Barbados 12 Late 19th Century Lace Bark, Palm & Fern Doilies In Original Folder for Sale

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Barbados 12 Late 19th Century Lace Bark, Palm & Fern Doilies In Original Folder For Sale

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Barbados 12 Late 19th Century Lace Bark, Palm & Fern Doilies In Original Folder:
$452.08

[Barbados] A Series of Twelve Late 19th Century Lace Bark, Mountain Cabbage Palm and Breadfruit Tree Doilies In The Original Folder

A Series of twelve doilies of differing decorative designs, made from a mixture of lace bark, mountain cabbage palm, breadfruit tree with additional fern and floral decorations. They are apparently contained within their original folder which consists of two octagonal shaped pieces of thick card (approx. 224x224mm.), held together with worn silk cord, the upper cover showing just a couple of small fragments of foliage in which it would have been originally covered. Inside there is a contemporary note written in ink which has been pasted down:

“Barbados. West Indies

These d’oyleys are made of Lace Bark (Lagetta lintearia). The light borders are cut out of the spatha of the Mountain Cabbage Palm (oreodoxa oleracea), the dark borders from the spatha of the Bread Fruit Tree (artocarpus incisa)”

The twelve doilies are housed loose between a series of octagonal-shaped paper pages which are stitched to the card covers. All of the doilies are roughly 170mm in diameter.

There is a similar collection of doilies held in the Victoria & Albert Museum in London. Like the album here, they are contained in an octagonal folder with a similar descriptive hand written note inside. Both the album here and the one in the V&A are undated, however the V&A have described theirs as being “Late 19th Century”, which given the style of the hand written note, would seem to be perfectly reasonable.

By the late 19th Century, Barbados was a regional hub for merchant ships from Europe, the Americas, the East Indies and Far East, as well as a depot for the Royal Navy, a stop for whaling ships returning from the Pacific and the blossoming cruise and health tourism market. All of this meant a demand for locally made souvenirs to take home for family, friends and loved ones. Probably the most popular of these souvenirs were pictures and objects which were covered in local shells, including valentines. The lace bark and fern doilies here are rather more unusual. All of these souvenirs could be found for sale around Bridgetown, however the most famous was Belgrave’s Curiosity Shop who operated between 1878 and 1925. Their name did not disappoint visitors, aside from their “Marine Specimens and Native Manufacturers in Fancy Work” department, you could also buy a cured snake or a taxidermied alligator to take home for your mother-in-law. Much of the work was carried out by working-class Barbadian women, providing them with regular paid work and it is generally agreed that this work improved the economic state of women on the Island, something which could not be said on other Islands.

Overall the condition of the doilies is remarkably good given their age and natural fragility. Being stored flat between paper within the card folders has largely protected them, though the bark and ferns which once graced the upper card cover have not been so lucky. A remarkable series.