The Winterthur Library

 The Joseph Downs Collection of Manuscripts and Printed Ephemera

Henry Francis du Pont Winterthur Museum

5105 Kennett Pike, Winterthur, Delaware  19735

302-888-4600 or 800-448-3883

 

 

OVERVIEW OF THE COLLECTION

 

Creator:         Edwards, Parke, 1890-1973              

Title:               Collection

Dates:             1906-1965

Call No.:         Col. 99           

Acc. No.:        91x49, 92x95

Quantity:        17 boxes

Location:        3 F 1-11, and Map Case C, Drawer 9

 

 

 

BIOGRAPHICAL STATEMENT

 

Parke Emerson Edwards was an early twentieth-century artist.  He was the son of Jesse and Mary Eckman Edwards, born on November 9, 1890 in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania.  His father was listed as a cabinetmaker in the 1900 census.  Parke’s formal education took him as far as the 8th grade.  Edwards became interested in art and enrolled in a mail-order course in show-card writing and sign painting with the International Correspondence School.  He then attended the Pennsylvania Museum School of Industrial Art, now known as the University of the Arts.  As a sophomore, Edwards was awarded a scholarship to travel in Europe, where he documented the artistic talents of Europe's best craftsmen.  He studied metalwork under the blacksmith Samuel Yellin. 

 

At the outbreak of World War I, Edwards was drafted into the Army Signal Corps, where he designed Aviation Maintenance Forms.  Eventually, he prepared water color renditions of human anatomy for the Army Medical Museum.  After leaving the service, Edwards finished his studies at the School of Industrial Art, where he created the metalwork shop.  He became one of the school's prized instructors.

 

Edwards' major work was undertaken at the Swedenborgian Cathedral at Bryn Athyn, Pa., where he was responsible for making and installing much of the decorative metalwork.  Later he worked at the residence of Raymond Pitcairn, the financial sponsor of the Bryn Athyn church.

 

Parke Edwards died on October 18, 1973.  He left behind a large collection of books on the fine, industrial, and decorative arts.  As well, he had been a collector all his life, hunting arrowheads as a boy, and later buying pottery, frakturs, metal work, country furniture, and folk art.  His collections were dispersed after his death.  He was married in 1921 to Mabel Mae Lefevre (1900-1984, the daughter of Levi Frank and Clara Synder Lefevre of Lancaster County), and they had two sons, plus a daughter who died young.

 

 

SCOPE AND CONTENT

 

The collection consists primarily of works on paper in pencil, ink, wash, watercolor, and colored pencil.  Because Edwards was mainly a metalsmith, most of the materials are arts and crafts designs for metal objects and architectural elements including doors, windows, grilles, furniture hardware, switch plates, latches and locks, and lighting devices.  A few are associated with his work at the Bryn Athyn Cathedral.

 

The collection also includes miscellaneous sketches and drawings, some of them inspired by medieval sources.  Some works are figure studies and free hand perspective drawings of geometric figures probably done when Edwards was a student.  Others were apparently sketched while on field trips or vacations in Europe.  A series of leaf rubbings, perhaps collected as design inspirations, are included.  Some metal artifacts and a pottery vase presumably designed by Edwards are part of the collection.  There are also clippings collected by Edwards and copies of correspondence addressed to him.

 

Three binders of accounts, financial transactions, and a scrapbook from the firm J. Barton Benson, Inc., were accessioned with the Edwards material.  While the relationship of the materials is unclear, it seems that Benson and his associates were also metalsmiths.  The Benson items have been designated as Collection 105.

           

 

ORGANIZATION

 

The drawings are in Boxes 1-13; metal artifacts are in Boxes 14-17; the pottery vase is in Box 18.  The drawings are arranged first by size and are then, for the most part, in accession number order.    

 

 

LANGUAGE OF MATERIALS

 

The materials are in English.

 

 

RESTRICTIONS ON ACCESS

 

Collection is open to the public.  Copyright restrictions may apply.

 

 

PROVENANCE

 

Purchased from and gift of Robert Edwards.

 

 

ACCESS POINTS

           

People:

                        Stratton, Howard Fremont.

                        Pitcairn, Raymond.

 

Topics:

            J. Barton Benson, Inc.

            Iron Craftsmen (Philadelphia, Pa.)

            Bryn Athyn Cathedral (Bryn Athyn, Pa.)

            Metal-work - Drawings.

            Arts and crafts movement - United States.

            Decoration and ornament.

            Artists and architects.

            Art metal-work.

            Charcoal drawing.

            Design - Study and teaching.

            Pencil drawing - 20th century.

            Pen drawing - 20th century.

            Doors - Design.

            Grilles - Design.

            Artists' preparatory studies.

            Church decoration and ornament.

            Lighting, Architectural and decorative.

            Ironwork - Drawings.

            Hardware - Design.

            Locks and keys - Design.

            Blacksmithing.

            Interior decoration - Design.

            Artists - Correspondence.

            Artifacts.

            Correspondence.

            Clippings.

            Sketches.

            Drawings.

            Photographic prints.

            Watercolors.

            Sketchbooks.

            Art metal workers.

            Art metal designers.

            Artists.

 

 

 

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE COLLECTION

 

Location: 3 F 1-11 and Map Case C, Drawer 9

 

 

BOX 1:

 

Accession number 91x49

 

.1-.3                 Byzantine ornaments, ink

.4-.11               Byzantine and Greek ornaments, colored pencil (some 1912)

.4         Historic ornament: Byzantine Concours, Penna. Museum, item depicted is a Norwegian tankard

.8         Historic ornament: Concours Mahometan, items depicted: ornament from a Persian mosque, Turkoman border, Persian jug

.5         probably Greek pottery, with animal design

.6-.7     Ionic and Doric style capitals

.9         suggestion for appliqué: Byzantine

.10       Historic ornament: Concours Greek, depicts 3 oil jugs

.11       Historic ornament: Concours Mahometan, depicts pottery tile from a mosque and a Turkoman yamud [a type of rug?]

.12-.45             Design tracings, mostly of ornamental hardware, but including metalwork on doors, metal frame over a well, metal grilles for windows, and stained glass designs;  pencil, 1915-1925 (some of the subjects: Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York Public Library, Avery Library, Pratt, Notre Dame)

.46-.74             Design tracings, ornamental metalwork, pencil, 1915-1925 (some of the subjects: Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York Public Library, Avery Library, Pratt, Notre Dame)

.75-.95             design tracings, ornamental metalwork, pencil; .79 has “Spirit of Saint Louis” as part of design; .84 might be reference to four gospel writers as it includes heads of eagle, man, bull, and what appears to be a cougar but is possibly a lion

.98-.154           Freehand sketches, pencil, some dated 1928; .108 is on letter head stationery of Pringle Borthwick, general contractor for The New Church, Bryn Athyn; .109 resembles a lectern with an eagle; .111-.112  include winged bulls

.155-.193         Freehand sketches, pencil (some dated 1914-1932)

.217-.223         Ornaments, colored pencil (some dated 1930)

.224-.229         Ornaments, black ink and pencil (1918, 1932); .225 depicts craftsmen at work

.230-.248         Rubbings of hardware on a Spanish chest, pencil, colored pencil (1924, 1935)

.249-.257         Cut grillwork, pencil

.258-.267         Grillwork designs, pencil

 

 

BOX 2:

 

Accession number 91x49

 

.268-.271         Grillwork, ink and wash (1917-1919)

.272-.285         Grillwork, pencil; .284-.285 labeled as grillwork from Bryn Athyn Cathedral

.286                 Sliding door design

.287-.300         Photos of a vase, lettering, rubbings, European (1914)

.301-.302         Photographs of metalwork: a sconce, a flower pot holder(?), and a glass-topped table with decorative metal frame work

.303                 Casement window frame, ink and color (1927)

.304-.305         Floor plan sketches, pencil

.306-.308         Coats of arms, pencil and colored pencil sketches

.309-.326         Bookplates, “Rules of Life,” and other designs, pencil sketches (some 1917-1927)

.342-.351         Lettering, ink

.352-.364         Miscellaneous notes, quotations, lettering exercise, 1919-1929

.365-.369         Book cover design - Dodona, by Howard Fremont Stratton

 

 

BOX 3:

 

Accession number 91x49

 

.370-.391, .393-.410    Logos, pencil (some 1917); includes logos for Glencairn Foundation in Bryn Athyn; RCA; the Hamilton Club of Bala Cynwyd; Haverford College; PPG Co.; and others

.411-.419         Logos for Glencairn Foundation; Gabriele Pitcairn; and others; ink

.420-.424         Logo design: J. Barton Benson, Smithery, Wyncote

.430-.435         Balustrade, pencil and colored pencil, 1925

.436-.437         sections of 18th century English balustrade, Memorial Hall, Philadelphia, pencil, 1926-1927

.438-.446         Rain conductor heads, pencil and colored pencil (some dated 1918, 1921)

.447-.449         Rain conductor heads, ink and pencil, 1917-1918

.450a-.456a     Correspondence, 1924-1954

.457-.460         Architectural designs, pencil

.461-.493         Newspaper clippings; and pictures of St. Thomas Church, New York

.494-.496         Designs for steps, pencil, 1924

.497-.502         Designs for door or window, pencil

.503-.545         Copies of Correspondence, mostly dates from 1914-1935, much from Howard Fremont Stratton.  Also a magazine article apparently hand copied by Edwards and a cash register receipt.  Roughly in order by date.

 

 

BOX 4:

 

Accession number 91x49

 

. 546-.602        Copies of Correspondence

.603-.605         Door designs, watercolor, 1919

                        .603     tower door, top

                        .604     unidentified door

                        .605     door in east wall, s [south?] transept – 2 views

.607-.617         Book clasps and hardware: suggestions for metal and enamel clasps for The Copy of the Word, pencil and watercolor (some 1920)

.618-.619         Book rest, music stand, pencil, 1926

.622-.654         Key Designs, including designs for key for Byecroft Studio, but mostly keys for Bryn Athyn Cathedral,  pencil (some 1924-1927)

.655-.666         Key Designs, with more designs for Byecroft Studio, and also designs for the cathedral, pencil

.667-.674         Key plates, pencil

.675-.680         Key designs, pencil, ink (some 1926-1927)

.681-.701         Door knockers, pencil and colored pencil (some 1926-1928)

.703-.718         Latches and locks, pencil

.719-.742         Latches and locks, pencil (some 1925-1928)

 

 

BOX 5:

 

Accession number 91x49

 

.743-.744, .746-.774    Latches and locks, pencil (some 1927)

.775-.780         Latches and locks, pencil, color pencil (some 1925-1927)

.781-.790         Latches and locks, ink (one 1919, some 1927)

.791-.792         Monstrance, color

.793-.794         Andirons, pencil, ink, 1926

.796-.805         Goblets and cups, pencil

.807-.822         Chests and Caskets, pencil, color pencil

.823-.834         Decorative elements, including radiator parts, pencil, color pencil, (some 1919, 1924)

.835-.841         Decorative elements, including a bolt, a key, and parts of staffs or rods, pencil, (some 1928)

.845-.864         Decorative switch plates, pencil (some 1922-1923)

.865-.877         Decorative switch plates, color pencil (some 1923)

.878-.883         Handle designs, some marked as being for casement windows, pencil (some 1924)

.884a               Desk design, ink, 1929

.884b-.890       Sketches for ironwork, pencil, 1926-1929

.891-.918         Ray Commission, Lighting devices, includes floor and table lamps, hanging lanterns, candlestick holders, color pencil, pencil, ink (some 1914-1928)

.919-.940         Ray Commission, Lighting devices, includes floor and table lamps, hanging lanterns, candelabra, chandeliers, color pencil, pencil, ink (some 1919-1933)

 

 

BOX 6:

 

Accession number 91x49

 

.941-.943         Ray Commission, Lighting devices: chandeliers with candles, pencil and ink

.944-.950         Ray Commission, Lighting devices: hanging lanterns, wall lanterns, sconces,  color

.951-.959         Ray Commission, Lighting devices: hanging lanterns, wall lanterns, sconces, table and floor lamps; .958 is labeled “suggestion of porch lantern, Mrs. Webb’s res., Jenkintown, Pa., J. Barton Benson, Wyncote, Pa.”; color, (some 1928, 1941)

.960-.967         Ray Commission, Lighting devices: table and floor lamps, sconces; pencil (some 1928)

.968-.999         Ray Commission, Lighting devices (assortment), pencil (some 1922-1929)

.1000-.1028     Ray Commission, Lighting devices (assortment),, pencil (some 1923-1933)

.1029-.1064     Ray Commission, Lighting devices (assortment),, pencil (some 1919-1933)

.1065-.1096     Ray Commission, Lighting devices (assortment),, pencil (some 1919-1928)

.1097-.1120     Ray Commission, Lighting devices (assortment),, pencil (some 1924-1928)

.1121-.1147     Ray Commission, Lighting devices (assortment),, pencil (some 1923-1927)

 

 

BOX 7:

 

Accession number 91x49

 

.1148-.1169     Ray Commission, Lighting devices (assortment, many candle holders), pencil (some 1924)

.1170-.1173     Hinges, color, 1919

                        .1171-.1173 are signed J. W. or John Walter

.1174               Switch plates, pencil, 1923

.1179-.1186     Door pulls, pencil (some 1926-1927)

.1187-.1196     Drawer pulls, most in 18th century style, pencil (some 1941)

.1197-.1217     Hinges, pencil (some 1926-1929, 1954)

                        .1215 labeled “hinges in the Penn A.C., Dec. 7, 1926”

.1218-.1226     Hinges, pencil (some 1926-1928)

Includes English latches; English cupboard hinges from the Penn. A.C.; French designs; 2 large drawings, possibly full-size

.1229               “Suggestions for Enamel,” butterflies, bugs, dragonflies (probably meant for jewelry designs), color, 1912

.1253-.1260     Pottery sketches, color (some 1912-1914)

Sketches of fragments of Italian pottery; designs for pottery in the Arts and Crafts style; sketches from Greek vases (shapes, no decoration); garden vases; designs from Arabic pottery

.1261-.1262     two paintings, color

                        .1261   copy of a fraktur done in 1815 (inscription in German)

                        .1262   woman in red hat and coat, carrying a muff

.1263-.1280     Miscellaneous drawings, color (some 1927-1928), including the following:

                        .1263-.1264     signs for Bryn Athyn Church;

                        .1266   statue of William Penn;

                        .1270   chain links;

                        .1271   andiron

.1281-.1297     Miscellaneous drawings, ink and wash (some 1919-1924), including the following:

                        .1281   register cover;

                        .1268-.1288     rams;

                        .1295   partial sign for Pennock Brothers, Inc., Flowers (with two figural candlestick holders);

                        .1296   head of an old woman wearing spectacles

.1298-.1312     Miscellaneous drawings, ink and wash (some 1927), including the following:

                        .1298   “Bloody dagger of Macbeth, Booth”;

                        .1299   “antique Roman brass lamp, booth in Richileu(?)’;

                        .1300   “wooden pipes used in Hamlet”;

                        .1310   vase of flowers;

                        .1312   coffee pot

various metal designs and Paris antiques;

                       

 

 

BOX 8:

 

Accession number 91x49

 

.1313-.1331     Medieval theme drawings, pencil (some 1923-1928), includes drawings of knights, ladies, a monk, and a peasant of the period; metal work from the period; pieces of armor, especially helmets

.1332-.1345     Medieval theme and miscellaneous drawings, pencil, ink, color (some 1912-1925), including the following:

.1332   drawing of wife and children, Mabel Mae Lenore(?), Parke Jr., and Jimmy, in form of a triptych;

                        .1333-.1338     drawings of jewelry;

                        .1339-.1341     designs for chair, seat, and cabinet, more or less in medieval style;

                        .1342   design for a silver spoon

                        .1345   sketchbook of various objects, boy fishing, a church, plain folk, men with bucket and dog; and a draft of a letter [ca.1945] to Otto about purchasing illuminated manuscripts, with news of his sons’ war work

.1346-.1359     Newspaper clippings about metal workers in Philadelphia, ads for J. Barton Benson smithery, article about a church in Ravenna, Italy, etc.

.1360-.1373     Miscellaneous drawings, pencil (one 1923), including a toy dog, a snake, a chair, a radio table(?), various metal designs, a jug, birds, a tree-shape design labeled “to Harry from Jim & Parke, Xmas – 1927”

.1374-.1382, .1384-.1386        Miscellaneous drawings, pencil (some 1927-1928), including rocking horse, purse, chair, stool, female figure, vignettes of craftsmen at work, metal designs

.1387-.1410     Miscellaneous drawings, pencil (some 1923-1934), including designs for bowls, metal designs, human figures, men in saloon, man at desk holding bottle, design for a Christmas card

.1411-.1433     Miscellaneous drawings, pencil, including a table, a vase(?) with the name Sylvia, metal designs, human figures, a goblet

.1434-.1464     Miscellaneous drawings, pencil, including metal designs, a stool, a stand, a table, two Mother and Child designs, hinges, door and window designs

.1465-.1499     Miscellaneous drawings, pencil (some 1924-1928), including metal designs, a rough sketch of a desk, stands, chairs, a clock face, cups or vases, a female figure, a lidded bowl, a knife or letter opener, and eagles

.1501-.1536     Miscellaneous drawings, pencil (some 1920-1928), including a lidded bowl, mermaids, human heads, blacksmiths at work, a soldier, metal designs, a kneeling bench, signs of the four gospel writers, a capital, latches

.1537-.1570     Miscellaneous drawings, pencil (some 1923-.1965), a design celebrating Charles Lindbergh’s flight to Paris, suggestion for a window, metal designs, pomegranate designs, head of a woman, caricature entitled “President of the Grouch Club,” toy(?) “horse for Jesse,” sleighs, fireside vignette labeled “Grandmother Eckman,” sign for some builders, desk, animal designs, a clock, landscape with windmill, chairs

.1571-.1583     Miscellaneous drawings, pencil (one 1928), metal designs, cup or vase, design for feet of a stand

 

 

BOX 9:

 

Accession number 91x49

 

.194-.216         Ornaments, color wash (some 1919), includes round bosses, a design with a knight, and another with the head of a man, both for tiles?

.327-.341         Miscellaneous lettering, pencil, including heart-shaped designs with the name Margaretha Fendler; a picture frame(?) with the names Marjorie Conner and William Gold, Jr., and the date June 13, 1942; lettering for various signs

.842-.843         Oriental Rug designs, color, 1914, one copied from the Austrian Commercial Museum in 1914, and the other an original design

.1233-.1241a   designs for Mosaics, watercolor, 1913-1914, mostly for mosaic borders, also an original design for a cement garden seat, a floor, and a slab

.1241-.1243     flower still-life paintings, watercolor (one 1937)

.1244-.1246     flower still-life paintings, watercolor

.1247-.1249     flower still-life paintings and plant analysis, watercolor (one 1912)

.1250-.1252     Elementary design, pencil, color, 1912

                        .1250, .1252    rose motifs

                        .1251   metalwork with floral motifs

.1311               ink drawing of dogwoods, 1917

.1343-.1344     Designs for oilcloth, color, 1914

.1370               Miscellaneous drawings, pencil, sprays of flowering branches

.1505               Miscellaneous drawings, pencil, knife blades, one with a handle

.1652               Pencil drawings, 1911, chair and stool

 

 

BOX 10:

 

Accession number 92x95

 

.45                   Sketchbook and sketches, which are in separate folder; the sketches were done at public library in 1917, include andirons, hinges, latches, doors, chandeliers, knights, crowns, etc.

.46a, b, c          Notes on tools

.47-.59             Bryn Athyn Cathedral, pencil (some 1925-1927), various metal designs, photo postcard of a balustrade (unknown building)

.60-.70             Leaf rubbings, 1926-1928

.71-.80             Leaf rubbings, 1926-1928

.81-.90             Leaf rubbings, 1927-1928

.91-.100           Leaf rubbings, 1927-1928

.101-.106         Leaf rubbings, 1927-1928

.107-.109         Plants, watercolor

.110-.117         Anatomical drawings, ink

.118-.122         Anatomical drawings, ink, crayon

.123-.125         Female portrait drawings, pencil

.126-.131         Portrait drawings, pencil: heads; woman; woman and two boys playing cards of a porch, etc.

.132-.139         Lettering exercises, poems, essays, calligraphy copy of Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address, etc.

.140-.147         Ironwork and other designs, pencil sketches, includes “memory” and “time” sketches

.148-.153         Charcoal and wash drawings (some 1912-1914): jug, statue of lion, shield with lion, pottery vases, “renderings from bronze and iron, in the Museo Civico, Venise, 1914, [signed] Leon W. Corson,” another jug

.154-.158         Watercolors (some 1907-1937): Japanese building in a garden; elephant vase with flowers (arrangement done by Mabel Mae Edwards, won first place in garden club show, 1937); Wild West outlaw; woman with naval officer and father(?); three men at a baseball game, entitled “Two Strikes and the Bases Full”

.159-.165         Correspondence and drawings (some 1926-1940): animal sketches; “suggestion of weather vane for Mr. H. Scheerbaum, Orland, Pa., 1940, [signed] J. Barton Benson”; design for sconce; correspondence

 

 

 

BOX 11:

 

Accession number 91x49

 

.606                 Door, ink wash; king or knight on horseback in the tympanum over the door; door is decorated with large metal hinges

.795                 cups and goblets, pencil

.1222               Hinge; on back: lettering exercise, human figures, and a turkey

.1230-.1232     Designs for wallpaper friezes, mostly with floral motifs, watercolor, 1913-1914

.1248               Flowers in a vase, watercolor, 1927

.1584               Design for wallpaper, powdered pattern, motive: monk’s hood, watercolor, 1913

.1586               Design for wallpaper, motif: apple blossom, watercolor, 1914

.1588               Design for wallpaper, all over pattern, motive: mistletoe, watercolor, 1913

.1587a, b         Design for inlaid linoleum, motif: geometrical, watercolor, 1914

.1588               Designs for wallpaper and linoleum, watercolor, 1913-1914

.1590-.1597     Figure drawings, ink, watercolor (some 1906-1911)

                        .1590 “A Hopless [i.e. Hopeless] Case,” nurse and doctor with patient in bed;

                        .1591   “No. 38: His Fortune: You are Going on a Long Journey,” old man and young boy with cards [see also 92x95.5-.6 in Box 13];

                        .1592   lady and gentleman, dated 1908 (in the style of the Gibson Girl);

                        .1593   four ladies manipulating a small male figure under a magnifying glass, dated 1911 (in the style of the Gibson Girl);

                        .1594   woman tying her shoe, dated 1906;

                        .1595   “At the matinee,” four women at the theater, dated 1908;

                        .1596   old man and woman at dining table, woman reading newspaper with news about women’s suffrage, 1911;

                        .1597   woman in green dress, 1906

.1598-.1606     Figure drawings, pencil, charcoal (some 1912)

                        .1598   soldier(?);

                        .1599a woman playing harp;

                        .1599b an Arab(?)

                        .1600   seated man clinging to something large;

                        .1601   seated young man playing a flute;

                        .1602   seated figure;

                        .1603   man with discus;

                        .1604   man with fishing net(?);

                        .1605   standing figure;

                        .1606   seated man

.1607-.1613     Figure drawings, charcoal

                        .1607   man with bow or stick;

                        .1608   young seated woman playing a flute;

                        .1609   seated woman holding small ball;

                        .1610-.1611     standing women

                        .1612-.1613     standing men with sledge hammers

 

BOX 12:

 

Accession number 91x49

 

.1589               “When Woman Drives,” worried man sitting next to woman at wheel of car, ink on board, 1911

.1614-.1647     Anatomical studies and studies of statues, charcoal, 1911-1912      

.262                 Grillwork design, for holding potted flowers, color, for or from workshop or J. Barton Benson

.392                 Logo for PPG, pencil

.745                 Latch and lock, door corridor to toil room, n. building, pencil, 1925           

.1383               Miscellaneous drawing, metal design, pencil

.1175-.1176     Switch plates, pencil; topped with eagle in flight, seated eagle with wings extended, candlestick holder, chef carrying platter with boar’s head, scrolls and finial, hunting dog, ducks in flight

.1227               Miscellaneous drawing, metal design, pencil, 1918

.96                   Ornament design tracing, pencil

.702                 Latch and lock, pencil

.959                 three table lamps, color

 

 

BOX 13:

 

Accession number 92x95

 

.1-.7                 Miscellaneous drawings and lettering, ink, pencil and ink

                        .1         calligraphy, “Some Rules of Con[duct?],” not completed;

                        .2         calligraphy, a story about a ship running into an iceberg;

                        .3         a fleur-de-lis/scallop shell design;

                        .4         a bridge;

                        .5-.6     two studies of the figure of the old man in “His Fortune,” see 91x49.1591 in Box  11;

                        .7         “A Castle in the Air,” wealthy couple sits at elegant dinner table, while she dreams of simple family life in the country

.8-.12d             Miscellaneous drawings, and exam papers from the School of Industrial Art, ink, watercolor

                        .8         flower study;

                        .9         horse in pasture;

                        .10       roses;

                        .11       “The Isle of Tears,” head of a woman;

                        .12a-d  examination papers and envelope

.13-.18             Perspective studies, pencil

                        .13       seahorses, fish, starfish, part of the poem “The Chambered Nautilus”;

                        .14-.18 perspective studies     

.19-.26             Perspective studies, various objects and shapes, pencil

.27-.34             Perspective studies, various objects and shapes, pencil

.35-.38             Perspective studies, various objects and shapes, pencil

.39-.42             Perspective studies, various objects and shapes, pencil

 

 

BOX 14:

 

Iron scrollwork or grillwork

 

 

BOX 15:

 

Decorative iron work, many small pieces, many are leaf-shaped, some seem to be rough blanks for making final designs

 

 

BOX 16:

 

Decorative iron work, 11 pieces, all very similar, perhaps the tops of vertical rails for an iron fence

 

 

BOX 17:

 

Decorative iron work: floral finial, perhaps the finial used in the Children’s Chapel of the Bryn Athyn Cathedral

 

 

BOX 18:

 

Decorative iron work, 13 pieces, including 1 enameled piece, part of a doorknocker, a hinge, and other assorted pieces, a model for a window using decorative metalwork, a clasp for a book, and 2 decorative bolts made from monel metal for use at the Bryn Athyn Cathedral

 

 

BOX 19:

 

Pottery vase

 

 

Map Case C, Drawer 9

 

.165                 Candleholder, pencil

.620                 Hardware details for Carmel Presbyterian Church, Edge Hill, Pa., order no. 369 from The Iron Craftsmen, Philadelphia, pencil, ink

.1177-.1178     Switch plates, ink; decorations at top of plates: scrolls and finial; chef with turkey on platter; girl and cat going upstairs to bed; hunting dog; girl and dog at wash tub; horses; swan; 18th century couple; horse-drawn sleigh; courting couple under a tree; candlestick; crossed cannon barrels; horse head; spread eagle with stars; bow

.1648-.1651     Miscellaneous drawings, pencil, ink: light fixtures, window or door frame, head of woman

.425-429, .621 Blueprints and hardware details

.425-.428         blueprints for the Edwin Finletter residence, Chestnut Hill, Pa., architects Davis, Dunlap & Barney, 1925; include entrance door, details of living room; living room and stairway elevations and sections; and living room doors;

.429     blueprint of details of greenhouse for residence of Mr. and Mrs. George Schaal, Olney, Pa., 1947

.621     hardware details for the Edwin Finletter residence, from The Iron Craftsmen [see also .620 above]

 

 

Other related materials:

 

A book about blacksmithing, A Handbook of Art Smithing, by Franz Sales Meyer, which was owned by Edwards is in the Winterthur Library.  Several other books owned by him are also in the library.  

 

A textile sample book once owned by Edwards is in the Downs Collection, Col. 50, acc. 85x129.

 

Other papers of his, including drawings, designs, and leaf rubbings, are at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York.  The inventory for this collection is available at this repository.

 

A photocopy of the catalog of the auction sale of his collection of furniture, pottery, and fraktur, held in 1969, is filed with this inventory.  Another sheet of paper refers to the auction of his library, held after his death, but the catalog for that sale is not here.

 

An article about Bryn Athyn Cathedral is filed with this inventory.  The original appeared in Pennsylvania Heritage, fall 1986.