Rooted in the deep traditional art of Pennsylvania, the regional collection of the Phillips Museum highlights the distinctive and colorful ways that immigrant populations celebrated their native countries’ stylistic heritage. Many of the early European immigrants to this area came to Pennsylvania with a hope of land and religious freedom and brought their cultural traditions with them. Expressed through a variety of material and visual works; particular colors and forms have become ubiquitous within the area.
This exhibition focuses on the material culture of the Southeast region of Pennsylvania and the processes used to create the ceramics, metalwork, furniture, paintings, and textiles that are part of the fabric of 18th and 19th century Lancaster.
Co-curated by Lindsay Marino, Director and Collections Manager and Janie M. Kreines, Curator of Exhibitions & Engagement at the Phillips Museum of Art at F&M.
Birth and baptismal certificate made for Elisa Adam of Warwick Township, Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. The document notes her birthdate of July 11, 1832 and her baptismal date of September 29, 1833. Two birds, or distelfinks, flank her name in the middle of the side columns. Work by Samuel Bentz (1792– 1850) was formerly attributed to the Mount Pleasant Artist.
CERAMICS
Early Americans had access to a diverse range of ceramics. In addition to practical stoneware, remarkably decorated options from England and Germany were also imported to households in the region. Interestingly, designs such as spatterware (spongeware) and Gaudy Dutch that are so often associated with the Pennsylvania German culture were imported from England.
Here in Pennsylvania, there were very skilled potters that made domestic vessels and roof tiles using the abundant supplies of clay found along the edges of streams and rivers. It was harvested, brought to the pottery, cleaned and processed. The designs and techniques in the region were a mix of traditional motifs and copies of imported wares.
Lusterware gained popularity with more affluent groups in the 19th and 20th centuries. Small amounts of metal were added to a solution, applied to the pottery, and then fired. This process created a thin enamel film of metal which would give off a sheen in candlelight or gaslight.
Sometimes called spongeware, this pitcher would have had the colors applied with a sponge dipped in paint and then fired. The patterning on this piece is named “Rainbow” after its colorful appearance.
In England, Josiah Wedgwood pioneered the development of black basalt ware in the late 1760s, named after the volcanic rock, basalt. At the time, basalt was being used to manufacture vases and candlesticks. This type of stoneware was exceedingly hard and didn’t require glazing. Wedgwood was partly inspired by the desire to emulate the Etruscan black pottery pieces that were being excavated at Pompeii at the time, possibly also inspiring the motifs found on the piece.
From the 1820s, jugs with relief-molded decoration such as this one became a mass produced ware due to the ability to produce them relatively inexpensively. Molding techniques also improved, which allowed these relief-molded ceramics to be made in one process. Jugs of this type were occasionally produced to commemorate particular events. This example was made to celebrate the Eglinton Tournament of 1839.
FURNITURE
Colonial home interiors during the 1750–1850s were a mix of furniture that traveled across the Atlantic Ocean from the immigrating family’s country as well as pieces made in the Colonies. The tables, chairs, cupboards, and clocks that were made in these new settlements show signs of a variety of techniques, materials, and designs as cabinetmakers and their assistants were combining a mixture of old and new with multiple cultural and demographic influences.
As stated by Lisa Minardi in her book, Paint, Pattern, and People: Furniture of Southeastern Pennsylvania, 1725–1850, “Although different in appearance, the objects all embody distinct local expressions. These ‘localisms’ of form, ornament, and construction were influenced by a variety of factors, including ethnicity, religious affiliation, personal taste, socioeconomic status, and the skill of the craftsman.”
As you explore this online exhibition, notice the different types of wood that are used including pine, tulip poplar, walnut, cherry, maple, oak, and mahogany. Wood was chosen based on what was available in the area, cost, and purpose (decorative or utilitarian). You will also notice different decorative choices such as painted patterns and sulfur-inlaid designs.
Prolific Lancaster clockmaker Martin Schreiner numbered this clock 247 on the dial. The highest number of all his surviving works is 431. A label applied inside the case states that the clock was made in 1818. Style evidence of the dial and case, the number of the movement, and information about the dial makers suggest that this date is reasonable. Donors of the clock stated that it was used in Lancaster’s Grape Tavern, established in 1741. Further research is needed to substantiate that claim.
This clock was restored in 2013, which included the replacement of the central finial, careful restoration of the finish on the case and the replacement of the colonnettes in the back.
Household Items
Beautifully carved, these molds were more than decorative accents pressed into freshly made butter. Personal molds such as these would have been used by farmers to personalize their dairy products for sale or to barter for textiles, produce, or meat at markets. Customers would recognize the distinctive molds of the butter they liked, thanks to the unique design, and it would be easier to repurchase from the same farm.
The Springerle mold was used to create small decorative cookies, a centuries old tradition from Germany. Typically made for religious holidays in the past, they are now most associated with the Christmas season.
Furniture
Lovely in its simplicity, this high chest (popularly called a highboy) lacks elaborate carving of a more fully developed cornice, but embodies many engaging details. The “cabriole” (S-shaped) legs retain square edges, which are usually rounded. This treatment, including the ankle moldings and plain feet, occurs on two other examples bearing dates of 1752 and 1755. Evidence of a draw knife being used for construction, however, is an earlier technique, which suggests an earlier overall date for the object. The rear legs are most unusual: they point forward rather than rearward. The present brasses are replacements. Holes for the original brasses have been filled and show that their original position was closer together.
The high chest (or highboy) is made in two parts. The upper case is dovetailed and holds three full- width drawers of graduated heights below two side- by-side drawers below three small drawers across the top.
All of the drawers have pine sides and backs dovetailed to highly figured walnut fronts. The drawer bottoms are white cedar nailed to the underside with applied strips of wood on which the drawers run that cover the side nailheads. The present brasses and escutcheon plates on all of the drawers are the third set. The original brasses on the long drawers of the upper case were closer together, approximately below the brasses on the two side-by-side drawers.
The top outer-drawer cavities have holes cut through the full dustboards, intended to release wood springs that lock the drawers in place. Those drawer bottoms show no evidence of ever having such wood springs, but the drawer bottoms appear to be original. The laminations on the inside tops of the rear legs are replacements.
Popular in England starting in the late 1600s, Windsor chairs were exported to the Colonies around 1720 and soon became the most popular and widely-produced style of seating. With the invention of turning lathes, spindles, rails, and legs could be made at a much faster pace than laborious hand carving. The first recorded production was in Williamsburg, Virginia in 1745 with substantial production in Philadelphia by the 1750s.
Windsor chairs are identified by the style of their back including fan-back, bow-back, high-back, and slat-back to name a few. It is difficult to identify makers, as chairs combined features from different places and time periods. While chairs may have identifying marks on the seat bottoms, they may signify the owner rather than the maker.
This popular style of chair was produced for home and institutional use, was available, accessible, and used by all economic classes. They were often used outside. But for home interiors, they were most commonly used in the dining areas. Nineteenth-century advertisements document chairmakers employing painters to decorate their chairs with different colors and ornamental designs. While attractive and appealing to consumers, the paint covered the different types of wood used in its fabrication.
This exceptional Federal mantel, one of the best of its kind, is decorated in an elaborate way with intricate chip carving and gouge work. Stylized rosettes appear throughout the mantel. “Work of risk” or woodworking where one mistake could destroy the entire project originally made this mantel very expensive. This mantel would most likely have been located in a parlor, dining room, or other public space. Mantels from bedrooms and private spaces usually were less costly and would be fashioned in a simpler style.
During the Federal Period in American architectural and design history, the fireplace was a necessity, and the center point of any room, but the mantel was the marker of the social status of the owner. The motifs and general style of this mantel draw from the Greek and Roman orders of architecture, specifically the Ionic order. American designers of this period adapted features of classical design to create a neoclassical style unique to the United States.
There is an oral tradition linking this mantel to Chief Justice of the United States John Marshall. The Phillips Museum of Art is actively researching this exciting possibility. This mantelpiece was removed from a Washington D.C home just off Pennsylvania Avenue on 4th Street around 1930; the exact address of the home is unknown but it is a neighborhood where many statesmen were known to reside when government was in session.
These hand painted bellows would have been an important tool in the 19th C when keeping a fire stoked was essential for heating your home. The bellows, when used, create a concentrated puff of air that allows the user to reignite embers.
This plate is one part of a cast iron stove box that would have helped heat rooms that were adjacent to a center hearth in a house. The stove would be situated so that warmth of the fire would be amplified by the metal. Highly decorative motifs would have been typical of the German tradition dating back to the 1500s. Plates such as this would have been made at various “furnaces” in the region; a dangerous and labor intensive job.
The technique of drawing with a steel pen was popular during the last half of the nineteenth-century. Originally used as an exercise to train students to perfect their handwriting, this art form was later professionalized by a penmanship master and practiced with varying degrees of proficiency by a vast number of amateurs.
“17 ELISABETH 99 HEIMBACHIN” is painted on two panels across the top of the front. The woman’s name would have been Elisabeth Heimbach. The “IN” is the German suffix for a female name.
Glass
When discussing the history of glass manufacturing in the Lancaster area, Henry William Stiegel (1729– 1785) should be mentioned. “Baron” Stiegel, as he liked to call himself, was a German immigrant whose importance in the early American glass industry is, in part, evidenced by the creation of the town of Manheim, where he centered his factory. He started his craft with two different ironmaking furnaces, Elizabeth Furnace and Charming Forge, before venturing into glass making. As glass wasn’t signed by the maker, this type of small colored glassware is thought to have been manufactured by Stiegel’s factory, but it hasn’t been proven without scientific analysis. It is also possible that these were made in England and were imported along with many other goods that flooded the markets. There are examples here of molded glass that was made in several shapes and patterns.
Whereas other colonial American regions and ethnic groups favored chests of drawers, Pennsylvania Germans used blanket chests for storage of clothing and other textiles. The drawers at the bottom stored smaller personal items. This blanket chest, made of figured walnut, bears the inlaid initials, "MB", of its original owner. The 1780 date likely represents when it was made, although sometimes such dates honor an important time in the owner's life.
Rarely signed, early primitive landscapes were produced by artists in America that didn't have access to formal training. Practical and simple in appearance, the painter was capturing the aesthetics of their surrounding area. Figures and landscapes were often times lacking shading and dimensionality when painted by untrained artists.
Profile portraits such as these were popular with middle class families who wished to have a painting done of them, but couldn’t afford larger full portraits. A hallmark of the earlier work of regional painter Jacob Eichholtz, this type of portrait was a quicker and more budget-friendly option for some Lancaster families.
Metalwork
Blacksmithing and metalwork was an essential part of an agricultural lifestyle in Lancaster County. Tools, nails, chains, and hinges were just some of the necessities of the community. Mining and manufacturing of iron involved many laborers; relying on enslaved people and indentured servants. Laborers were needed to mine and process the abundant ore in the Berks, Lebanon, and Lancaster counties and were also part of the creation of stove plates and more refined metalworks that were in demand from neighboring cities like Philadelphia. Pennsylvania Germans were involved in most aspects of the metal trades, relying on both English and German immigrants as customers. Generally, metalwork made by Pennsylvania Germans wasn’t marked, so the makers remain mostly unknown.
This silk thread on linen needlework sampler has a floral border. The artist's signature is at the immediate top of the face of the sampler; it reads "Juliann C Diffenderfer.s/ Performance in the 13th year of her age April 3rd". Underneath this is a capitalized, script alphabet and a variety of inscriptions worked into the sampler.
Top left: "O how shall I repay/The bounties of my God/This feeble spirit pants beneath/The pleasing painful load". Bottom left: "Presented by my Aunt Mary Lainhart". Top right: "My life I would anew/Devote O Lord to thee/And in thy blissful service spend/A long eternity." Bottom right: "Preceptress R McElroy". Center: "My parents are John and Catharine Diffenderfer/My Brother and Sister are Henry and Margaret Diffenderfer". Bottom: "New Holland School & Township"
Floral and wreath motifs throughout. The large floral design at the bottom of the work is created using a dense ray stitch, a variety of the satin stitch.
This needlework is an example of the incredible work that young girls were completing at the Linden Hall girls’ seminary based in Lititz, Pennsylvania. This particular silk embroidery depicts “Palemon and Lavinia” from the poem “The Seasons” by James Thompson. There are only a few of these examples known, and this one remained unsigned by the young artist. The painting of the background and faces of the central figures was probably done by Samuel Reinke, a Moravian minister. Schools such as Linden Hall taught young women about fine needlepoint, music, writing, and reading. The establishments assisted wealthy families in educating their daughters in the aspects they believed would serve them well in married life and society.
The central image is of a heart topped by a crown featuring the initials “OEHBDDE” which stands for the German saying, “O edel Herz Bedenke dein Ende” translated as “O Noble Heart consider your end.” This design usually indicates the needleworker was from a Mennonite family.
This silk thread on linin needlework sampler has a floral tulip border in white, green, red, and blue. A red script capital alphabet and a green lower-case generic alphabet occupy the top third of the face of the sampler. Two symmetrical reclining deer and a rose decorate the middle third of the sampler, which also contains the needleworker's name: "Sarah D. Watson Her Work 1832 / This work in hand my friends may have when I am dead and in my grave". The bottom third of the sampler contains two birds on trees motifs and a (school) house motif centered on two floral motifs and two bowl motifs.
The works on paper featured here highlight the tradition of creating documents using broken or a fractured style of lettering known in German as fraktur, derived from the latin work fractura (breaking). This tradition, which started around the early 1500s in German-speaking areas of Europe, traveled to the new world around 1638. Common in the southeastern region of Pennsylvania, these documents were created to record the birth and baptisms (Geburts-und-Taufschein) of Germans who found themselves lacking parish registers as they had in their home countries. Many fraktur were made by local teachers, some becoming distinct by their choice of artistic designs both in lettering and features such as plants, animals, and fantastical creatures like mermen. Regional fraktur examples include both hand-drawn and printed. While some documents were made using the Ephrata Cloister printing press, they were purchased and customized by a variety of local communities, allowing for creative expression in color and other details in the open spaces.
Translation: To this couple, Johannes Plath and his lawfully wedded wife Christina (maiden name Geschwind), a son was born in the year of our Lord 1796 the 5th day of August and baptized on the 22nd of September by Mr. Becker, pastor and servant of the word according to Christ’s commandment, Matthew 28:19. He was given the name Johannes. The sponsors were Johannes Schertel and his wife Rosina. This Johannes was born and baptized in America, in the state of Pennsylvania, Berks County, Pine Grove Township. (Note) We were married in the year 1820 on the 16th of December.
Translation: Handiew Glein and his wife Anna Barbara were the parents of the following child: Anna Caterina Glein was born 2 September at 6 a.m in the sign of Cancer. Received Holy Baptism 5 November by Pastor Stohy. Her baptismal sponsors were Christian Wirth and his wife Anna Barbara. The above mentioned child was born in the year 1782 in Lebanon Township, Dauphin County in the state of Pennsylvania. Praise Thy Creator highly, Hold your baptismal covenant fast, Honor your parents rightly Love your neighbors constantly.
Translation: My friend is mine and I am his. Your blood, Lord Jesus, is my ornament. Yes, if I sank into you, then the father cannot find my sins, nor me the sinner. Then I will want to abide in you and enter heaven joyfully. Don’t be afraid! Lo, I bring you tidings of great joy, which shall be to all peoples. Glory to God in the highest and peace on earth and goodwill to men.
Inscription on top: Abraham Steiner; underneath: Lidia Funck; below: initials AS and LS. Inscription on middle portion: Henrich Funck; underneath: Barbara Funk; underneath: initials IS SF/MF LF/SF HF. Inscription on the bottom portion: 1828 followed by H F B F L F.
The maker was probably Lidia Funck (Lydia Stoner (Funck)). Barbara and Heinrich Funck may have been her parents. Abraham Steiner was an important religious figure in Pennsylvania and the name might refer to him. Abraham K. Stoner married Lydia Ann Stoner (born Funck). Steiner and Stoner were frequently interchanged. Lydia made the hand towel prior to her marriage to Abraham.
The objects in this section of the exhibition were used to turn flax into linen, which is used to produce a variety of textiles. Before the industrial revolution, this was a laborious process that required multiple steps between initially growing the flax and then using the final product, linen, to make tape (ribbon), towels, clothes, and blankets.
The video in this section shows a condensed version of all the steps that were required in this process including plowing the fields, planting the seeds (sowing), pulling the flax from the fields, bundling the flax to stand and dry in the field (stooking), once dry, pulling the flax through a comb (nails in a board) to remove the seeds (rippling), rotting away the interior to leave the outer fibers intact, which takes 4-5 days (retting), using wooden blades to separate the woody stalk “shives” from the flax (breaking), using a wooden knife to remove any remaining “shives” (scutching), pulling the flax through hackles (combs) of various sizes with the most valuable product going through the smallest comb (hackling), spinning the flax into thread, and weaving the thread into linen. The linen thread was then woven on a loom and bleached to turn the natural color of linen from tan to white which then allows the maker to dye the fabric other colors.
Cotton, wool, linen, and silk were the main materials that were used for textile production in from the mid 1700s to the mid 1800s. The spinning corner of the exhibition displays multiple hand-powered tools that allowed the craftspeople to process the materials before they created quilts, coverlets, samplers, and hand towels. The production of textiles would start to change around the 1850s, as steam powered machinery would take over the industry.
Sewing and piecing together quilts could be a communal affair as people gathered around a quilt frame while socializing with friends and neighbors. Some accounts recorded by Works Progress Administration (WPA) interviewers in the late 1930s–early 1940s recorded that regular quiltings took place in the living quarters of enslaved peoples. This work, including spinning yarn, weaving, quilting, and needlework, continued after emancipation. Coverlets, on the other hand, were more of a solitary activity as the maker would sit at a loom as they got into a rhythm of passing the shuttle back and forth, as you can see on the video.
Samplers and hand towels require a keen eye and nimble fingers as the maker used needle and thread to embroider the intricate patterns on the fabric. These textiles serve as historical records for us today but many of these young female makers were using them as a way to practice their craft and showcase their sewing skills for a potential suitor. As you look at these examples from the PMA’s collection, you will see multiple patterns repeated, including flowers, people, stars, and animals.
This table belonged to Serena A. Mayer, featured in the portrait above. Incorporated within the oval designs around the perimeter, are the initials "SAM" on the left for Serena A. Mayer (1816–1877), "HSM" on the right for Henry Smith Mayer, her brother, and "MCM" at the top for Mary Carpenter Mayer, her mother. The top of the table was probably painted years after it was made.
Portraiture
Early on in the British Colonies, later to become the United States, portraiture tended to be rather plain and lacking dimension. This is in part due to the lack of academic instruction of fine art techniques in the early and mid 18th century Colonies. An example of this would be the portrait of Ann Lawler Ross, seated with a book of music and grasping a flower. Painted by Benjamin West, an 18 year old untrained artist who would eventually become one of the most celebrated American painters. Prior to his immigration to England, his formulaic technique focused on depicting the aspirations of middle and upper class individuals in the Lancaster and Philadelphia regions. Typically, the sitter would be holding props and set in a library or with a landscape in the background. Notice the almond-shaped eyes, fashionable in portraiture at the time; and the efforts to create folds and texture in the fabric of her blue dress.
The two other artists shown here, Thomas Sully and Jacob Eichholtz, both worked in the Philadelphia and Lancaster region. Sully trained briefly with West while in England in 1809. The mid-19th century saw a rise in the affluent class in Lancaster, and more families were able to afford portraiture. Through training with other renowned artists, Eichholtz developed a technique of painting that brought him hundreds of patrons from the Lancaster area. The painting of Serena Mayer Franklin in her wedding dress is one of the most complex portraits that Eichholtz completed.
Serena Mayer Franklin, born in 1816 in Lancaster and eventual mother to 8 children, is seen in her wedding gown at age 21. Quoted as being one of the “most intelligent and energetic ladies of the city,” Serena passed away in 1877 at a summer residence, Smithland, located a few miles north of Lancaster. The small painted tilt-top table on exhibition was previously owned by Mrs. Franklin. She is the grandmother of Hugh McAllister North, Jr., founder of the North Museum of Science and Nature.
Painted in an elegant and fashionable blue gown, Ann Lawler Ross was born and raised in Lancaster. The only child of a landowner, she inherited wealth and married lawyer George Ross. During her lifetime, the Ross’ enslaved several people. Due to her affluence she was afforded the opportunity to have her portrait painted by a young Benjamin West. Although not much is documented about Ann, typical of many women from the 18th C, she is described as an “amiable and virtuous wife.” She would have also borne witness to the changing attitudes of British rule, not only as a citizen of Pennsylvania but as a wife to a member of the Continental Congress and signatory of the Declaration of Independence.
Benjamin West was born in Springfield, Pennsylvania, near Philadelphia, on October 10, 1738. Painting portraits in eastern Pennsylvania and New York City, he was quickly recognized for his talent. The earliest attributed paintings are portraits of Robert and Jane Morris (1750–1755) currently in the Chester County History Center collection in West Chester, Pennsylvania. In 1763, after spending three years traveling between Rome, Florence, and Venice, West settled in London.
West is known for paintings such as Penn’s Treaty with the Indians (1771–1772), currently in the collection at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts in Philadelphia, and the unfinished American Commissioners of the Preliminary Peace Negotiations with Great Britain (1783–84) at the Winterthur Museum, Garden & Library in Winterthur, Delaware. While studying abroad, West learned new painting and glazing techniques that he passed on while educating American-born artists in England including Matthew Pratt, Charles Willson Peale, Gilbert Stuart, Ralph Earl, John Trumbull, Washington Allston, and Thomas Sully. West died in London in 1820.
The subject of the painting, George Ross, was born in New Castle, Delaware, on May 10, 1730 and would become a well-known lawyer and one of Lancaster’s wealthiest men. At the age of 21 Ross moved to Lancaster to start his law practice and married Ann Lawler. George and Ann would have three children, George, James, and Mary.
George served as Crown Prosecutor (attorney general) to Carlisle, Pennsylvania for 12 years until he was elected to the provincial legislature in 1768. Ross was elected to the Continental Congress in 1774, 1776, and 1777. He was a member of the Committee of Safety for Pennsylvania, Inspector of Military Supplies, and served as a colonel in the Continental Army. He was a representative for Pennsylvania and signed the Declaration of Independence on August 2, 1776. Due to poor health, Ross resigned from the Continental Congress in 1777 and was appointed to the Pennsylvania Court of Admiralty. He died in 1779 at the young age of 49 and is buried at Christ Church Burial Ground in Philadelphia.
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