Description:
Chinese export brise (French for broken) or folding fan with 16 bone sticks, pierced and painted with stylized flowers and buds in blue, pink, green, and orange. The fan was sold at Amherst Auction Galleries, June 12, 1976, as part of the estate of Mary W. (Mollie) Wells of Deerfield, the great grand daughter of Augustus Wells (1798-1861)), the eldest surviving son of Samuel Wells and Esther Arms Wells of Deerfield, and Miranda Wells. The finest ivory brise fans were made from 1750-1830; however, as demand declined with changes in fashion and workmanship deteriorated. This type of fan, made not of carved ivory but rather pierced bone, was produced for the export market. The ribbon, which would have threaded through the center rectangular hole about 1" from the top, and the pin at the bottom that would have held the fan together are missing.
Link to share this object record:
https://museums.fivecolleges.edu/detail.php?t=objects&type=ext&id_number=HD+76.047 |
