 in the middle-class 
 houses, all that need 
 be said is that they 
 should be treated as 
 wall decorations, and 
 not as fabrics which 
 are to be seen folded. 
 Wei'e I asked whether 
 I approve of these 
 damasks as wall cover- 
 ings, I should say, 
 "Certainly not." A 
 wall is better treated as a wall, and not so covered with drapery as to leave space 
 for vermin between the wall and its enrichment. There is also the further objection 
 that the lines where the fabric is joined are visible, and these are most certainly 
 objectionable. 
 
 Besides the illustrations of German ornament just given, we figure also a 
 specimen of Indian embroidery on cotton (Fig. 94) . I cannot too strongly recom- 
 mend the desig-ner of patterns for woven goods to study the native fabrics of India, 
 exhibited at the Indian Museum, Whitehall. 
 
 Besides the collection here brought together, thei'e is also in most of our 
 
 Pig. 94. 
 
INDIAN EMBROIDERY OX COTI'ON. 
 
 115 
 
 manufacturing towns a large series of specimens of these cloths deposited with the 
 Chamber of Commerce^ and these can be consulted by all respectable members of the 
 
 community. Speaking- of these Indian fabrics, !Mr. Redgrave says, in his Report on 
 Design prepared for the Commissioners of the International Exhibition of 1851 : — 
 These are almost wholly designed on the principles here presumed to be just ones 
 
116 
 
 PRTNCIPr.ES OF DESIGN. 
 
 • — the ornament is always flat^ and without shadow ; natural flowers are never used 
 imitatively or perspeetively, but are conventionalised by being displayed flat and 
 according to a symmetrical arrangement ; and all other objects, even animals and 
 birds, when used as ornament, are i-educed to their simplest flat form. When colour 
 is added, it is usually rendered by the simplest local hue, often bordered with a 
 darker shade of the colour, to give it a clearer expression ; but the shades of the 
 flowers are rarely introduced. The cloth of gold figured in the loom (Fig. 95), and 
 part of an Indian scarf (Fig. 96), illustrate fully these remarks. The ornament is 
 geometrically and symmetrically arranged, flat, in simple tints, and bordered, as 
 above described, with darker shades of the local colour. The principle of colour 
 adopted is a balance of the complementaries red and green, in both cases with white 
 introduced to give points of expression, and to lead the eye to the symmetrical 
 arrangement of the ornament. In Fig. 95 purple is introduced to harmonise with 
 the gold ground, a harmony very frequently used in the rich tissues of India. In 
 Fig. 96 variety has been obtained by introducing two reds, giving an interchange of 
 a lighter tint in every other flower in the border. The borders of these scarves are 
 beautifully illustrative of the simple and graceful flowing lines which characterise 
 Indian ornament ; and in Fig. 96 we can observe the difference between the Eastern 
 and the mediteval patterns — while the same principles are acknowledged in both, the 
 latter are often stiffer and more angular than the graceful sprigs of this border. 
 Both these works show how much beauty may be obtained by simple means, when 
 regulated by just principles, and how perfectly unnecessary are the multiplied tints 
 by which modern designers think to give value to their works, but which increase 
 the difficulties of production out of all proportion to any effect resulting from them 
 — nay, often even to the absolute disadvantage of the fabric. If we look at the 
 details of the Indian patterns, we shall be surprised at their extreme simplicity, and 
 be led to wonder at their rich and satisfactory effect; it will soon be evident, 
 however, that their beauty results entii'ely from adherence to the principles above 
 described. The parts themselves are often poor, ill-drawn, and common-place; 
 yet, from the knowledge of the designer, due attention to the just ornamentation 
 of the fabric, and the refined delicacy evident in the selection of qriantitij and the 
 choice of tints, both for the ground, where gold is not used as a ground, and for 
 the ornamental forms, the fabrics, individually and as a whole, are a lesson to our 
 designers and manufacturers, given by those from whom we least expected it." 
 
 Much that Mr. Redgrave here says is worthy of careful consideration, and I can 
 do no more than recommend the student to study these beautiful Indian fabrics, and 
 consider them in conjunction with the remarks which we have made respecting them 
 and fabrics in general. 
 
CHAPTER VII. 
 Division I. 
 
 In this chapter I have to commence our consideration of pottery, and of hollow 
 vessels especially; and this I do with considerable pleasure, as works in pottery 
 enjoy a longer existence, though through the character of the material of which 
 they are made they are more fragile, than those formed of almost any other 
 substance. Many works of Greek pottery are known to us, and not a .few such 
 works by the ancient Egyptians, and these are preserved not as fragments merely, 
 but as works in their entirety, and with the same beauty that they possessed when 
 first they left the hands of the workman. 
 
 Clay is a most desirable material with which to form works of utility and of 
 beauty, and this for many reasons. First, it is so inexpensive as to be almost valueless; 
 secondly, it is easily formed into vessels of almost any required shape ; thirdly, 
 it is capable of being " worked " into shapes of great beauty by a momentary 
 exercise of skill ; fourthly, clay is naturally of many beautiful colours ; fifthly, it is 
 capable of receiving by ajiplication to its surface any amount of colour, and of 
 preserving such colours as are applied to it in an unimpaired state for ages ; and 
 sixthly, it is susceptible of the highest art-finish, or the bold sketchy touch of the 
 modeller's hand. I say that clay is a very desirable material for formation into 
 vessels of various kinds, because of its inexpensive chai-acter. This quality of 
 cheapness gives to the material an advantage over many other substances of a much 
 more costly character, such as should not be overlooked, for the long existence which 
 so many works of earthenware have had is mainly due to the worthlessness of the 
 material of which they are composed. In my first chapter I gave an extract from the 
 writings of Professor George Wilson, showing that gold and silver, while beautiful in 
 themselves, and worthy to be fashioned into exquisite devices, are yet too tempting to 
 the thief, and to all who are pressed for means, to remain long in the form of art-works. 
 Families who have been reduced in circumstances, and have thereby been constrained 
 to part with their old plate, have melted it, so as to hide their shame. To illustrate 
 this, let me quote from the " Handbook of the Arts of the Middle Ages and 
 Renaissance, as applied to the Decoration of Furniture, Arms, Jewels, etc., 
 translated from the French of M. Jules Labarte, 1856." After giving the names 
 of many workers in the precious metals, the author says : — " We may form some 
 idea of what artists these Italian goldsmiths were of the fourteenth, fifteenth, and 
 sixteenth centuries, and what admirable works they must have produced. But, 
 
118 
 
 PRINCIPLES OF DESIGN, 
 
 ahis ! these noble works have uhnost all perished ; their artistic worth proving no 
 safeguard against cujiidity or necessity the fear of pillage^ or the love of change. 
 But a very few names even of those skilled artists have descended to us^ and in 
 making known those preserved to us in the writings of Vasari, Benvenuto, Cellini, 
 and others, we can rarely point out any of their works as being still in existence. 
 
 " Cellini tells us that while Pope Clement VII. was besieged in the 9astle of St. 
 Angelo, he received orders to unset all the precious stones that were uj^on the tiaras, 
 the sacred vessels, and the jewels of the sovereign pontiff ; and to melt down the 
 gold, of which he obtained 200 pounds. How many artistic treasures must have 
 perished in the crucible of Cellini." We now see clearly that while clay is a much 
 more fragile material than either silver or gold, its very worthlessness, despite its 
 fragility, gives to it length of years. 
 
 We have said that clay is easily formed into vessels of almost any required 
 shape. This is so within certain limits. Throughout these chapters I have lost no 
 opportunity of insisting upon the importance of working every material in a befitting 
 manner, and in the most simple and easy way in which the material can be wrouglit. 
 Almost every material can be simply " worked in some way, or while in some 
 particular condition. 
 
 Glass has a molten state in which it can be " blown " into the most beautiful 
 of shapes, and this process of blowing is the work of but a few seconds. Glass haa 
 also a solid condition, yet as it can be formed into works of great beauty by the 
 exercise of momentary skill, it would be extremely foolish to take a mass of the solid 
 glass, and by laborious grinding form it into a bottle or a bowl. It fortunately 
 happens that if a material is worked in its most simple and befitting manner, the 
 results obtained are more beautiful and satisfying than those which are arrived at by 
 any roundabout method of production. Glass should be formed into hollow vessels 
 only when in its plastic condition, for it cannot be shaped into the form of such 
 vessels as we require when in its solid state without the expenditure of much 
 unnecessary, therefore wasteful, labour. But if a mass of crystal or marble is 
 required to assume the form of a bowl or font, then the laborious process of grinding 
 must be resorted to, for these substances have no plastic state. 
 
 The potter^s wheel has been known from the earliest historic time, and tliis has 
 at all times been the instrument with which the best earthen vessels have been 
 formed. A mass of clay of suitable size is placed on a horizontal disc of wood, to 
 which a rotary motion is imparted. The operator presses his thumbs into the centre 
 of the clay, and then, by causing his lingers to approach his thumbs, manipulates the 
 clay into a cup, a bowl, a vase, an earthen bottle, or whatever form he may please ; 
 and if skilful, the operator can form objects of rnarvellous beauty with a rapidity 
 that astonishes all who see for the first time his mode of working. 
 
 If potters would but content themselves, in order to the production of such 
 
CLAY AS A MATEEIAt TOT! ART PURPOSES. 
 
 119 
 
 articles as we require in common life, with tlie "potter's wheel/' we should be 
 almost sure of a certain amount of beauty in domestic earthenware, but such is not 
 the case. They make fancy moulds of plaster of Paris and of wire jrauze, and roll 
 out clay as the pastrycook does dough, and manipulate it as sc much pie-crust, 
 instead of applying to it simple skill. Neither a bowl nor a plate need have a 
 scalloped edge, indeed they are much better without it ; and if unnecessary, and even 
 undesirable, absurdities were avoided, and a simple and natural method of working 
 each material alone employed, a great improvement in art would speedily take 
 place. 
 
 It is strange but true, that the worker in one material seems rarely to be 
 satisfied with making his works look as well and as consistent as possible ; he desires 
 rather to form poor imitations of something else. We have all seen earthen jugs 
 made in imitation of wicker-work, although to do so is obviously foolish, as no 
 wicker vessel could hold water, and the thing imitated is much less beautiful than a 
 thousand forms which clay is capable of assuming. Men's heads without brains are, or 
 were at least, favourite jugs. Well, that there are many models for this idea in Nature, 
 I doubt not ; yet why we should copy them by making a jug in the form of a hollow 
 head, T know not. I have in my possession a milk-jug, such as is common in the 
 district of Swansea in South Wales, in the likeness of a cow. The tail is twisted 
 into a handle ; by a hole in the back the milk is admitted, and through the mouth 
 it is ejected. A more wretched and coarse idea it is scarcely possible to conceive of, 
 yet the vulgar admire this jug. Let us work the material in a simple and befitting 
 manner, and satisfactory results are almost sure to accrue. 
 
 I have said that clay, as such, has many beautiful colours. Naturally clay is 
 black, grey-white, red, bro^\^l, and yellow, and it is capable of assuming many 
 desirable tints by the agency of chemical means. We do not use coloured clays as 
 we should do. We want so much white — everything to look so clean. All 
 ornamental ware, at least, should be artistic, and the art-effect should sujiersede that 
 cold whiteness which the Dutch and the English mistake for cleanliness. A clay of 
 good natural colour is not a thing to be hidden, or ashamed of. 
 
 Clay is capable, when glazed, of receiving any amount of colour, and of 
 preserving these colours in their beauty for almost any length of time. These 
 qualities are invaluable to the ornamentist. Colour is not always at his disposal. 
 The goldsmith has difficulty in getting it, but to the potter it is very accessible. 
 Colour is capable of giving to objects a charm which they could not possibly have 
 without it. Let us use the power thus placed at our disposal rightly and well, and 
 then the enduring character of the colour-harmonies which we produce may 
 gladden posterity in ages yet to come. 
 
 Clay is susceptible of the highest art-finish, or of a bold sketchy treatment. 
 Finish is very desirable in some cases. The cup vWiicli my lady uses in her boudoir 
 
120. 
 
 PUINCIPLES OF DESIGN. 
 
 should be delicate and fine^ for what is worthy to approach the sacred lijjs of the 
 occupant of a fair apartment but such a work as is tender and refined? 
 
 As a rule, however, we over-estimate the value, of finish, and under- value bold 
 art-effects. Excessive finish often (but by no means always) destroys art-eft'ect. 1 
 have before me some specimens of Japanese earthenware, which are formed of a 
 coarse dark brown clay, and are to a yreat extent without that finish which most 
 Europeans appear so much to value, yet these are artistic and beautiful. In the 
 case of cheap goods we spend time in getting- smoothness of surface, while the 
 Japanese devote it to the production of an art-eft'ect. We get finish without artj 
 they prefer art without finish. 
 
 Fig. 97. Fig. 98. Fig. 99. Fig. 100. 
 
 We must now devote ourselves to a special consideration of the shapes of earthen 
 vessels, and to the manner in which ornament should be applied to them. 
 
 In his primitive condition man appears to have used the shells of certain fruits 
 as drinking vessels and bottles ; and to this day we find many tribes of uncivilised or 
 half-civilised men using the same class of vessels. " Monkey-pots " (the hard shells 
 of the Lecytlds allaria), the coverings of the Brazil nut [Bertholetia excehd), and 
 especially the rinds of the calabash and many species of gourd (Figs. 97 and 98), have 
 been used in this way.* The first efforts made at the production of earthen vessels 
 were mere attempts at copying in clay the forms of the fruit-shells which were in 
 use as drinking vessels. After a poAver of forming earthen vessels, having a certain 
 amount of perfection of manufacture, was gained, we still find the origin of the 
 potter^s art manifested by certain works. Thus in China, where the potter^s art has 
 
 * All who are interested in this subject are referred to a paper published in the " Transactions 
 of the Edinburgh Botanical Society," for 1859, by Professor George Wilson, on the " Fruits of the 
 Cucurbitaceae." 
 
CHARACTERISTIC SHAPES. 
 
 so long been understood, we still find vessels made in tlae form of tlie bottle-gourd, 
 just as was their custom in the days of their first manufacturing efforts (Fig. 99). 
 Before considering the shapes of vessels from a utilitarian point of view, I should 
 tell the student that certain shapes are characteristic of different nations and of 
 different periods of time. 
 
 The Greek shapes, as we may call them — that is, the forms of those vessels 
 which the Greeks produced — are of a particular class, and the vessels produced by 
 the Egyptians are of a different type ; while those of the Chinese, Indians, Japanese, 
 and Mexicans again differ from each other, and from those of both the Greeks and 
 the Egyptians. For grace of form the vessels of the old Greeks stand pre-eminent 
 (Figs. 101 and 103) ; for simple dignified severity, those of the Egyj^tians (Fig. 
 100) ; for quaintness, those of the Mexicans (Fig. 103) ; for a combination of grace 
 with dignity, those of the Chinese (Figs. 104 and 105) ; and for a combination of 
 beauty with quaintness, those of the Japanese (Fig. 106); while in many respects 
 the Indian shapes (Figs. 107 and 108) resemble those of the Japanese. Fig. 109 
 is a water vessel from Ha, and Figs. 110 and 111 are jugs from Morocco. 
 
 I cannot enter into any details respecting the characteristic forms of vessels 
 produced by these various nations, but must content myself by giving a few illustra- 
 tions of the various shapes, and leaving the matter with the learner for study. The 
 British Museum, the South Kensington Museum, and the Indian Museum will aid 
 him in his researches. 
 
 It has been said that the character of a people can be told by their water-vessels. 
 As the consideration of this statement will lead us to see how perfectly a domestic 
 utensil may answer the end which it should serve, I will extract from my "Ai-t of 
 Decorative Design " a few remarks on this subject. 
 
 This statement can well " be illustrated by the Egyptian and Greek water- 
 vessels, the former of which has sides tapering to the toj) and slanting inwards, a 
 small orifice, and a rounded base, and the mouth of the vessel bridged by an arched 
 handle, the whole being constructed of bronze (Fig. 112) ; the latter consists of an 
 egg-shaped body (the broad end being aliove) resting upon a secure foot, which is 
 surmounted by a large, divergent, funnel-shaped member (Fig. 113). It has no 
 handle over the orifice, but has one at either side. 
 
 " Not only do these vessels differ in form, but associated circumstances differ 
 also ; and it is this variation in circumstances which brought about the difference in 
 form of the two water-vessels. 
 
 " The peculiarities of the Egyptian water-vessel arc its formation of bronze, the 
 roundness of its base, which renders it unfitted for standing, the narrowness of its 
 mouth, and the handle arching the orifice ; and of the Greek, its being wrought in 
 clay, the secure base, the wide mouth, the contraction in the centre, and the handle 
 at either side. We should judge from these vessels that the Egyptians drew water 
 
133 
 
 PRINCIPLES OF DESIGN. 
 
 Fig. 104. 
 
 Fie;. 105. 
 
 Fig. 101. 
 
 Fig. 110. 
 
 Fig. 103. 
 
 Fig. 107. 
 
 Fig. 108. 
 
 from a river^ or some position which required that the vessel be attached to a cord 
 and cast into the source of supply^ for the roundness of the base at once points to 
 this, it being- a provision for enabling the vessel to fill by turning upon its side (were 
 its base .flat it would float on the water) ; it is also formed out of metal so as to facihtato 
 
EGYPTIAN A^ESSELS. 
 
 123 
 
 this end. The arched handle not only points to the attachment of the vessel to a 
 string in order that it be cast into the water^ but also to the carrying the vessel 
 pendent from the hand in the manner that pails are at present carried, and the 
 contracted mouth restrains the splashing over of the water : and what this simple 
 water-vessel points to we find to have been the case, for the Egyptians derived water 
 
 Fig. 111. 
 
 Fig. 112. 
 
 Fig. 113. 
 
 from the Nile in the very manner that the vessel would indicate; but with the Greeks 
 circumstances were different, and the shape of the vessel varies accordingly. The base 
 is here flat, in order that the vessel may stand ; the mouth is large, in order to collect 
 the water which fell from above, — from the dripjiing-rocks and water-spouts. This 
 being the manner in which water was gathered, a vessel formed of heavy metal was 
 unnecessary; the contraction prevented the water from splashing over when carried, 
 and up to this point the vessel was filled^ and no higher ; and the handles at the side 
 
124 
 
 PRINCIPLES OF DESIGN. 
 
 show that it was carried on the head. But, in conjunction with this mode of 
 carrying, there is another consideration of interest, which is, the centre of gravity- 
 is high. If we attempt to balance a stick, having one enlarged end, on the finger, 
 it will be found necessary that the weight be at the top ; and in balancing anything, 
 it will be foimd that the object, in order that it ride steadily, have its point of 
 greatest weight considerably elevated above its base. In the Greek water-vessel, 
 which was carried balanced on the head, we find this condition fully complied with, 
 the centre of gravity occupying a high position, while in the Egyptian vessel the 
 centre of gravity was low ; but where the vessel is to be carried underhand, it is as 
 great an advantage to have the centre of gravity low as it is in the case of a coach, 
 where security is thus gained just as the centre of gravity is lowered. The Greek 
 water-vessel, then, consists of a cavity for holding water, a funnel to collect and 
 guide the water, a base for the vessel to rest upon, and handles to enable it to be 
 raised to the head, and the centre of gravity is high in order that it be readily 
 balanced ; and we should judge from this vessel that the Greeks procured water from 
 dripping-rocks and water-spouts, and this is exactly what did occur. These are the 
 direct teachings of the Egyptian and Greek water-vessels ; yet how many circum- 
 stances and incidents of common life can be conceived as associated with these 
 different forms of vessel. There is the gossip round the well, and the lingering by 
 the river-side where the image of the date-palm is mirrored by the glassy surface of 
 the waters. The effect of the noise of the splashing water upon the mind in the one 
 case, combined with the comparatively loud and energetic speaking which would be 
 necessary in order that the voice be not drowned by the noise, and of the calm 
 tranquillity of the river-bank in the other, where the limpid water is ever flowing ou 
 in silent majesty, must be considerable. Then we have the potter's art essential to 
 the production of the vessel in the one case, and the metal-worker's in the other — 
 the digging of clay, the mining of metal, the kilns and smelting furnaces. We will 
 not continue this portion of the subject further, and have brought forward this 
 illustration in order to show how well-considered objects reveal to us the habits and 
 customs of the peoples and nations in which they originated." 
 
 It will now be apparent that even a common object may result from such careful 
 consideration that its form will at once suggest its use ; but the object will only 
 reveal the purpose for which it was created with definiteness of expression when it 
 perfectly answers the end proposed by its formation. The advice which I must give 
 to every designer is to study carefully exactly what is required, before he proceeds to 
 form his ideas of what the object proposed to be created should be like, and then to 
 diligently strive to arrange such a form for it as shall cause it to be perfectly suited 
 to the want which it is intended to meet. 
 
 More will be said upon the subject of form when speaking of glass vessels and 
 of silversmiths' work ; and when considering these subjects we shall also give the law 
 
SHAPE AS ADAPTED TO USE. 
 
 125 
 
 which g-overns the apphcation of handles and spouts to vessels ; and it is of the 
 utmost importance that they be correctly placed in order that the vessel may be used 
 
 Fig, 115. Fig. 117. 
 
 with convenience (see page 140). A word must now be said respecting the decoration 
 of earthen vessels, but on this subject our remarks must be brief. 
 
 The object to which the decoration is applied must determine the nature of the 
 
126 
 
 PRINCIPLKS OF DESIGN. 
 
 ornament to be employed. In the case of a vessel which is to be in part hidden 
 when in use^ great simplicity of treatment should be adopted, and the ornament may 
 with advantage consist of repeated parts. In the case of a plate, little or no 
 ornament should be placed in the centre ; but if there is a central ornament it should 
 be a small, regular, radiating figure, consisting of like parts (Figs. 114 and 115). The 
 border should also consist of simple members repeated, for it will then look well if 
 portions are covered ; and these remarks will apply equally to all kinds of plates, 
 whether intended for use at dinner or dessert. 
 
 No plate should have a landscape painted upon it, nor a figure, nor a group of 
 flowers. Whatever has a right and wrong way upwards is inappropriate in such a 
 position, as whatever ornament a j^late bears should be in all positions as fully right 
 way upwards to the beholder as it can be. Besides, landscapes, groups of flowers, 
 
 and figures are sjioiled if 
 in part hidden, provided 
 they are satisfactory when 
 the whole is seen. 
 
 Plates may have a 
 white ground, for it is de- 
 sirable that those articles 
 on which food is pre- 
 sented should manifest 
 the utmost cleanliness, 
 yet to a cream tint there can be no objection. I should, however, prefer whits 
 plates, with a rather deep blue, Indian red, maroon, or brown pattern upon them, 
 and a pale bufl: table-cloth for them to rest upon. 
 
 In the case of cups and saucers the treatment should be similar to that of the 
 plate. The saucer may have a simple border ornament, consisting of parts repeated, 
 and little or no ornament in the centi-al portion on which the cup rests. The cup 
 may have an external border ornament, and a double narrow line of colour around 
 the upper portion of the interior, but no other ornament is here required. 
 
 Whatever ornament is placed around a cup, or vase, or any tall object must l^e 
 such as will not suffer by perspective, for there is scarcely any portion of the 
 ornament that can be seen otherwise than foreshortened (Figs. 103 and 111). Let 
 simplicity be the ruling princii^le in the decollation of all rounded objects, and ever 
 remember that a line which is straight on a flat surface becomes a curve on a 
 round surface (see page 110). 
 
 I have given what is a correct decoration for a plate and cup and saucer, but 
 there are other methods of treatment than those just named. The Japanese are very 
 fond of placing little circular groups of flowers on plates, saucers, and bowls (Figs. 116 
 and 117). The Greeks had various methods of enriching their tazzas and vases with 
 
 Fig. lifS. 
 
GLASS. 
 
 127 
 
 ornament, and the Egyptians were partial to the plan of rendering a cup as a lotus- 
 flower (Fig. 100). But when they formed a cup thus, they were careful to draw 
 the floAver conventionally and ornamentally, and never produced an imitative work 
 (see page 24). The Chinese treat the flower of the sacred bean in the same way 
 (Fig. 118). 
 
 What I have said has been addressed to the student. The remarks, however, 
 made respecting the form chosen being that which is most suitaljle to the end 
 proposed, and the conditions to which I shall make reference as governing the 
 application of handle and spout to any object, are binding upon all who would 
 produce satisfactory works ; but to the genius who has power to produce beautiful 
 and vigorous ornament, and whose taste has, by years of study and cultivation, 
 become refined and judicious, I can give no rules, his own taste being his best guide. 
 
 Division II. 
 
 "When speaking of earthenware, I insisted upon the desirability of using every 
 material in the easiest and most natural manner, and I illustrated my meaning by 
 saying that glass has a molten condition as well as a solid state, and that while in 
 the molten condition it can be "blown "into forms of exquisite beauty. Glass- 
 blowing is an operation of skill, and an operation in which natural laws come to our 
 aid, and I cannot too strongly repeat my statement that every material should be 
 " worked " in the most simple and befitting manner ; and I think that our 
 consideration of the formation of glass vessels will render the r.^asonaljleness of my 
 demand apparent. 
 
 Let a portion of molten glass be gathered upon thi^ end of a metal pij^e, and 
 blown into a bubble while the pipe drops vertically from the mouth of the operator, 
 and a flask is formed such as is used for the conveyance of (;live oil (Fig. 110) ; and 
 what vessel could be more beautiful than such a flask? Its grace of form is obvious; 
 the delicate curvature of its sides, the gentle swelling of the bulb, and the exquisitely 
 rounded base, all manifest beauty. 
 
 Here we get a vessel formed for us almost wholly by Nature. It is the 
 attraction of gravitation which converts what would be a mere bubl)le, or hollow 
 sphere of glass, into a gracefully elongated and delicately-shaped flask. This may 
 be taken as a principle, that whenever a material is capable of being worked" in a 
 manner which will so secure the operation of natural laws as to modify the shapes 
 of the objects into which it is formed, it is very desirable that we avail ourselves of 
 such a means of formation, for the operation of gravitation and similar forces upon 
 plastic matter is calculated to give beauty of form. 
 
 "When clay is worked upon the potter's wheel, it is shaped by the operator's 
 skill, and is sufiiciently stilt to retain the shape given to it to a very considerable 
 extent; yet the operation of gravitation upon it, so long as it has any plasticity 
 
128 PRINCIPLES OF DESIGN. 
 
 whatever^ is calculated to secure delicacy of form. Tliis rule should ever be 
 remembered by the art-student — that a curve is beautiful just as its origin is 
 difficult to detect (see Chap. I.^ page 23). In the formation of vases^ bottles^ etc., 
 knowledge of this law is very important, and the operation of gravity upon hollow 
 plastic vessels is calculated to give to their curves subtlety (intricate beauty) of 
 character. Having arranged that the material shall be worked in the manner most 
 befitting its nature, we must next consider what purpose the object to be formed is 
 intended to serve. 
 
 Take a common hock-bottle (Fig. 120) and consider it. What is wanted is a 
 
 vessel such as will stand, in which wine can be stored. 
 It must have a strong neck, so that a cork may be 
 driven in without splitting it, and must be formed 
 of a material that is not absorbent. Glass, as a 
 material, admirably answers the want, and this bottle 
 is capable of storing wine ; it will stand, and has a 
 rim around the neck such as gives to it strength. 
 But, besides serving the requirements named, it is 
 both easily formed and is beautiful. The designer 
 must be a utilitarian, but he must be an artist also. 
 We must have useful vessels, but the objects with 
 which we are to surround ourselves must likewise be 
 beautiful ; and unless they are beautiful, our delicacy 
 of feeling and power to appreciate Nature, which is 
 full of beauties, will be impaired. A hock-bottle is a 
 mere elongated bubble, with the bottom portion pressed 
 in so that it may stand, and the neck thickened by a 
 Fig. ] 19. Fig. 120. rim of glass being placed around it. 
 
 Here we have a bottle shaped by natural agency ; 
 it is formed of heavy glass, and the bubble was thick at its lower part, hence its 
 elongated form; but if length is reqi;ired in any bubble, and the glass is even 
 light, it can always be given by swinging the bubble round from the centre, so that 
 centrifugal force may be brought into play in the direction of its length ; or if it has 
 to be widened, this can as easily be done by giving to it a rotatory motion, whereby 
 the centrifugal force is caused to act from the axis of the vessel outwards, and not 
 from the apex to the base, as in the former instance. In either case a certain 
 amount of beauty would ai:)pear in the shape produced, for Nature here works for 
 us. (Compare the short, dumpy, yet beautiful bottle, in which we receive Curasao, 
 with the hock-bottle, when the two natural m.odes of forming bottles will be 
 illustrated.) Our wine-bottles are moulded, hence their ugliness. We work without 
 Nature^s assistance, and we reap ugliness as the reward. 
 
SHAPES OF DECANTERS. 
 
 129 
 
 Let us now consider what a decanter should be. In many respects, the wants 
 which a decanter is intended to meet are similar to those which are met by the 
 bottle, as just enumerated, but here is a great difference — a bottle is only intended 
 to be filled once, whereas a decanter will have to be filled many times ; and a 
 bottle is made so that it can travel, while a decanter is not meant to be the 
 subject of long journeys. It is true that a bottle may be refilled many times, but 
 it is not intended that it should, as the fact that we use a funnel when we wish to 
 fill it clearly shows, and without a funnel the vessel is not complete. All objects 
 which are meant to be refilled many times should have a funnel-shaped mouth (see 
 
 Fi^'. 121. Fig. 123 Fig. 122. 
 
 my remarks on the Greek water- vessel, page 121), but if a bottle had a distended 
 orifice it would not be well adapted for transport. A decanter should have capacity 
 for containing liquid ; it should stand securely, and have a double funnel — a funnel 
 to collect the fluid and conduct it into the bottle, and a funnel to collect it and 
 conduct it out of the bottle. It must also be convenient to use and hold, and the 
 upper funnel should be of such a character that it will guide the liquid in a proper 
 direction when poured from the decanter. 
 
 If we take a flask and flatten its base, and extend the upper portion of the neck 
 slightly into the form of a funnel, we have all that is required of a decanter, with 
 the exception of a permanent cork, which is a stopper (Fig. 121). 
 
 But as most decanters are intended to hold wine, the brilliancy of which is not 
 
 B 
 
130 
 
 PRIXCIPLES OF' DESIGN. 
 
 r.'adlly apparent when that portion of the vessel which contains the Hquid rests 
 immediately upon the table, it is desirable to give to the vessel a foot, or, in other 
 words, raise the body of the decanter so that light may surround it as fully as 
 possible (Figs. I'Z'Z and 123). 
 
 In Figs, lii-lto 135 I give a number of shapes of decanters and jugs, such as 
 may be seen in our best shop-wndows, and such as 1 consider desirable forms for such 
 vessels; and in considering the shape of such vessels, the character of the upper 
 portion of the neck (the lip) must be regarded, as well as that of the body and base. 
 Notice also whether the centre of gravity is high or low, and the position and 
 
 Fig. 124. Fig. 125. Fig. 126. Fig. 127. Fig. 128. Fig. 129. Fig. 131. 
 
 Fig. 130. Fig. 132. Fig. 133. Fig. 134. Fig. 135. 
 
 character of the handle; but respecting the application of handles to vessels I will 
 speak when considering silversmiths' work (see page 110). 
 
 Besides decanters and bottles, glass is formed into tumblers, wine-glasses, 
 flower-holders, and many other things; but the principles which we have already 
 laid down will apply equally to all, for if the objects formed result from the easiest 
 mode of working the material, and are such as perfectly answer the end proposed by 
 their formation, and are beautiful, nothing more can be expected of them. 
 
 Many objects of fancy shape have been produced as mere feats of glass-blowing, 
 and with some of these efforts I sympathise. Wherever the work produced is truly 
 adapted to use, or where an artistic effect is achieved, the glass-blower has my warm 
 sympathy; but if the effort is made at the production of novelty merely, the result 
 gained is sure to bs unsatisfactory. Much of the Venetian glass will illustrate these 
 last remarks. 
 
FORMS OF BOTTLES. 
 
 131 
 
 Fig. 136 is a vei-}^ excellent and picturesque spirit-bottle; it is easy to hold, 
 and quaint in appearance.* Figs. 137, 13S, and 139 are Venetian glass vessels, 
 wrought entirely at the furnace-mouth, and neither cut nor engraved — they are 
 artistic, and of interesting appearance ; while Fig-. 140 is a work of Roman glass, in 
 which the upper distension is useful if the liquid contains a sediment which it is not 
 desirable to pour out with the liquid. 
 
 There is one thing pertaining to table-glass that we do not now sufFiciently 
 
 Fig. 137. Fig. 136. Fig. 139. Fig. 140. 
 
 consider, which is its capacity for colour. Our one idea in the formation of glass 
 vessels is the imitation of crystal, unless we happen to produce a vessel of the 
 strongest tint. With the exception of hock-glasses, AAliieh are generally either ruby- 
 colour, dark green, or intense yellow-green, we rarely employ tinted glass on our 
 tables. These three colours, which we usually employ in hock-glasses, are all too 
 strong in tint for ordinary purposes, and they are coarse and vulgar. It is curious 
 that we should confine ourselves to these colours when glass is capable of assuming 
 the most delicate of shades, of appearing as a soft, subtle, golden hue of the most 
 beautiful light tertiary green, lilac, and blue, and, indeed, of almost any colour. 
 
 * In order that the nature of this bottle be better understood, I give a section of it at a as seen 
 when cut through the central part. 
 
132 
 
 PRINCIPLES OF DESIGN. 
 
 Why^ then, should we employ only two or thi-ee colours, and those of the most crude 
 character ? If the Roman and Greek glass of the British Museum be inspected, it 
 will be seen that the Romans employed various soft and delicate tints, and why we 
 should not do so I cannot see. For many reasons the colours of our hock-glasses 
 are highly objectionable, but especially for two. First, as already stated, the colour 
 is so strong that they appear as mere dark spots on the cloth, and altogether fail in 
 imparting to the table a pleasant colour-effect ; and, secondly, they utterly destroy 
 the beauty of appearance which the wine would otherwise present. 
 
 No glass which is to contain a liquid of pleasant colour should be so strong in 
 
 tint as to mar the beauty of the contained fluid, and especially is this true when the 
 colour of the glass is of an oj^posite character to that of the liquid : thus a red liquid 
 placed in a strongly-coloured green glass becomes highly offensive in appearance, 
 and yet we often see claret served in green hock-g-lasses. A dinner-table requires 
 eolom-. Let the cloth be pale buff, or cream-coloiu', instead of white ; and the glass 
 water- vessels of very pale, but refined and various, tints ; and the salt-cellars, if of 
 glass, also coloured, in a tender and befitting manner, and a most harmonious effect 
 will be produced. The flowers with which the table is adorned would then har- 
 monise with the other things, and much beauty might be produced. 
 
 Respecting the ornamentation of glass, two methods of treatment are resorted 
 to, which are "cutting" and "engraving.'^ Both modes deal with glass as a hard, 
 crystal-like substance ; and consist in grinding the surface, and either leaving it 
 " dead " or repolishing it. In the case of " cutting " a considerable jwrtion of the 
 substance of the glass is generally removed, and the surface is repolished ; but in 
 
ORNAMENTATION OF GLASS. 
 
 133 
 
 the case of "engraving" little more than the surface is generally acted upon, and the 
 engraved portion remains dead. 
 
 Cutting may be employed in bringing about ornamental effects in glass, but it 
 is rarely to be commended when so lavishly used as to be the chief means of giving 
 form to the vessel ; indeed^ cutting should be sj^aringly and judiciously used. A 
 vessel formed of glass should never be wholly shaped by cutting, as though it were a 
 work of stone. If the neck of a decanter can be made more convenient by being 
 slightly cut — if it can be so treated that it can be held more securely — then let it be 
 
 Fig. 143. Fig. 144. 
 
 cut ; but in all cases avoid falling into the error of too much cutting which causes 
 the work to appear laboured, for any work which presents the appearance of having 
 been the result of much labour is as unpleasant to look upon as that work is pleasing^ 
 which results from the exercise of momentary skill. There is a great art-principle 
 manifested in the expression " Let there be light, and there was light." 
 
 Engraving is also laborious, and while it is capable of yielding most delicate and 
 beautiful effects, it should yet be somewhat sparingly used, for extravagance in labour 
 is never desirable, and there is such a thing as extravagance of beauty. 
 
134 
 
 PRINCIPLES OF DESIGN. 
 
 However delicate ornament may be, and ho^\ ever well composed, yet if it covers 
 the whole of the walls of an apartment and of the objects which it contains, it fails 
 to please. There must be the contrast of plain surfaces with ornamented — plain for 
 the eye to rest upon, ornament for the mind to enjoy. In the enrichment of glass 
 these remarks fully ajjply. Let there be i)lain surfaces as well as ornamented parts, 
 and the effect will be more satisfying than if all be covered with ornament. 
 
 All that I said respecting the decoration of damask table-linen will apply equally 
 to glass, considering only the different way in which the effect is produced (see 
 Chap. VI., page 108). Thus we have ornament j^roduced only 
 by a variation of surface. Such simple means of producing 
 an art-effect are capable of rendering in a satisfactory manner 
 simple treatments only, but simple patterns are capable of 
 yielding the highest pleasure, and such patterns can be almost 
 perfectly rendered by engraving, as shown in Figs, l-fl, 142^ 
 143.* 
 
 Somewhat elaborate effects can be rendered in glass by 
 very laborious engraving, whereby different depths of cutting 
 are attained ; but such work is the result of great labour, and 
 rarely produces an effect proportionate to the toil expended 
 upon it ; and if a bottle so engraved is filled with a coloured 
 wine, the entire beauty of its engraving is destroyed. Fig. 
 144' is a drawing of a most elaborately engraved bottle, which 
 Avas shown in the Exhibition of 1862. It represents, to a 
 great extent, wasted labour. 
 
 It must be borne in mind that any ornament placed on a 
 decanter, wine-glass, or tuml)ler, is to be seen almost wholly 
 in perspective; and the remarks made respecting the effects of folded or waved 
 surfaces on ornament (Chap. VI., page 110), and those made in reference to the 
 application of ornament to earthen vases (Chap. VII., page 120), apjjly equally here. 
 
 It is not my province to enter into the various methods of manijjulating glass, 
 nor into all the classes of art-effect which glass is capable of yielding : I can only 
 call attention to general principles, and leave the art-student to think for himself 
 what should be the treatment of any particular object. There is a sort of crackle 
 glass which has come into use during the last few years, and is an imitation of old 
 Venetian work ; this is in some respects pleasant in appearance, but it is somewhat 
 uncomfortable to handle, and difficult to keep clean ; its use must therefore be 
 
 * Fig. 143 represents a decanter made for the Prince of Wales by Messrs. Pellatt and Co., which 
 is in good taste. Fig. 141 is a goblet from Austria ; it was shown in the International Exhibition 
 of Paris iu 1867. 
 
SILVEESMITHS' WOKK. 
 
 135 
 
 limited. The Romans were in the hahit of forming glass which was opaque^ dark, 
 and of many colours. Fig-. 145 is an illustration of this kind of glass, the pattern 
 being formed by portions of various coloured glass being imbedded in the substance 
 of the vessel. 
 
 In another chapter I shall have a few remarks to make upon stained glass ; 
 but as our present remarks pertain to hollow vessels chiefly, and as general principles 
 regulate the formation of all such, whether they are formed of earthenware, glass, 
 or metal, I think it better to proceed to the consideration of silversmiths^ ware, and 
 thus continue a notice of hollow vessels, than to pass to glass windows, although 
 they are formed of the material now under review. What we are specially con- 
 sidering at present are vessels of 
 capacity, or hollow wares. 
 
 Division III. 
 
 Continuing our remai-ks upon 
 hollow vessels, we have now to 
 notice silversmiths' work, and here 
 we may observe that while the 
 material with which we have now 
 to deal differs in character widely 
 from that of which those vessels 
 already noticed have been formed, 
 yet that many principles which 
 have been enunciated are equally 
 applicable to the objects now 
 under consideration. Silver ol)- 
 jeets, like those formed of clay or 
 glass, should perfectly serve the 
 end for which they have been formed ; also, the fact that ornament apj^lied to rounded 
 surfaces should be adapted for being viewed in perspective remains as binding on us 
 as before; but herein the works of the silversmith differ from those already dis- 
 CHissed — they are formed of a material of intrinsic value, which is not the case with 
 articles of earthenware or glass. Silver and gold being materials of considerable 
 worth, it is necessary that the utmost economy be observed in using them, and in 
 order to effect this a special mode of construction must be resorted to. If we 
 , propose to ourselves the formation of a sugar-basin of semi-circular shape, of what 
 thickness must the metal be in order that it may not bend when lifted? It is 
 obvious, that the vessel must not yield its shape to ordinary pressure, nor be subject 
 to alterations of form when in ordinary use ; but if it is to be formed throughout of 
 metal of such thickness as will secure its retaining- its shape, it will be costly and 
 
 Fig. 
 
13G 
 
 PRINCIPLES OF DESIGN. 
 
 hea\y, and an amount of metal will be used in its formation sufficient for the 
 manufacture of two or three such articles. 
 
 Instead of forming- the vessel throughout of thick metal, we may construct it 
 from a thin sheet of silver ; but in order that it possess sufficient strength we must 
 indent one or more beads in its side (see Fig. 146) ; or we can form ah angle by- 
 having a rim projecting into the basin (Fig. 147), or extending from it, and thus 
 give strength ; but the two beads are the more desirable, as the one gives strength 
 at the top and the other at a lower portion of the vessel. 
 
 Modes of economising material, when we are forming vessels of costly substances, 
 are of the utmost importance, and should be carefully thought out. If the designer 
 forms works which are expensive, he places them beyond the reach of those who 
 might otherwise enjoy them, and if heavy they appear clumsy in the hands of those 
 accustomed to delicate and light objects. 
 
 Besides this, works in silver and in gold are always in danger of being destroyed, 
 owing to the intrinsic value of these metals ; for if stolen, the theft is promptly 
 hidden in the melting-pot. Now if we form the vessels of thin metal, we render the 
 money value of the material less, and thus our works are to a smaller degree tempting 
 to the avaricious, and their chance of long existence is greater. The precious metals 
 are at all times perilous materials for the formation of works of art ; but while we use 
 them, let us take care so to employ them as to give to our works every possible 
 opportunity for long existence. If a work is to be so formed that it may exist for 
 many years, it becomes of the highest importance that those objects which we create 
 he well considered as to their utility, and at the same time be beautiful in form. 
 Long existence is an evil in the case of an ugly object, or an ill-considered vessel ; 
 that which is not refining in its influence is better blotted out. Let that man who 
 will not seek to embody beauty in his works make them heavy with metal, so that 
 they may tempt the thief, and thus sooner blot out his works from existence, as they 
 tend only to debase and deg-rade ; but he who loves refinement, and seeks to give 
 chasteness of character to the objects which he creates, may well strive to secure to 
 them length of duration. 
 
 There are various modes of working metal. It may be cast, hammered, cut, 
 engraved, and manipulated in various ways. 
 
 Little that is satisfactory can result from casting. Casting is a rough means of 
 producing a result, and at best achieves the formation of a mass which may be less 
 troublesome to cut into shape than a more solid piece of metal ; but casting without 
 the application of other means of working metal achieves little of an art nature. 
 
 Some of the fine iron castings of Berlin are wonderfully good in their way, and 
 are to an extent artistic ; and certainly they contrast strangely with the cast handles 
 and knobs which we often see applied to vegetable-dishes, and similar silver objects 
 here in England ; yet even these will not compare with works wrouglit by the 
 
ARABIAN METAL-WORK. 
 
 137 
 
 hammer and tha chisel. 
 Thin metal hammered 
 into form^ and touched 
 where necessary with 
 the chisel, the graver, 
 and the chasing--tool, 
 is capable of the very 
 finest effects which 
 can be achieved in 
 metal-work. Let the 
 reader consider the 
 beautiful vessels with 
 which Arabian metal- 
 work presents us : these 
 are all formed by the 
 hammer and chisel, 
 with the assistance of 
 the graver and chas- 
 ing-tool, and how mar- 
 vellously delicate and 
 beautiful are the re- 
 sults ! We have in 
 these vessels beauty 
 and dignity of form, 
 richness of design, 
 great intricacy and 
 delicacy of detail, and 
 altogether a refinement 
 of effect which may 
 long be considered 
 and repeatedly enjoyed 
 (Fig. 118). 
 
 Several, I may 
 almost say many, of 
 these beautiful objects 
 are to be found in 
 the South Kensington 
 Museum, and it should 
 be generally known that fac-similes of these lovely works, in the form o£ electrotype 
 copies, have been prepared by Messrs. Elkington and Co., under the sanction of the 
 
138 rUlNCIPLES OF DESIGN. 
 
 authorities of" the Deiiai-tment of Science aud Art^ and that these are procurable at 
 small cost. For purjioses of study these cojiies are of almost equal value with the 
 originals^ and for the adornment of a sideboard they are hardly inferior. I strongly 
 advise those who can afford to purchase these beautiful copies to garnish their 
 sideboards with -plate of this descrijition, rather than with the meretricious electro- 
 plate which we often see in our shop-wandows. 
 
 Having determined on the best mode of working the material, consider carefully 
 the requirements which the work to be produced is intended to meet, and then strive 
 to form the object so that it may perfectly answer the end proposed by its creation. 
 
 Let us take a sugar-basin. What form should it have ? After much con- 
 sideration, I have arrived at the conclusion that the two shapes engraved in Figs. 140 
 and 150 are those which best fulfil the requirements of such a vessel, for in them the 
 sugar is always collected together, and the dust sugar separates itself from the lumps. 
 
 The handles of a sugar-basin are often so small as to be partially or wholly 
 useless. It not unfrequently happens that only one or two fingers can rest on the 
 handle, owing to its smallness, while the thumb has to be placed within the orifice 
 of the basin when it is desired to move it. This should not lie so ; if a handle is to 
 exist at all, it should be so formed as to be useful, and afford a means of moving the 
 object with ease and comfort. 
 
 To form a handle as a mere ornament is an absurdity, for the handle is part of 
 the vessel structurally, while the ornamentation is an after and separate consideration. 
 In order to its existence a vessel must be constructed, but when formed it need not 
 of necessity be ornamented; ornamentation must ever be regarded as separate from 
 construction. 
 
 Such a sugar-liasin as I have suggested would not stand without legs : it must 
 therefore have them ; but I see no reason why the legs and handles should not be 
 combined ; hence I propose three feet so formed as to serve as handles throughout 
 their upper parts (Figs. 149, 150), they being convenient to hold. 
 
 Modern European silversmiths have fallen into the error (an error now pre- 
 vailing wherever art can be applied to any object) of making their works of a 
 pictorial, rather than an ornamental, character- — an error which the Arabians, Indians, 
 and Japanese never perpetrate, whose works in metal are unsurpassed by any, and 
 equalled by indeed few. It is a mistake to cover an entire vase wth figures in high 
 reHef ; but wherever anything of the kind is attempted, care must be exercised in 
 causing the groups to follow the line of the vase, and not to appear as irregular 
 projections from it. As to the modes o£ decorating works in silver and in gold, 
 they are many; of ornamentation by repousse work we have already spoken, and 
 of chasing and engraving. But besides these there are other methods, and some of 
 great interest, for there is damascene work, or inlaying; and applying colour, or 
 enamelling; and niello work ; jewels may also be added. 
 
SPOUTS AND H.-VNDLES. 
 
 139 
 
 Damascene work is of great interest. Metal of one colour is inkid into metal 
 of another colour. India produces, perhaps, the rarest examples of this kind of work, 
 the Indians being- experts at this manufacture ; but the Indian work consists chiefly 
 of silver inlaid in iron. This mode of work seems to be capable of producing many 
 beautiful effects, as all who 
 have examined the large inlaid 
 hookahs of India will admit. 
 
 Having chosen a form for 
 a vessel, the next question with 
 which we have to deal is, will 
 it require a handle and spout ? 
 It is curious that while the 
 position of a spout and handle 
 in relation to a vessel is go- Fig-. 149. 
 
 verned by a simple natural 
 
 law, we yet rarely find them placed as they should be. This is the more curious, 
 as a vessel may become practically of great weight, owing to the handle being 
 misplaced. 
 
 A pound weight is easily lifted, but when ajiplied to the shorter end of the 
 steel-yard it will balance a hundredweight. If this principle is a]i])lied to a tea-pot 
 
 Fig. ir,o. 
 
 which actually weighs but little, it may yet be very heavy to lift. In nineteen cases 
 out of twenty, handles are so placed on tea-pots and similar vessels that they are in 
 use lifted only by a force capable of raising two or three such vessels, if the principle 
 of the steel-yard was not acting against the person who uses the vessel. Take our 
 ordinaiy forms of tea-pot, and see how far the centre of the weight (the centre of 
 gravity) is from the handle in a horizontal direction, and you will be able to judge 
 of the leverage acting disadvantageously to the person who may pour tea from such 
 
140 PEINCIPLES OF DESIGN. 
 
 pots. Now if the part which is grasj^ed is to the right or left of a right line 
 passing through the centre of gravity of any vessel, there is leverage acting to 
 the disadvantage of the person desiring to pour from that vessel, and this leverage 
 increases just as the point held is removed from the central line spoken of. 
 
 Fig. 151 would pour when in the position shown in Fig. 152, but see how far 
 the hand that holds it would be to the right of the centre of gravity (a), which distance 
 is of great disadvantage, as it causes the vessel to appear much heavier than it 
 actually is, and requires a much greater expenditure of force in order that the tea-pot 
 be put to its use than is necessary were it properly formed. 
 
 Fig. 153. Fig. loi. Fig. 155. 
 
 The law governing the application of handle and spout to vessels is this, and 
 the same principle applies whether the vessel be formed of metal, glass, or earthen- 
 ware : — Find the centre of gravity of the vessel, which can easily be done by letting 
 a vertical line drop over it when placed in two different positions, as in Figs. 153, 
 154, and where the two vertical lines intersect, as in a in Fig. 155, is the centre of 
 gravity. The position of the handle being fixed on, draw a line through the centre 
 of the handle, and continue it through the centre of gravity of the vessel. The spout 
 must now be at right angles to this line. If this be the case the vessel will pour 
 freely while the handle is just hung upon the thumb or finger of the person desiring 
 to pour from it^ as may be seen from Figs. 156, 157, in which the straight line A, 
 
SPOUTS AND HANDLES. 
 
 141 
 
 passing through the centre of gravity a, is at right angles^ as it should be, with the 
 straight Hne passing through the spout. 
 
 This law, if obeyed, will always enable liquid to be poured from a vessel without 
 its appearing heavier than it actually is, but it will })e seen that the shape of 
 the vessel must be considered so that the spout and handle can bear this relation to 
 each other, as in Figs. 156, 157, 158, 159, and 160. Some shapes will not admit of 
 
 Fig. 156. Fig. 159. 
 
 it, so they must be avoided, as may be seen by examining Figs. 151 and 152, which 
 show a tea-pot of faulty shape in this respect. 
 
 A considei'ation of this law shows that the handles of jugs — those formed of 
 silver, of glass, and of earthenware alike — are usually placed too high; but in 
 this respect things are much better than they were a few years back. Now we 
 somewhat frequently see a jug with the handle in the right place, while some years 
 back we never did. Silver jugs are now the most generally faulty in this respect, 
 and such mistakes as the wrong placing of the handle or spout of a vessel result only 
 from ignorance, for no man knowing the law would violate it. Fig. 161 shows a 
 
CHAPTER VIII. 
 
 HARDWARE. 
 
 Having considered metal-work in its more costly branches, we come to the con- 
 sideration of hardware, and I am glad that we have now to deal with such metal- 
 work as results from the use of inexpensive materials, for it is such that must be 
 generally employed, while works formed of the precious metals can be used only by 
 comparatively few persons. The object of art is the giving of pleasure ; the mission 
 of the artist is that of giving ennobling pleasure. If as an artist I give pleasure, I 
 to an extent fulfil my mission ; but I do so, perfectly, only when I give the greatest 
 amount of the most refined pleasure by my art that it is possible for me to give. If 
 by producing works which can be procured by many I give pleasure, it is well that I 
 do so ; but if the many fail to derive pleasure from my works, then I must address 
 myself to the few, and be content with my lesser mission. Education appears to be 
 necessary to the ajipreciation of all art ; the artist, then, is a man who appeals to the 
 educated. If some persons, by their superior education, are enabled to appreciate art 
 more fully than those who are ignorant, and can consequently derive more pleasure 
 from it than the less cultured person, it might then be desirable that the artist 
 should address himself, through costly materials, to the few, for thereby he might be 
 giving the greatest amount of pleasm'e. I always, however, like to produce works in 
 cheap materials, for then I- know that I form what is capable of giving pleasure to 
 the poor man — if appreciative — who may possess it, as well as the rich. 
 
 In hardware we find two classes of work in the market which appear to have 
 little in common — the one class being characterised by a preponderance of excellence, 
 and the other by the dominance of what is coarse and inartistic. The first class cf 
 work is that which is produced by what are termed ecclesiastical metal-workers ; the 
 second consists of what is generally known as Birmingham ware. 
 
 It is an error to suppose that these so-called ecclesiastical — or mediaeval, as they 
 are sometimes called — metal-workers produce only ecclesiastical and mediaeval work. 
 On the contrary, some of these men — and they are now many in number — devote them- 
 selves almost exclusively to domestic work, and most of them fabricate articles in all 
 styles of art. If I wanted an artistic set of fire-irons, I should go to one of the 
 ecclesiastical warehouses, for there I have seen many sets that my reason commends 
 and my judgment apj^roves ; but I never saw a set produced for the general market 
 that I liked ; and the most artistic fenders, grates, and gas-fittings, in almost any 
 style, are to be got at these shops. I do not mean to convey the impression that all 
 
UTILITY THE FIRST THIXG TO BE CONSIDERED. 
 
 145 
 
 thing's made at these ecclesiastical warehouses are good, and that all things of 
 Birmingham (or Sheffield) manufacture are bad, for I have seen indifferent works in 
 these mediaeval shops, and I have seen excellent things from Birmingham — especially 
 I might mention as good certain gaseliers produced by two of the smaller Bir- 
 mingham houses — but as a rule the works found in the media3val warehouses are 
 
 Fig-. 163. Fig. 164. 
 
 good, and as a rule the works in hardware produced by Birmingham and Sheffield 
 are bad, in jwint of art. 
 
 It will appear a mere repetition if I insist that the materials of which works of 
 hardware are formed be used in the easiest manner in which they can be worked, and 
 that every article be so formed as perfectly to answer the end of its formation. Yet 
 I must do so. Let us look for a common set of fire-irons, and we shall find that nine 
 jwkors out of ten have a handle terminating in a pointed knob. Now, as the object 
 of this kiTob is that of enabling us to exercise force wherewith to break large pieces 
 of coal, the folly of terminating this knob with a point is obvious. A poker is, 
 essentially, an object of utility ; it should therefore be useful. It is ridiculous to talk 
 
 T 
 
IIG 
 
 PRINCIPLES OF DESIGN. 
 
 of a poker as an ornament ; yet we find it fashionable now to have a Ijright poker as 
 an ornament, which is obtrnsively disphiyed to the visitor, and a little Ijlaek jwker, 
 which is carefnlly concealed from view, reserved for use. I caiuiot imagine what 
 
 people will not do for show and fashion, ]jut to the thinking- mind such littleness as 
 that which induces women to keep a poker as an ornament must be distressing- ; and 
 until persons who desire to be regarded as educated learn to discriminate between an 
 ornament and an article of utility, little progress in art can be made. If a poker is 
 simply a thing to be looked at. then it may be as inconvenient as you please, for if 
 
0RNA5IE\TAL IROX-WORK. 
 
 147 
 
 it has no purpose to fulfil by its creation it cannot be unfitted to its pvirpose. The 
 same remarks will apj^jly to shovel and tongs. If they are intended as works of 
 utility, then their form must be carefully considered ; but if they are to be mere 
 ornaments I have nothing to say respecting them. 
 
 Utility and beauty are not inseparable ; but if an article of any kind is intended 
 to answer any particular end, it should be fitted to answer the end proposed by its 
 formation; but after it is created as a work of utility, care must be exercised in 
 
 order that it be also a work of beauty. With due consideration, almost every work 
 may be rendered both useful and beautiful, and it must ever be the aim of the 
 intelligent ornamcntist to render thorn so. 
 
 Iron is capable of being wrought in various ways ; it may be cast, or hammered, 
 or cut, or filed. Casting- is the least artistic mode of treating iron ; but if iron is to 
 be cast, the patterns formed should bo so fully adapted to this method of manu- 
 facture that the mode of working- may bi} readily a2")parent. It is foolish to seek to 
 make cast-ir{)n appear as wrought-iron : cast-iron should appear as cast-iron, and 
 
us 
 
 PRINCIPLES OF DESIGN. 
 
 wroug'ht-iron as wroug-ht-iron. Cast-iron is brittle, and must not be relied upon as 
 of g-reat strength ; while wrought-iron is toug-h, and will bend under great pressure 
 rather than break. Wrought-iron can be readily bent into scrolls, or the end of a 
 rod of metal can be hammered flat and shaped into the form of a leaf, and parts can 
 either be welded tog-ether or fastened by small collars, pins, or screws. One or two 
 illustrations of good WTOught-iron work by Skidmore, Benham, and Hart, are given 
 in the engravings. 
 
 As an illustration of a simple railing, is figured one shown in the International 
 Exhibition of 1862 (Fig. 163), which is in every respect excellent. Its strength is 
 very great, yet it is quaint and beautiful. As it was showoi it was coloured, and the 
 colours were so applied as to increase its effect and beauty. If the student will 
 carefully devote himself to the consideration of excellent works in metal, he will 
 
 
 n 
 
 r 1 
 
 
 f 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 > 
 
 
 » 
 
 
 
 
 Fig, 109. 
 
 learn more than by much reading-. Let him procure, if possible, the illustrated 
 catalogues of such men as Hart of London, Hardman of Birmingham, and Dovey of 
 Manchester, and study the sketches which he will there see, and he will certainly 
 discover the principles of a true art, such as he must seek to apply in a manner 
 concordant with his ovm original feelings. 
 
 Of our illustrations, the example by Skidmore (Fig. 161) furnishes us with an 
 excellent mode of treatment. Iron bands are readily bent into volutes, or curves of 
 various descriptions, and the parts so formed can be united by welding, screws, or 
 bolts. Hardman's gate (Fig. 165) is in every respect excellent; it is quaint, 
 vigorous, and illustrative of a true mode of working metal. The two foliated railings 
 (Figs. 166, 167) are also very meritorious. They are simple in design, and their 
 parts are well fastened together. I advise very strongly that the student carefully 
 consider the illustrations which accompany this chapter. 
 
 In iron-work the manifestation of a true constructive principle is beyond all 
 things desirable. Iron, lieing a strong material, should not be formed into heavy 
 
ORN.WIEXTAL TllON-WORK. 
 
 149 
 
 masses unless immense weig-lit has to be sustained, or very great strength is required. 
 If we form lamps, candelabra, and such works of iron, it is obvious that the portions 
 of metal employed in their construction may be thin, as the material is of great 
 strength. Were we to form such works of wood, then a greatly increased thickness 
 of material would be necessary, in order that the same strength be secured, as wood 
 is not nearly so strong as iron. 
 
 My remarks will have special reference to ■uTought-iron, as cast-iron cannot so 
 fully be said to have a constructive character. The small railiug (Fig. 103) is an 
 admirable illustration of a true constructive for- 
 mation, as the parts are all held together, and 
 strengthened to a wonderful degree, by the in- 
 troduction of a horseshoe-shaped member. Tliis 
 railing is worthy of the most careful study, for its 
 strength is great. Besides strength we have also 
 beauty. The horseshoe form, especially when 
 judiciously apjjlied, is far from being offensive. 
 Utility must come first, and then beauty, and so 
 it does in this particular railing; but here we 
 have great simplicity, and a correct structural 
 character has been arrived at in its production 
 rather than any elaboration of the principles of 
 beauty. 
 
 From the catalog-ue of J. W. Dovey, of IVIan- 
 chester, I select an illustration of structure in the 
 form of a candelabrum which is highly satisftxctory 
 in character as a simple work (Fig'. KiS). There ^. 
 is a solidly-formed heavy base, an upright stem 
 
 terminating in a candle-holder. There is an arrangement for catching waste grease, 
 and extra strength is given to the stem by lour slender buttress-like brackets, which 
 are securely and well attached to the base and to the stem above ; and these are 
 strengthened by two hoops, which prevent their bending under pressure. 
 
 Figs. 169 and 170, the former being a ridge or wall cresting, and the latter a 
 stair railing, are each illustrations of a correct treatment, inasmuch as strength (a 
 structural quality) and beauty (an art quality) are secured at the same time. 
 Fig. 169 is admirably constructed, only it is a little slender above the middle hori- 
 zontal line. These two illustrations are also from Mr. DoA^ey's catalogue. 
 
 In the catalogue just named, and in those previously named also, many good 
 examples may be found illustrative of the successful combination of true structural 
 qualities with a consideral)le amount of beauty, and also acknowledging the strength 
 of the material by the lightness of the parts. 
 
ISO PRINCIPLES OF DESIGN. 
 
 Those who reside in, or visit, London, will do well to go to the South Kensington 
 Museum, and study a large and splendid candelabrum of Messrs. Hart, Son, and 
 
 Fig. 171. 
 
 Peard, which is well worthy of consideration. It is rather heavy, and is of enormous 
 strength, but in most other I'ospects it is highly commcndal)le. It is beautiful, well 
 proi^ortioned, and illustrative of a correct treatment of metal. Besides this, it 
 
OTHER METALS USED WITH IKON. 
 
 151 
 
 exemi")lifies the manner in vN'liich stones or jewels may be applied to works in 
 hardware with advantag-e. As a further illustration of a correct and very beautiful 
 treatment of metal, we give one segment of the Hereford Cathedral Screen (Fig. 171), 
 the work of that most intelligent of metal-workers, Mr. Skidmore of Coventry. 
 This screen was shown in the International Exhibition of 180;i, in London, and was 
 from there removed to its place in the cathedral. All who can will do well to view 
 this beautiful work, which is one of the finest examples of artistic metal-work with 
 which we are acquainted. Notice the ease with which iron may be treated if a 
 
 Fi-. 172, 
 
 correct mfxle of working be emjiloyed. Let a bar of iron be taken which is about 
 half an inch in thickness, by 1^ broad. This can be rolled into a volute (the filigree 
 mode of treatment), or its end can be hammered out into stems and leaves, and to it 
 can be attached other leaves by rivets, screws, or ties, or it can be bent into any 
 structural form. To the student I say, study the shapes into which simple bars of 
 iron can be beaten, both mentally and by observing well-formed works. 
 
 Brass, copper, and other metals may be associated with iron in the formation of 
 any works. If well managed, brass and other bright metals may act as gems — that 
 is, they may give bright spots ; but where the bright metals are used with this view, 
 care must be exercised in order that the bright spots be formed by beautiful parts, and 
 that their distribution be just, for that which is bright will attract first attention. 
 
 Before leaving this part of our subject, I must call attention to a hinge by 
 
152 
 
 PRINCIPLES OP DESIGN. 
 
 Hardman, of Birmingham, which was shown in the International Exhibition of 18G2, 
 as it is both quaint and beautiful (Pig-. 172). The door to which this hinge was 
 
 u applied opened t\vicej the first half opened and folded back on the second half, and 
 then the two halves 0]>ened as one door, as will be seen from the illustration. It is 
 very desirable that we have a little novelty of arrangement in our works. We are 
 too apt to repeat ourselves, hence it is a sort of relief to meet with a new idea. 
 
 It is impossible that I take up each article of hard\A'are and consider it separately. 
 All I can do is to jwint out principles, and leave the learner to consider and apply 
 them for himself — principles which, once understood, may result in the construction 
 of many excellent works, and may lead to the formation of a correct judgment 
 respecting such objects as may be brought forward for criticism. I will, however, 
 just call attention to gas-branches, as they are often wrongly constructed. A gas- 
 branch is a duct through which gas is to be conveyed. It must be strong if it is to 
 be exposed to pressure, or if it runs the chance of coming in collision with the person, 
 as do standard lights in public buildings. The main part of a gas-branch is the tube 
 or pipe ^A'hich is to convey the gas, but this may be supported in many ways, as by 
 
 ' such buttress-like brackets as in the candelabrum shown in Fig. 1G8 ; and if there 
 are branch tubes for several lights, these may w^ell be connected with the central 
 tube, not only by their own attachment, but by brackets of some sort, or with one 
 another by some connecting parts. Whether the gas-branch be pendent or standard, 
 this mode of strengthening the tube-work should be employed, for the tubes 
 themselves are but slightly held together, and by pressure being brought to bear 
 upon them, a dangerous and expensive escape of gas may result. 
 
 In the manufacture of gaseliers one or two of the smaller Birmingham houses 
 have certainly distinguished themselves by the production of works both beautiful 
 and true ; and these lead me to think that a better day is dawning for Birmingham, 
 in which its art shall be exalted rather than degraded, and shall be such as will 
 win to it the esteem of the world rather than call forth the execrations of art- 
 loving people. 
 
 As to the colouring of iron I can say little. In my judgment the best modes 
 of colouring metals were originated by Mr. Skidmore of Coventry, of whom I have 
 before spoken. His theory is this, that metals are best coloured by the tints of their 
 oxides. When a metal, especially brass, is seen in a furnace in a molten condition, 
 the flames, where the oxygen of the atmosphere is uniting with the vapour of the 
 metal, present the most resplendent tints. The same thing in a lesser degree occurs 
 in the case of iron, but here the colours are less brilliant, and are more tertiary in 
 character. Mr. Skidmore applies to a metal the colours seen in the flames of the 
 furnace where it melts. Without attempting to limit the colourist to any theory 
 whereby his ideas might be restricted, I must say that Skidmore's colouring of the 
 metals is very good. 
 
CHAPTER 
 
 IX. 
 
 STAINED GLASS. 
 
 From early times it has been customary to colour glass. To tlie ancient 
 Egyptians a method of forming glass of various '^ints was known^ and by producing 
 a mass of glass consisting of variously coloured pieces vitreously united, and cutting 
 this into slices, they, in a costly and laborious manner, pi'oduced a sort of stained 
 glass which might have been employed for the sides of lanterns or other pvirposes. 
 The Greeks were acquainted with a similar process, and bowls formed in this manner 
 by them are common in our museums. 
 
 Soon after the re-discovery of glass in our own country, methods of colouring 
 it were sought, and cathedral windows were formed, which were of such beauty, 
 and were so thoroughly fitted to answer the end of their creation, that little or no 
 improvement upon these early works has even yet been made, and much of the 
 decorative glass which we now produce is far inferior to them as regards design, 
 colour, and mode of treatment. 
 
 A window must fulfil two purposes — it must keep out rain, wind, and cold, and 
 must admit light ; having fulfilled these ends, it may be beautiful. 
 
 If a window commands a lovely view let it, if possible, be formed of but few 
 sheets (if not very large, of one sheet) of plate-glass; for the works of God arc 
 more worthy of contemplation, with their ever-changing beauty, than the works of 
 man ; but if the window commands only a mass of bricks and mortar inartistically 
 arranged, let it, if jwssible, be formed of coloured glass having beauty of design 
 manifested by the arrangement of its parts. A window should never appear as a 
 j)icture with parts treated in light and shade. The foreshortening of the parts, and 
 all perspective treatments, are best avoided, as far as possible. I do not say that 
 the human figure, the lower animals, and plants must not be delineated upon window 
 glass, for, on the contrary, they may be so treated as not only to be beautiful, but 
 also to be a consistent decoration of glass ; but this I do say, that many stained 
 windows are utterly spoiled through the window being treated as a picture, and not 
 as a protection from the weather and as a source of light. 
 
 If pictorially treated subjects are employed upon window glass, they should be 
 treated very simply, and drawn in bold outline without shading, and the parts should 
 be separated from each other by varying their colours. Thus, the flesh of a figure 
 may be formed of glass having a pink tone; the robe of the figure of glass which is 
 green, purple, or any other colour ; a flower may be formed of white glass, or of glass 
 
 V 
 
151 
 
 PRINCIPLES OF DESIGN. 
 
 of any colour ; the leaves of green glass ; and the sky background of Ijlue glass. 
 All the parts will thus be distinguished from each other by colour, and the 
 
 Fig. 173, Fig. 174. 
 
 distinction of part from part will be further enhanced by the strong black outline 
 which bounds the parts and furnishes the drawing of the picture. 
 
 Strong colours should rarely be used in wandows, as they retard the admission 
 of light. Light is essential to our well-being ; our health of body depends lu a Urge 
 
STAINED GLASS. 155 
 
 measure upon the amount of light which falls upon the skin. Those wonderful 
 chemical changes, in the absence of which there can ba no life, in part, at least, 
 depend upon the exposure of our bodies to light ; let our windows, then, admit these 
 life-giving rays. It must also be remembered that if light is not freely admitted 
 
 Fig. 175. 17o. Fig. 177. 
 
 Fig-- 178. Fig 179. Fij, joq 
 
 to an apartment the colours of all the objects which it contains, and of its own 
 decorations if it has any, are sacrificed, for in the absence of light there is no colour. 
 
 It is not necessary, in order to the production of a beautiful window, that much 
 strong colour be used ; tints of creamy yellow, pale amber, light tints of tertiary 
 blue, blue-grey, olive, russet, and other sombre or delicate hues, if enlivened with 
 
150 
 
 riUNCIPLES OF DESIGN. 
 
 small portions of ruby or other full colours, produce the most chiirmiiig- effects, and 
 by thoir use we have consistent windows. 
 
 A g-ood domestic ^\■indow is often produced by armorial bearing-s in colour being 
 placed on geometrically arranged tesserae of slightly tinted glass. In some cases 
 such an arrangement as this is highly desirable, for the room may thus get the 
 benefit which a bit of colour will sometimes afford, and at the same time a pleasant 
 view may be had through the uncoloured portion of the window. As an illustration 
 
 Fig. 181. Fig. 182. 
 
 of this class of window, we extract one from the catalogue of those excellent arti ts 
 in stained glass, Messrs. Heaton, Butler, and Bayne, of Garrick Street (Fig. 173). 
 A good window may also be formed by bordering a jilain window with colour, 
 (Fig. 174), or in place of the plain centre scpiares of glass may be used, each bearing 
 'a diaper pattern, as Figs. 175 to ]y"2. 
 
 No architectural constructive fcatin-e should l)e introduced into a window — thus, 
 an elaborate architectural canopy overshadowing a figure is not at all desirable. 
 If a figure is fiirmed of a perishable material, and stands on the outside of a 
 building, it is well that it be protected from the rain by a cano])y ; but such a 
 
FAULTS IN STAINED GL.VSS DESIGNS. 
 
 157 
 
 contrivance when in- 
 troduced over a figure 
 drawn on a flat win- 
 dow is absTU'dj being 
 useless. Let us 
 always consider what 
 we have to do before 
 we con\inence tlie 
 formation of any 
 ornamental article, 
 and then seek to do 
 it in the most simple, 
 consistent, and beau- 
 tiful manner. Figs. 
 183 and 184. repre- 
 sent my views of 
 what stained glass 
 may advantageously 
 be. 
 
 IMore than once 
 in the course of these 
 chapters I have pro- 
 tested in strong terms 
 against pretence in 
 art and art-decoration 
 — the desire to make 
 things apjiear to Ije 
 made of better ma- 
 terial or more costly 
 substances than what 
 tlu'V have in reality 
 been wrought from — • 
 that leads men to 
 paint and varnisli a 
 plaiu freestone man- 
 teljjiece in imitation 
 of some ex])eiisive 
 
 niarl)le, or to make ].-;,, 
 doors and window-shutters, skirling and panelling tiuit tlie carjienter has fashioned 
 out of red or yellow deal, assume the appearance of oakj or maj)le, or satiiiwoud, l)y 
 
158 
 
 PRINCIPLES OP DESIGN. 
 
 the decejitive skill of the grainer. In no 
 case can the imitation ever approach a fair 
 resemblance to the reality it is proposed to 
 imitate. The coarse, rough grain of the soft 
 freestone, which is incapable of receiving a 
 polish, or rather of being polished ufitil it 
 becomes as smooth, and even, and lustrous 
 as good glass, can never be made by suc- 
 cessive coatings of paint and varnish to 
 afford a satisfactory resemblance to the 
 marble that it is supposed to represent, 
 however carefully the cunning hand of the 
 painter may have imitated the veins, and 
 spots, and curious diversities of colour 
 with which Nature has varieg-ated the 
 surface of the substance that he is en- 
 deavouring to copy. Nor, again, can a 
 coarse-grained, soft wood, however skilled 
 may be the hand that manipulates it, be 
 treated so as to resemble the texture and 
 smoothness of hard, close-grained wood, 
 which from its very nature is capable of 
 receiving the high polish that the softer 
 material can never take if treated by the 
 same process — that is, unless the expense 
 of producing the imitation greatly exceeds 
 the cost of the thing imitated. And what 
 is applicable to the treatment of wood and 
 stone is api)lieable also to the treatment 
 of glass : for as a freestone mantelpiece, 
 or deal door, however suitable and pleasing 
 to the eye either may be when simply 
 painted in the one case and varnished in 
 the other to preserve the surface from 
 the deteriorating influences of dirt of any 
 kind, can never be made by the exercise 
 of reasonable time and skill to present the 
 appearance of marble or oak ; so glass, 
 by the application of colour rendered 
 transparent by varnish, can never be 
 
PRETENCE IN ART-DECORATION. 
 
 159 
 
 brought to resemble glass stained or painted by the legitimate method, either 
 in delicacy of tint, or depth, and richness, and brilliancy of colour. The greater 
 part of the imitative stained glass, or "diaphanie" as it is styled, fails not only 
 in colour, but in design ; and in this indeed it may perhaps be said to be especially 
 faulty. The_ designs, which are printed on paper, with the view of imitating glass 
 patterns, err principally in being too elaborate, and in representing figures and 
 scenery which are not in character or keeping with the designs that are usually 
 represented in painted glass. If confined to simple diaper work, or borderings and 
 heraldic emblems, as shown in Figs. 173 and 171, or patterns similar to that shown 
 in Fig. 183, the artistic effect produced would be more satisfactory, although it 
 can never equal genuine stained glass in depth of colour or purity of tone. 
 
C II xi P T E R X. 
 
 CONCLUSION. 
 
 I HAVE now treated of art as applied to our industrial manufuctui-es, and have pointed 
 out principles which must be recognisable in all art-works which pretend to merit. 
 We have seen that material must in all cases be used in the simplest and most 
 natural manner ; that^ wherever possible, we must avail ourselves of the friendly aid 
 of natural forces ; * that the most convenient shajje must always be selected for a 
 vessel or art-object of any kind ; and that beauty must then be added to that which 
 is useful. All art-objects must be useful and then beautiful ; they must be utili- 
 tarian, and yet so graceful, so comely, that they shall be loved for their beauty as 
 well as valued for their usefulness. While I have set forth those principles which 
 must ever govern the application of ornament to useful articles, I cannot show the 
 student any royal road to the attainment of art-knowledge. There is something in a 
 true art-work wliich is too subtle for expression by words ; there is a " quality " about 
 an art-work, or the expression of an amount of " feeling," which cannot be described, 
 yet which is so obvious as to be at once apparent to the trained eye. 
 
 The only way in which the power of appreciating art-qualities can be gained, 
 especially if these qualities are of a subtle nature, is by the careful study of works of 
 known excellence. Could the student visit our museums in company with a trained 
 ornamentist, who would point out what was good and what was bad in art, he would 
 soon learn, by studjang the beautifid works, to perceive art-qualities ; but as this is 
 not jwssible to most, the learner must be content to consider each art-work with 
 which he comes in contact in conjunction with the principles I have set forward. 
 
 Let him take a work — say a tea-pot. He will now ask himself — has the 
 material of which it is formed been judiciously and simply used ?— is the shape con- 
 venient ? — is the handle properly applied, and does the spout bear a proper relation 
 to the handle ? — is the form graceful or vigorous ? — is the curve which bounds the 
 form of a subtle nature ? — is the engraving applied in judicious quantities and in jvist 
 proportions ? — are the engraved forms beautiful, and such as do not suffer by being 
 seen in perspective on a rounded surface ? By such questions the student will 
 iuquire into the nature of whatever is presented to his consideration, and only by 
 constantly making such inquii'ies, and seeking- to answer them correctly, can he gain 
 the knowledge which will enable him rightly to judge of the nature of art-works. 
 
 * See chapters on glass and earthenware. 
 
INFLUENCE OF EUROPEAN AND EASTERN ART UPON EACH OTHER. 161 
 
 Some of these inqnirios the young student will readily answer, with others he vdR 
 have difficulty ; for, his taste heing yet uncultivated, he wall not know whether a 
 form is beautiful or not. Nevertheless, I say to the learner, try to answer these 
 various inquiries as well as you can, and then note the shape of the object in a 
 memorandimi-book, and write your opinion respecting- it in brief terms, and your 
 reasons for your opinion. By thus noting your studies you gain many advantages ; 
 thus, you must frame your ideas with some degree of exactness when you have to put 
 them into words, and exactness of idea is essential to your success. You can also 
 refer to previous thoughts, and thus impress them upon the memory ; and you can 
 observe your progress, which is important, and should be encouraging. In order 
 that you acquire the power of perceiving art-merit as quickly as possible, you must 
 study those works in which examples of bad taste are rarely met with, you must at 
 first consider art-objects from India, Persia, China, and Japan, as well as examples 
 of ancient art from Egypt and Greece. But in selecting modern works from the 
 Eastj choose those which are not altogether new if possible. 
 
 During the last ten years the art-works of Japan have deterioi'ated to a 
 lamentable extent. Contact with Europeans unfortunately brings about the deterio- 
 ration of Eastern art : in order that the European demand be met, quantity is 
 produced and quality disregarded, for we cavil respecting price, and yet by thus 
 creating a demand for inferior work we raise the price even of that which is 
 comparatively bad, and soon have to pay for the coarser wares a price for which 
 superior articles could at first be j^rocured. 
 
 But this should be noted : that the commonest wares which we receive from 
 Japan and India are never utterly bad in art. Inliarmonious colouring does not 
 appear to be produced by these nations, and the same may be said of Persia and 
 China, and, to an extent, of INIorocco and Algeria,, the only exceptions being where 
 European influence has been long continued. In selecting examples for study you 
 may almost rely upon the beauty of all works from China, Japan, Persia, and India, 
 which have not been produced under European influence. 
 
 A notable example of the deteriorating influence of European taste (perhaps 
 chiefly English taste) ujion Eastern art is apparent if we examine old carved sandal- 
 wood boxes from India, and those which are now sent to us from the same country ; 
 the quiet, unobtrusive consistency of the ornament by which it was sought only to 
 enrich a properly constructed box was not sufliciently attractive to suit European (or 
 English ?) taste. The ornament must be more pronounced and in higher relief, and 
 the entire work must be more attractive — more vulgarly attractive I might say, 
 and thus the exquisite refinement of the older works is sacrificed to the wants of a 
 rich but vulgar people, whose taste for art is infinitely below that of their conquered 
 brethren, from whom they learn the principles of a beautiful art but slowly, while they 
 do much to destroy the refinement of art-taste which the workmen of our Eastern 
 
 V 
 
1(32 
 
 PRINCIPLES OF DESIGN. 
 
 empire appear to inherit. Study the works of the Eastern nations in conjunction 
 with the remarks which I made in my first chapter (see pages 6, 9, and IS), and then 
 consider the numerous ohjects left to us by the early Egyptians and Greeks, and bear 
 in mind while viewing them what we have said on Egyptian and Greek art (see 
 pages 6, 8, and 10), and after having learned to understand the merits of Persian, 
 Japanese, Indian, and Chinese art, and of that of the ancient Egyptians and Greeks, 
 you may commence to consider other styles, taking up the study of Italian and 
 Renaissance art in its various forms last of all ; for in these styles, or dialects of 
 a style if I may thus speak, there is so much that is false in structure, folse 
 in representation, untruthful in expression, and pictorial rather than ornamental in 
 effect, that a very complete acquaintance with ornamental art is necessary in order 
 that all the defects of these styles be apparent, and in order that the student avoid 
 falling into the error of regarding a pictorial effect as the result of a true style of 
 ornamental art. 
 
 Study, when accompanied by individual thought, is the means whereby art- 
 knowledge will be gained. No mere looking at works which are beautiful and true 
 will make a great ornamentist. He who would attain to great knowledge must sfnrl^f/ 
 whatever commends itself to him as worthy of his attention, and, above all, must 
 think much upon the works which he contemplates ; it is the evidence of mind — not 
 of degraded hut of noble mind, of refined mind, of cultivated mind, of well-informed 
 mind, of mind which has knowledge, of mind which has vigour, of mind which is 
 fresh and new — that we find impressed upon a work and giving to it value. While 
 we, as art-students, have, above all things, to attain to cultivation of the mind, we 
 cannot give expression to refined feelings manifested in form unless we can draw, and 
 draw almost faultlessly ; and the ability to draw with accuracy, power, and feeling 
 can only result from much practice. 
 
 Let every spare moment, then, find the sketch-book in your hand, and be con- 
 stantly trying to draw both carefully, neatly, and with exactness and finish, such 
 objects as you see around you, even if examples of good art- works are not at hand ; 
 for by constant and careful practice you can alone acquire the necessary power of 
 expressing refined thought in refined form. Avoid making hasty sketches. When 
 a finished artist, you can afford to make sketch memoranda; but till you can draw 
 with great power, energy, truthfulness, and refinement, let your every drawing be as 
 careful and as finished in character, however simple the object portrayed, as though 
 yoixr welfare in life depended upon its character, for upon every sketch your future 
 position does, to a great extent, depend. The habit of careful painstaking should 
 sedulously be cultivated; and with every drawing thus made an amount of power 
 is ffained which the making of a hundred careless sketches would not afford. Let 
 painstaking, then, be characteristic of your working. 
 
 Ornament of some kind is applied to almost every article that we see around us. 
 
CII.UiACTEU SHOWN IN ORNAMENT. 
 
 103 
 
 The papers on our walls^ tlie carpets on our floors, the hangings at our windows, the 
 I^lates from which we eat, are all covered by patterns of some kind ; yet it is rare» 
 even now when ornamentation has become general, to find anything original in 
 ornament; and if we do meet with something new in kind it is often feeble or 
 timid-looking, if it does not altogether fail to imjDress us witli the idea that the 
 producer wai a man of knowledge. Let the reader be assured that if the designer 
 is a man of knowledge, his ornamental comjiositions will never fail to reveal his 
 learning; that if he is a man of power, his works will reveal his strength of 
 character ; if he is a man of refined feelings, that his designs will manifest his 
 tenderness of perception. In like manner, if a man is ignorant he cannot withhold 
 from his patterns the manifeitation of his ignorance. Did not the Egyptians 
 express their power of character in their ornaments ? did not the Greeks manifest 
 their refinement in the forms which they drew ? do we not even find an expression 
 of religious feeling strongly, yea, impressively, set forth by some art-works, as by 
 the illuminated manuscripts of the early Middle Ages ? and do we not every day see 
 the impress of the ignorant uj:)on certain wall-papers, carpets, and other things ? It 
 is a fact, and it is necessary that we fully recognise it, that the knowledge of the 
 producer is manifested by his works ; and that the ignorance of the ignorant is also 
 manifested in his works. 
 
 If ornament is produced having new characters, it is often feeble, and is generally 
 without grace ; while power is the expression of manliness, and grace of refinement. 
 Without claiming to have made a successful effort, I put forth, in the frontispiece 
 to this volume (Plate I.), four of my studies in original ornament, all of which are 
 to me more or less satisfactory as studies in composition. I have endeavoured to 
 secure in each an amount of energy, vig-our — the power of life, yet at the same time 
 to avoid coarseness, or any glaring want of refinement. I have soug-ht to combine 
 right lines, which are expressive of power, with such curved shaj^es as shall, with 
 them, produce a pleasing contrast of form, and express a certain amount of grace. 
 In the light ornament on the citrine ground (that at the lower left-hand corner of 
 our plate) I have endeavoured especially to secure an expression of grace in com- 
 bination with that amount of energy which avoids any expression of feebleness. 
 
 In the border ornament I have introduced the arch form, as it hints at a 
 structural "setting out" which is pleasant; and I have endeavoured to cause the 
 composition to appear as though it rested on the lower dotted band, as this gives a 
 feeling of security. I do not say that it is necessary that tliis be so : all I assert is 
 that in some cases it gives a feeling of satisfaction. 
 
 So far as I know, the colouring is also original. The colours emjiloyed are 
 chiefly of a tertiary character, but small masses of primary or secondary colours are 
 employed in order to impart "life" to the composition. 
 
 I do not set these studies before my readers with the idea of showing them 
 
1G4 
 
 PRINCIPLES OF DESIGlSr. 
 
 what original ornament should be : I only set them forth as examples of new 
 compositions^ and must leave each to clothe his own thoughts with a befitting 
 expression of his individual original ideas. 
 
 As I am writing for the working man^ as well as for others, will he pardon me 
 reminding him that we are called to exercise an art, yet at the same time our art 
 is associated with the scientific professions— a knowledge of natural sciences, of 
 botany, zoology, natural philosophy, and chemistry can be very fully utilised in our 
 art — and that we should, therefore, act as professional men and as artists of the 
 highest rank ; for thereby only can we hope to place our calling in that position of 
 esteem in which it should be held, and must be held, by the people at large, if we 
 are to administer to their pleasure as we ought. 
 
 In taking leave of my reader, let me say that if I personally can aid him 
 in any way, I shall be glad to do so. If any who really seek knowledge of 
 decorative design, and are hard workers, choose to send me designs for criticism 
 or comment, or desire any other aid that I can give them, I shall be happy to 
 do what little I can for them. My address will be found at the end of the 
 Preface. 
 
I JN D E X. 
 
 Altei nation in Ornament, 24. 
 
 America, Dejiraved Artistic Taste in, 104. 
 
 Anthemion ; a Greek Decorative Device, 9. 
 
 Arabian Metal-work, 137. 
 
 Arch used in Furniture, 51, 52. 
 
 Art may be Degrading, 2 ; aims at producing 
 
 Itepose, 63 ; tlie Object of, 144. 
 Art-knowledge, The Value of, 2. 
 Baptism, S3-mbol of, in Gothic Art, 12. 
 Beauty in Decoration, 16, 17. 
 Bed-room, Decoration for a, 15. 
 Birmingham Ware, 144, 145, 152. 
 Black, a Nentral in Decorative Work, 45. 
 Buhl-work, 64. 
 
 Buildings, Decoration of, 73, et scq. 
 
 Byzantine Ornament, 11. 
 
 Cabinet, Construction of a, 61. 
 
 Calico, Patterns on, 107. 
 
 Carpets, Art-qualities and Patterns of, 94, 
 etscq.; Different Sorts of, 94, 95; Foreign- 
 made, 102, 103 ; how they should be laid 
 down, 105 ; the Conditions which Govern 
 the Application of Ornament to, 106. 
 
 Carving, when to be used, 61, 62. 
 
 Casting in Metal, 136. 
 
 Casting, the least Artistic Mode of Treating 
 Iron, 147. 
 
 Ceilings, Decoration of, 75, ct acq. ; Various, 
 
 worthy of Study, 82 ; with Painted 
 
 Pictures Objectionable, 82. 
 Celtic Ornament, 25. 
 Chair-coverings, 72. 
 Chairs, Construction of, 52 — 57. 
 Character of the Designer shown by his 
 
 AVork, 163. 
 Chinese Enamels, 143. 
 
 ,, Harmony of Colour, 48. 
 ,, Ornament, 11. 
 
 Christian Art, 11, 12. 
 
 Clay as a Material for Art-pnrposes, 117, 
 et seq. 
 
 Colour — in Decoration, 30, et seq.; Contrast 
 in, 32, 33 ; Primary, Secondary, and 
 Tertiary, 32; Harmony in, 33, 39, et seq. ; 
 Qualities of, 33, 34; Analytical Tables 
 of, 34 ; Teachings of Experience in 
 regard to, 34, 45 ; Proportions in which 
 Colours Harmonise, 34, 35, "6; Pure, 
 and Pigments, 37, 38; Permanence of, 
 38, note ; Shades, Tints, and Hues, 39 ; 
 Works on, referred to, 49 ; for Stained 
 Windows, 154, et seq. 
 
 Colouring Metals. Bee Skidmore, Mr. 
 
 Colour-top, the, 48, and note. 
 
 Copper Vessels Inlaid with Silver, 142. 
 
 Cornices, Colouring of, 93. 
 
 Couches, 57, et seq. 
 
 Curtain Materials, 107, et seq. 
 
 Curves, most Beautiful when most Subtle, 23. 
 
 Damascene Work, 139. 
 
 Damask Table-linen, Patterns on, 107, 108, 
 109. 
 
 Damask Wall-coverings. (See Silk Wall 
 Damasks. 
 
 Decanters, what they should be, 129. 
 
 Decoration should be in keeping with Archi- 
 tecture, 73, 74, 75. 
 
 Design and Ornament, Redgrave on, 50. 
 
 Dining-room, Decoration for a, 14. 
 
 Dining-tables, Mr. Eastlake on Telescopic, 
 66, 67. 
 
 Distemper Colours for Wall Decoration, 83. 
 Doric Column, The, 9. 
 Drawing-room, Decoration for a, 15. 
 Dress, Ladies' and Gentlemen's, 90. Pat- 
 terns for Ladies', 112. 
 
166 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 Earthen Vessels, Decoration of, 1-25, 126, ] 
 
 127. I 
 Eastlake, Mr., on HouscLold Art, referred 
 
 to, 52, and iwte. 
 ^Ecclesiastical Metal workers, 144, 145. 
 Egyptian Architecture, 8. 
 
 „ Coloured Glass, 153. 
 
 „ Drawing, Peculiarity of, 5. 
 
 ,, Ornament, 4 — 8. 
 Einliroidery on Cotton, Indian, ll4. 
 Enamelling in Metal-work, 143. 
 England, Architectural Buildings in, 11 ; 
 
 House Decoration in, 30, 31. 
 European Influence Injurious to Eastern 
 
 Art, 161. 
 Excess in Upholstery, 70. 
 Fabrics, Patterns Suitable for Woven, 407, 
 
 et seq. 
 
 Finish, its Value Over-estimated, 120. 
 
 Folds, Ornamentation of Fabrics to be seen 
 in, 112, et seq. 
 
 French Errors of Taste in Furniture, 65. 
 
 Furnitui-e, Decorative Principles applied to, 
 50, et seq. ; what is Required to make it 
 an Object of Art, 50 ; Material iised for, 
 61 ; Truthful Construction of, 59, 65, 
 et seq. ; Proportion and Enrichment of, 
 61, 63. 
 
 Glass, as a Material for Art- purposes, 118, 
 127, et seq.; Vessels, Various, 130, et seq.; 
 Vessels, Coloured, 131, 132 ; Cutting 
 of, 132 ; Engraving of, 133 ; Ornamen- 
 tation of, 133; Stained, 153, tt seq. 
 Gold, a Neutral in Decorative Work, 44, 45. 
 Gold and Silver, Works in, 136. 
 Gothic Architecture, Modern, 74. 
 
 „ Furniture, Falsely Constructed, G6. 
 „ Ornament, 12. 
 Granite Imitated, Objected to, 83. 
 Greek Coloured Glass, 153. 
 . .j. Ornament, 9, 10, II. 
 „ Vessels, 121. 
 Grotesque. See Humour. 
 Handles of Vessels, 138, 139, 140. 
 Hardware, Art in Connection with, 144, 
 et seq. 
 
 Harmony of Colour. See Colour. 
 
 j Historical Inquiry Necessary to the Under- 
 standing of Decoration, 4. 
 Humour in Ornament, 24—29 ; Chinese and 
 
 Japanese, 25, 27, 28. 
 Imitations of Marbles and Granites, 89. 
 ludian Art Injured by Euro])can Influence, 
 161. 
 
 ,, Fabrics, 48, note. 
 
 Mr. Redgrave on, 115, 116. 
 Metal-work, 142. 
 ,, Work in regard to Colouring, 47. 
 Inlaying as a means of Enriching Works of 
 
 Furniture, 63. 
 Irish Crosses, Numerous Ornaments on, 25. 
 Iron, as an Art-material, 142. 
 „ how Wrought, 147. 
 „ Metals that may be Associated with, 
 - 161. 
 
 Iron-castings of Berlin, 136. 
 Iron-work, Oruamental, 147, et seq.; must 
 Manifest a True Constructive Principle, 
 148; Colouring of, 152. 
 Italian Mctal-work, 142. 
 Japan, Deterioration in the Art-works of, 
 161. 
 
 Japanese Art, II. 
 
 ,, Colouring, 48, 
 „ Earthenware, 120. 
 Enamels, 142, 143. 
 Metal-work, 142. 
 Jewels in Metal-work, 143. 
 Joists in Ceilings, how they should be 
 
 Treated, 79. 
 Labour Necessary to Success in Art, 4, 31. 
 Library, Decoration for a, 15. 
 Lotus in Egyptian Design, 5, 6-. 
 Marble Imitated, Objected to, 89. 
 Mediaeval Metal-workers, 144, 145. 
 Mental Effects produced by Decorative 
 
 Forms, 14. 
 Moorish Ornament, 11. 
 Muslin, Patterns on, 107. 
 Natural Forms in Carpet Patterns, 96, i'7. 
 98. 
 
 Niello-work applied to Metals, 143. 
 Norman Architecture, 11. 
 Novelty Wanted in Carpet Patterns, 105. 
 
INDEX. 
 
 167 
 
 Oil-colour " Flatted" for Wall Decoration, 83. 
 
 Order, a Principle in Ornament, 23. 
 
 Ormolu Ornaments, G-t. 
 
 Ornament and Arcliitecture Inseparable, 13. 
 
 Papered Walls. See Wall Papers. 
 
 Papyrus in Egj ptian Architecture, 8. 
 
 Persian Ornament, 11. 
 
 Picture Frames, 72. 
 
 Pigments. See Colour. 
 
 Plants as Ornaments, How to Treat, 2 k 
 
 Plaques of Stone or Earthenware applied 
 to Works of FurnitTire, G3, 6i. 
 
 Pottery, Art in, 117, et s(q. 
 
 Power an Art-principle, 17. 
 
 Precious Materials in tlie Form of Art- 
 works, 117, 118. 
 
 Preface, v., vi. 
 
 Pretence in Art-decoration, 157 — 159. 
 Proportion must be Subtle, 23. 
 Purpose, Adaptation to, Taught by Plants, 
 21. 
 
 Renaissance Ornament, 13. 
 
 Eepetition of Parts in Ornament, 23. 
 
 Roman Ornament, 11. 
 
 Si'ams in Decoration, 80. 
 
 Silk, Patterns on, 107. 
 
 Silk Wall Damasks, 114. 
 
 Silversmiths' Work, 135, et seq. 
 
 Skidmoro, Mr., and his Theory of Colouring 
 
 Metals, 152. 
 Sofa-coverings, 70, 72. 
 South Kensington Museum, 48, nnlc. 
 Spouts of Vessels, 139, et seq. 
 Stools, 53 
 
 Study of Art-decoration, how it should be 
 
 carried on, 14, 160, 161, 162. 
 Styles of Architecture, 73. 
 Sugar-basin, its Form, 138. 
 Surface Decoration, 73, et seq. 
 Symbols in Christian Art, 12. 
 Table-covers, The Borders of, 109, 111. 
 Taste of the Uneducated, 15. 
 Trinity, Symbols of the, in Gothic Art, 12. 
 Truth an Art-principle, 15, 16, 89, 158, 159. 
 Utility must Govern the Production and 
 
 Application of Ornament, 17 — 22, 
 
 145. 
 
 „ in Architecture, 20. 
 
 „ Professor George Wilson on, 19, 20. 
 
 „ Various Writers on, 20. 
 Vehicles for Art, The Best, tJie least Costly,3 
 Veneering, 69. 
 Venetian Glass, 130, 131. 
 Vessels, Primitive, 120. 
 Wall Decorations, 83, et seq. 
 Wall Papers, 87, 90, et acq. 
 Walls should be Unobtrusive, 90. 
 Water-vessels, Bgyptianand Greek, 121— 1 2 4. 
 White a Neutral in Decorative Work, 45. 
 Window-hangings, 69, 70, 108. 
 Windows, 69, 70; the Object of, 153; how 
 
 they should be Treated, 153. 
 Wine-bottles, Forms of, 128. 
 " Winged Globe," in Egyptian Design, 7. 
 Woods and their Relative Strength, 51. 
 Workmen ; their Study of Decorative Law.=, 1. 
 
 „ Advice to, 164. 
 Wrought-iron, its Qualities, 147, 148. 
 
 CaSSELL, PeIIEB, & GaLPIN, BeILE SACViGE WOBKB, LONDQN, E C. 
 
 873. 
 
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 Natural History. liy the Rev. S. Hau(;hton. M.D., F.R.S., &c.. 
 Fellow of Trinity College, Dublin. Crown Svo, cloth, with 230 
 Illustrations, 5s. 
 
 Hart's Manual of Chemistry. By the Rev. H. 
 
 Martvn Hakf. M.A. With Coloured Frontispiece and 
 nimieri'Us Illustrations. Cloth, 3s. 6d. " 
 
 Natural Philosophy. By the Rev. Professor Haughton, 
 
 F. R.S. With 160 Illustrations. Cloth, 3s. 6d. 
 
 Galbraith and Haughton's Manuals. By the Rev. 
 
 Professor Galbraith, M.A., Fellow of Trinity College, Dublin, 
 and the Rev. Professor Haughton, M.D , D.C.L., F.R.S. 
 
 Manual of Arithmetic. Containing nearly 2,000 Examplas. 
 Cloth, 3s. 6d. 
 
 Manual of Plane Trigonometry. Cloth, 2s. 6d. 
 
 Manual of Euclid. Elements I., II., III. Cloth, 2S. 6d. 
 
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 Manual of Mathematical Tables. Cloth, 3s. 6d. 
 
 Manual of Mechanics. Cloth, 3s. 6d. 
 
 Manual of Optics. Cloth, 2s 6d. 
 
 Manual of Hydrostatics. Cloth, 3s. 6d. 
 
 Manual of Tides and Tidal Currents. New Edition, 
 with Tidal Card. Cloth, 3s. 
 
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 CASSELL, PETTEE, & GALPIIT'S EDUCATIONAL CATALOGUE, containing full descrip- 
 tions of their Ncw and Standard Educational Works, suitable for all classes of Schools, &-c., 
 sent post free on application. 
 
 CASSELL, PETTEE, & GALPIKT, LONDON, PARIS, AND NEW YOEK. 
 
Selections from CASSELL, PETTER, & GALPIN'S Catalogue of 
 
 MATHEMATICAL INSTRUMENTS, SCHOOL MATERIEL, 
 
 AND OPTICAL GOODS. 
 
 CASSELL'S MATHEMATICAL INSTRUMENTS. ! CASSELL, PETTER, & GALPIN'S WATER COLOURS. 
 
 No. 
 
 50. 'Deal Wood Box, varnished, containing Compass, Pen and 
 
 Pencil-legs, Crayon ... ... 
 
 51. Deal Wood Box, varnished, containing 44-in. Compass, Pen 
 
 and Pencil-legs, Kule, and Crayon Holder ... 
 
 52. Deal Wood Box, same as No. 51, with addition of Ruling 
 
 Pen and Horn Protractor 
 
 53. Deal Wood Box, varnished, .Compass, Pen and Pencil-legs, 
 
 Ruling Pen, Lengthening Bar, Horn Protractor, Rule, 
 and Crayon Holder ... 
 
 55. Ditto (s^-in. instruments) ... ... ... 
 
 56. Rosewood Case, with Two Compasses, Pen and Pencil legs. 
 
 Lengthening Bar, Ivory Ruling Pen, Horn Protractor, 
 Rule, and Crayon Holder 
 
 57. Rosewood Case, with lock and key, two Compasses, Bow 
 
 Compass, Bar, Ivory Ruling Pen, Protractor, Parallel, 
 Scale ... 
 
 58. Rosewood Ca.se, with lock and key (superior instruments), 
 
 three Compasses, Bow Compass, Bar, Ivory Riding Pen, 
 two Protractors, Parallel, Scale 
 
 59. Handsome Rosewood Case, inlaid with brass, lock and key. 
 
 Proportional Compass, three Compasses, two Spring Bows, 
 two Ivory Ruling Pens, Bar, two Protractors, Parallel, 
 Scale, Set Squares ... ... ... 
 
 61. Richly Inlaid Rosewood Case, with lock and key, highly- 
 
 tinished instruments, Proportional Compass, three Com- 
 passes, three Spring Bow?;, two Ruling Pens (Ivory 
 handles), Bar, two Protractors, Parallel, Scale, and Set 
 Squares ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 
 
 62. Mahogany Case, lock and key, three Compasses, two Spring 
 
 Bows, Ivory Ruling Pen, Bar, Protractors, Parallel, Scale 
 65. Mahogany Case, lock and key, two Compasses, Spring Bow, 
 Ivory Ruling Pen, Bar, Protractor, Parallel, Scale 
 
 67. Rosewood Case, look and key. three Compasses. Bow Com- 
 
 pass, Ivory Ruling Pen, Bar. Protractor, Parallel, Scale... 
 
 68. Rosewood Case, with lock and key, fitted as above, in German 
 
 silver (highly-finished instriiinents) 
 
 69. Mahogany Case, with luck and key, containing the following 
 
 highly-finished instruments iii Cci man Silver — three Com- 
 passes, thiiee superior Sprin;^ Dividers (Ivory handles). 
 Needle Points, two Ivory i'<u!ing Pens, Bar, Protractors, 
 Set Squares, Parallel, Scale 
 
 S. ii. ) 
 
 I o \ 
 
 1 6 
 
 2 o 
 
 7 6 
 
 35 o 
 
 9 o 
 10 o 
 
 No. 
 
 1. Improved Colours, 12 Cakes, Bnish, and Saucers 
 
 2. Superfine Colours, 18 Cakes, Brush, and Saucers 
 
 7. The Shilling Colour Box, 14 Cakes, do , do. 
 
 8. The Unique Colour Box. 18 Cakes, do., do. 
 ' 9. The Educator Colour Box, 27 Cakes, do., do. 
 
 The above are in Mahogany Polished Bojves, with Sliding; Lids 
 
 1. The Fine Art Colour Box, containing 12 whole Cakes 
 
 of the finest Colotu-s, Bi-ushes, Pencils. Slab, Compasses, 
 Indian Ink, &c., in a handsome Mahogany Case, lock and 
 key ic 
 
 2. The Fine Art Colour Box, containing 8 whole Cakes of 
 
 the finest Colours, Brushes, Slab, Indian Ink, in a hand- 
 some Mahogany Case, with lock and key ... 
 
 The Technical Drawing Box, containing Set of Mathe- 
 matical Instruments, Colours and Slab, Indian Ink, Pen- 
 cil, India Rubber, Drawing Pins, Brushes, Set Square, 
 13-inch Rule, in Polished Wood Box, with sliding lid ... 
 
 Colours Free from Poison. 
 
 520. Containing 9 large Cakes, Brush, Crayons, and Saucers ... 
 T2I. The Belle Sauvage Colour Box, in Tin Case, with Lid 
 
 to serve as Palettes, containing 12 Colours and Brushes,.. 
 1 r5. Containing 15 small Cakes, Brushes, Crayons, and Saucers 
 117. Containing 15 large Cakes, Brushes, do. do. 
 55. Containing 15 middle Cakes, Brushes, Crayons, &c., lock 
 
 and key 
 
 54. Containing 18 large Cakes, Brushes, Crayons, &c., lock and 
 
 Containing 12 large Cakes, in a handsome Case, inlaid with 
 brass, Brushes, Glue, Gold, Silver, and Bronze Saucers, 
 
 Rulc^, &.C., Saucers, lock and key ... 
 
 Containing 16 Cakes of Water Colours, 6 Saucers, Gold 
 and Silver Saucers, Indian Ink, Stumps, Crayons, Set 
 Squares, &c., handsomely Inlaid Box ... 
 
 JAPANNED TIN SKETCH BOXES 
 
 WITH LIDS AND FLAPS TO SERVE AS P-A-LETTES. 
 
 Containing 12 Sixpenny Colours, Brushes, &c. 
 16 do. do. 
 
 20 do. do. 
 
 210. Containing 12 Pans of Moist Colours, 1 
 
 Trays fur Brushes, &c , in Pocket Case 
 
 204. Containing iS Cakes, with Brushes and Lid to serve as 
 Paleites, in Pocket Case 
 
 7 6 
 
 1 4 
 
 2 3 
 
 5 6 
 
 57- 
 
 71- 
 
 , complete 
 dn. 
 do. 
 
 vith Palettes and 
 
 IS o 
 7 6 
 5 6 
 
 COMPASSES. 
 
 needle 
 
 Beam Compass, with Tangent Screw, 
 
 points, in case 
 Bow Compass, with Pen and Pencil-legs, in case 
 Spring Bows, set of three. Ivory handles, in case, 
 
 round points steel 
 
 Do. set of three. Ivory handles, in case, 
 
 needle points steel 
 
 Spring Bow, Pen or Pencil Point, Ivory handle, in 
 case ... 
 
 Do. do. do. large size 
 
 Proportional Compass, 6-inch, in case 
 
 Do. do. with Rack 
 
 Do. do. fully divided 
 
 Pillar Pocket Compasses, in case 
 
 Napier Pocket Compasses, round points, in case 
 
 Do. do, needle points, do. [ 20 o 
 
 Pencil CompBsses 6d.,9d.,and 
 
 Dividers, 4-inch 
 
 Do. 5-i»ich 
 
 Do. 6-ineh 
 
 Wooden Compasses, for black-board use, 12-inch 
 Do. do. 15-nich 
 
 Do. do. iS-inch 
 
 W.B. — ^iiy of the ahom mmtioned MntcriaU mni/ he had by order 
 Casseli,, PKTn:u, & CiAr.piN. Should ann difflcuHy arise as 
 direct, on receipt of the amount in staiiip.s, or per Post-Ufflce 
 
 17 6 
 
 G^rm.in 
 Silver. 
 
 i. </. 
 
 16 o 
 3 6 
 
 PARALLELS AND SCALES. 
 
 Parallel, Ebony, 6-inch 
 
 Do. do. 9-inch 
 
 Do. do. 12-inch 
 
 Do. best Ivory, German Silver bars, 6-inch 
 
 Do. Rolling, Ebony, 12-inch 
 
 Do. do. do. do. Ivory divided edges . 
 
 Dotting Scale, Boxwood, 6 inches 
 
 Do. best Ivory, do. 
 
 Fcotractor, Boxwood, 6 inches 
 
 Do. best Ivory, do 
 
 Do. half circle. Brass, 3 inches ... ,„ 
 
 Do. do. Horn 
 
 Do. for School use — Boxwood 
 
 Sector, Boxwood, 12-inch folding 
 
 Do. best Ivory, do. 
 
 3 
 9 
 15 
 
 iiiroxigh antj .'gent, care beinq talcen to secure those $UJ^plied [ii; Mesf<rs. 
 to the supply of amy article ordered, the PulAiahers will be happy' to send it 
 Order. 
 
 An ILLUSTRATED CATALOGUE of Mathematical and Optical Instruments and School 
 Materiel supplied by CASSELL, PETTER, & GALPIN will be forwarded post free on 
 application to their offices, La Belle Sauvage Yard, Ludgate Hill, London, B.C. 
 
 CASSELL, PETTEB, & QALPIIT, LONDOCN", PARIS, AND NEW TORE. 
 
SELECTIONS FROM 
 
 Gassell, Peffer, & Galpin's Popular and Standard Works. 
 
 Cassell's Illustrated History of England. With about j 
 
 2.C0O IllusTiations. Post 4(0, 5,ock) pp. Cuiin Jctc in Kight Vol . , 
 
 doll-, fs. :iiid 7S 6d. each ; or complete in Four Vols., half calf, 
 
 'Ihe Cloth ^'oUlmes can be had separate. ! 
 
 ^ The Toned Paper Edition, Vols. I. to VIII., 
 
 boinid in cloth, each o.s. 
 
 *,* A Supplementary Volume, wliich comprises the If isrtujv ok the 
 LAST i'KN Ye.\ks, and liiinis the work down to the i ii ,ent time, is 
 now publishing in Weekly Numbers and Montlily I'.u; ,. 
 
 Casseli's Popular Natural History. V.'itli about 
 
 2.000 l^llE;t■avin:,'^ and Tinted Plates. Complete in Two Vols., 
 crov. n 4to, i,s32 pp. cloth, 30s. ; half calf, 45s. : or half morocco, ! 
 50s. Also in Four Vols., with Coloured Illustrations, cloth, 42s. 
 
 Casseli's Household Guide. With innnei-oiis Coloun-d 
 
 Cookery Plates and Illiistratinns on nearly every page. Complete 
 in Four Vols., with copious Anah'tical Indices, cloth gilt, 6s. each; 
 or complete in Two Vols., half calf, £,1 iis. 6d. 
 
 Casseli's Biographical Dictionary. Edited by Rev. T. 
 
 Teignmouth Shore, M A. 1,152 pp., imp. 8vo. Illustrated with 
 Portraits. Cloth, 21s. : half morocco or calf, 35s. 
 
 Casseli's Guinea Illustrated Bible. With 900 Illus- 
 trations, full References, a Concordance, &c. &c. Royal 4to, 1,476 
 pp. New Edition. Cloth gilt, gilt edges, 21s. ; whole leather, gilt 
 edges, 25s. 
 
 Casseli's Bible Dictionary. With nearly 600 IlUistra- 
 
 tions. Strongly bound in cloth, 21s. ; in russia or morocco, 40s. 
 i>r59 pp., imperial 8vo. 
 
 Casseli's Child's Bible. With 220 Illustiations. Demy 
 
 4to, cloth gilt, 21s.; leather, 30s. ; morocco elegant, 42s. 
 
 Daily Devotion for the Household. Containing a 
 
 short Prayer, with a Hymn and a portion of Scripture for e\'ery 
 Morning and Kvening in the Year, with Twenty-four full-page 
 Plates and Engraved Title-page. Royal 4to, cloth bevelled, gilt 
 edges, £1 lis. 6d. 
 
 Casseli's Family Prayer Book. 400 pp., demy 4to, 
 
 cloth, 7s. 6d. ; cloth, gilt edges, gs. 
 
 MILITARY MANUALS. 
 
 A Series of Practical Hand-books on Military Subjects, written by 
 Eminent Officers in the various branches of the Army, and Illus- 
 trated with numerous Diagrams. 
 
 Notes on Cavalry Service. By Captain J. C. Russell, 
 
 12th Royal Lancers. Cloth limp, lettered, 3s. 6d. 
 
 Arms and Ammunition of the British Service. By 
 
 Major V. D. Majendie, Royal Artillery. Cloth limp, lettered, 
 3S. 6d. 
 
 Map and Plan Drawing. By C. Cooper King, Lieut., 
 
 Royal Marine Artillery. Cloth limp, lettered, 3s. 6d. 
 
 4- 
 
 Soldiering. By F. Maurice, Lieut., Royal Artillery, 
 
 Author ol " The Wellington Prize Essay." 3s. 6d. (In tlie press.) 
 
 5- 
 
 Fortification. By Captain O'Brien, Royal Engineers. 
 
 (In the press.) 
 
 *»* Other Volumes luill be duly announced. 
 
 Cld and New London. By Walter Thornp.ury. A 
 
 Narrative of its History, its People, and its Places. Vol. I., with 
 about 200 Illustrations, 576 pp , e.\. crown 410, cloth gilt, gs. 
 
 Casseli's Illustrated History of the War between 
 
 Franca and Germany. C'.MUplete in 2 V«ls., with about 500 Eii- 
 graviujs and Plans of the I'.atb-Fields. E.xtra crown 4to, cloth 
 gilt, 576 pp.. gs. each ; or 2 \ els., half calf, los. 
 
 British Battles on Land and Sea. By James Grant, 
 
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 Illustrations. E.xtra crown 4to, 576 pp., cloth gilt, gs. 
 
 The Races of Mankind. By Robert Brown, M.A., 
 
 Ph.U , F.L S., F.R.G S., President of the Royal Phy.Mcal Society, 
 Edinburgh. Vol. I., extra crown 410, Illustrated, cloth gilt, 7s. 6d. 
 
 Illustrated Travels. Edited by H. W. Bates, F.R.G.S., 
 
 Assistant-Secretary to the Royal Geographical Society. Vols. I., 
 II., III., IV., and V. are now ready, containing nearly 200 En- 
 gravings in each Volume. Royal 4to, price 15s. cloth, or i8s. clotli 
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 Clahke. Complete in 3 Vols., 2,168 pp., cloth, lettered,^! 15s.; 
 half morocco, ^2 los. 
 
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 Author of "'Ihe I'raitical Poultry Keeper," S:c. With 50 exqui- 
 sitely Coloured Plates of celebrated Prize Hirds of every Breed. 
 p.Tinted from Life, and with numerous Engravings on Wood. 
 E.xtra crown 4to, cloth, 31s. 6d. 
 
 Casseli's Brehm's Book of Birds. Translated from 
 
 the Te«t of Dr. P.ijfhm by Profe-sor T. Rvmek Jones. F.R.S. 
 With upwards of 400 Ii^ngraN-in^s on Wood, and 40 full-page Coloured 
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 Royal Svo, 500 pp., cloth gilt, i6s. 
 
 CASSELL'S TECHNICAL MANUALS, 
 
 Consisting of Volumes adapted for the use of Artisans and Students, 
 which contain the essentials of a complete Technical Education, 
 each book being Illustrated throughout with Diagrams and Drawing 
 Copies, and bound in cloth, comprise : 
 
 By Ellis A. Davidson. 
 
 Drawing for Carpenters andJoiners. Third Edition 3b. 6d. 
 
 Drawing for Bricklayers 3s. 
 
 Drawing for Cabinet-Makers 3s. 
 
 Drawing for Stonemasons 3s. 
 
 Drawing for Machinists and Engineers. Third 
 
 Edition , . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4s. 6d. 
 
 Drawing for Metal-Plate Workers 3s. 
 
 Gothic Stonework 3s. 
 
 Building Construction. Tenth Thousand .. .. 2s. 
 
 Linear Drawing. Seventeenth Thousand .. .. .. 2s. 
 
 Projection. Twelfth Thousand, Enlarged .. .. .. 2s. 
 
 Model Drawing js. 
 
 Practical Perspective. Second Edition 3s. 
 
 By Pkofessor Chukch, M.A. 
 
 Colour. With Six Coloured Plates, and numerous Illustration.^, 2s. 6d. 
 
 By Pkofessok R. S. Ball, LL.D. 
 Applied Mechanics. With numerous Illustration.s, and 
 
 140 Questions for Examination .. .. .. 2S. 
 
 By Ch.akles Ryan. 
 Systematic Drawing and Shading. Third Edition .. 2s. 
 
 N.B. —Casseli's Technical Catalogue, containing a full 
 description of the aboi'e Wo7l:s, post free on application. 
 
 Cassell, Petter, & Galpin's Complete Descriptive Catalogue— containing a list of several Hundred 
 
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