label: Date

content: Victorian (1837-1901)

content: Gilded brass vase with two mirrors and turquois glass stones. In the style of the 18th century, the stamped metalwork creates an ornate frame for the two oval mirrors, as well as creating the other two sides of the vase. The mirrors, sometimes called flirting mirrors, allowed the lady to check her face or spy on what was happening behind her. Below, turquois glass stones are inset into the curvaceous forms. These sides alternate with two repeats of Rococo Revival style motifs with a central turquoise glass “gem.” A pin on a chain is attached to the vase. It would be inserted through the vase to pierce the stems of the bouquet to secure it in the holder. The neck is stamped with a four-dot diamond pattern and crescents on a vertical-line background and attaches the carved mother of pearl handle. Mother of pearl handles retained a cool feeling longer than some other materials; because of this, they were said to be appropriate for warmer months. The shaft is carved with graduated rings around the stem. A chain and ring is attached to a band around the handle. This feature allows the bouquet holder to be worn from the finger or on a chatelaine at the waist to free the lady's hands while dancing.

label: Origin

content: France, possibly

content: bouquet holders

content: bouquetiers

content: brass (alloy)

content: gilding

content: glass

content: mirrors

content: mother of pearl

content: porte-bouquets

content: porte-fleurs

content: Posy holders

content: tussie-mussies

content: costume accessories

content: decorative arts

content: fashion

content: Victoriana

content: Horticultural Artifacts Collection

label: Exhibition

content: Floral Fashions: From Bouquets to Buttonholes

label: On View

content: Smithsonian Institution, Quadrangle, S. Dillon Ripley Center

content: Smithsonian Gardens, Horticultural Artifacts Collection. Gift of Frances Jones Poetker.

content: Smithsonian Gardens

content: Bouquet holders

content: Gilded brass, mirrors, glass, mother of pearl

content: 5 1/2 × 1 in. (14 × 2.5 cm)

label: Style

content: Rococo Revival

topic:
Gilding
Tussie-mussies
Porte-fleurs
Bouquet holders
Costume accessories
Brass (alloy)
Glass
Fashion
Decoration and ornament
Victoriana
Posy holders
Bouquetiers
Porte-bouquets
Mother of pearl
Mirrors

content: France

content: <I>Bouquet holder, mirrors, blue stones, mother of pearl handle</I>

title_sort: <I>BOUQUET HOLDER, MIRRORS, BLUE STONES, MOTHER OF PEARL HANDLE</I>

label: Screen Image


unitCode: HAC

type: edanmdm

label: Period

content: Victorian (1837-1901)

label: Description

content: Silver bouquet holder with curved handle. The tulip-shaped vase is comprised of five leaves with intricate filigree designs. A short length of chain attached to floral pin is connected to the midportion of the vase. The pin would be inserted through the vase to pierce the stems of a bouquet in order to secure the flowers inside the holder. The neck, which connects the vase to the handle, has applied flowers alternating with small filigree leaves. The 'C'-shaped handle has four leaves at the top (alternately textured and polished) made from two stamped repeats.

label: Label Text

content: Flowers used for personal adornment were a popular, almost mandatory, fashion accessory in the nineteenth century. Small bouquets, called nosegays, posies, or tussie mussies were carried by debutantes, matrons, and girls, and they were a popular gift in the mid to late 1800s among friends and suitors. They were typically created in concentric rings of flowers, tightly wound together, and were often tied with ribbon or placed in a bouquet holder depending on the tastes and fashions. By the 1830s carrying small bouquets of flowers in decorative holders was an established fashion accessory of the upper class and royalty of Europe. These small accessories, also known as posy holders, ‘porte-bouquets’, and ‘bouquetiers’ were both decorative as well as useful. By providing a water source in the bottom of the receptacle, they were able to keep the flowers fresh throughout an occasion, and they also protected the wearer’s gloves or clothing from being stained by the plant pigments. Queen Victoria helped popularize the bouquet holder, and she is seen holding one in her portrait “Queen Victoria at the Drury Lane Theatre, November 1837” painted by E.T. Parris. When the fashion of carrying hand bouquets in decorative holders caught the fancy of the wealthy and middle class, holders were copied and mass produced in a variety of sizes, materials, and embellishments. During the second half of the nineteenth century, holders might be commissioned or purchased from the stock at a jeweler or florist shop. Few were made in the United States, instead they were usually imported from Europe and Asia. They were often given as a commemorative memento of historic encounters or events by the royalty and courts of Europe, but they were also used to celebrate and commemorate important, though less prestigious, events of the wealthy and middle class. Bouquet holders reached the peak of their popularity between the 1830s and 1880s, but it began to dwindle as bouquets of long-stemmed flowers (the latest horticultural development) loosely tied with ribbons surpassed the posy bouquet style. They were not totally out of fashion until the “Roaring Twenties,” when such objects became regarded as trivial and useless. The diversity of styles and mechanisms of bouquet holders is evidence of their longevity as a fashion accessory.

content: Birmingham, England, possibly

label: Topic

content: bouquet holders

content: bouquetiers

content: porte-bouquets

content: porte-fleurs

content: Posy holders

content: silver

content: tussie-mussies

content: costume accessories

content: decorative arts

content: fashion

content: Victoriana

label: See more items in

content: Horticultural Artifacts Collection

label: Credit Line

label: Data Source

content: Smithsonian Gardens

label: Accession number

label: Type

content: Bouquet holders

label: Restrictions & Rights

label: Medium

content: Silver

label: Dimensions

content: 5 3/4 × 1 1/4 in. (14.6 × 3.2 cm)

place: England Birmingham

topic:
Silver
Tussie-mussies
Porte-fleurs
Decoration and ornament
Bouquet holders
Costume accessories
Victoriana
Posy holders
Fashion
Bouquetiers
Porte-bouquets

type: City

content: Birmingham

type: Country

content: England

label: Title

content: <I>Bouquet holder, filigree, curved handle</I>

unit_code: HAC

title_sort: <I>BOUQUET HOLDER, FILIGREE, CURVED HANDLE</I>

data_source: Smithsonian Gardens

type: Images

label: High-resolution TIFF

label: High-resolution JPEG

label: Thumbnail Image


label: Date

content: ca. 1860-1940

content: Victorian (1837-1901)

content: The anchor flower arrangement was difficult to arrange. It required tight work and precise outlining, or the shape of the flower frame would be lost. It was appropriate to send to the funeral of men or women of any age. Anchors are symbolic of many things but was primarily associated with hope in the nineteenth century. The anchor was also an attribute of the allegory of Hope, who was one of the most popular allegories in both the home and the cemetery. The anchor was also the seaman’s last resort in the storm, and all his hopes for deliverance from the rough seas were placed in it. The characteristics of the anchor as a solid, heavy object whose weight held the ship secure made it symbolic of steadfastness and strength of character. Its ability to hold fast amid the pressures of whatever currents, also implied tranquility and faithfulness in the deceased. Many fraternal emblems also incorporated the anchor into their insignia, and anchor flower frames were often given by fellow members of an organization. The anchor was often used in its capacity of a marine symbol for boating as well, and it was given to members of the sailing profession, the navy, and the coast guard. Flower frame designs of national symbols and emblems of the military branch of the fallen celebrated their patriotism at the funerals of active military and veterans. Often flowers the same color as the American flag were employed in arrangements, such as roses, carnations, and cornflowers to create that patriotic red, white, and blue color scheme. Nationally symbolic designs such as anchors, American flags, eagles, and many other designs were also displayed in shop windows and at ceremonies for holidays such as Independence Day and Memorial Day. These designs remained popular into the twentieth century.

content: Set pieces or set designs were among the most popular floral arrangements in the second half of the nineteenth century. The term set piece is a usually applied to designs in a wide variety of forms, which are often symbolic in character. Shapes that expressed an overall theme for an occasion were very fashionable, such as designs made to depict the profession, associations, or hobbies of an individual. These flower arrangements were ordered for special celebrations, holidays, weddings, and funerals. Typical of the Victorian style, these designs were elaborate and massive, but unlike other forms of flower arrangement, the set piece was exclusively made by the professional florist.

content: Set pieces were usually made up on wire frames in the desired shape, which acted as a foundation for the floral arrangement. Commercially produced, heavy-gaged wire frames, fabricated from either plain or copper-plated wire, became available for flower arrangements between 1860 and 1864. The retail florist business was enhanced considerably by the high demand for arrangements on flower frames in the nineteenth century, and wire frames quickly became the basis of the retail florist’s inventory. The frames could be obtained for little cost to the florist, and if he managed to retrieve the skeleton after the occasion, it could be reused. Wire frames came in both straight and curved outlines and either as a box (three-dimensional frame) or flat frame. Most designs came in several sizes and could be hung or placed on a stand or were free-standing. Standard forms in wire works catalogues ranged in size from 10 to 60 inches. Outside of the standard frame designs offered in wireworks and florist’s supplies catalogues, designs could be made for almost any occasion, with some large enough to make life-sized reproductions.

content: Over the course of the nineteenth and twentieth century floral fashions changed. Some set pieces faded in popularity by the early 1900s, but some remained favorites well into the 1940’s. Many of these same designs are still used today, but the wire frames have been replaced by shapes made from more modern materials to save the florists’ time in making up the arrangement, as well as providing water to the flowers allowing for greater longevity.

content: emblems (symbols)

content: Floral frames

content: frame components

content: wire

content: anchors (watercraft equipment)

content: armed forces

content: associations

content: ceremonies

content: decorations

content: Floral Accessories

content: Floral decorations

content: floral designers

content: Flower arrangement

content: funerals

content: funerary objects

content: holidays

content: secret societies

content: societies

content: symbols

content: wirework

content: Horticultural Artifacts Collection

content: Smithsonian Gardens, Horticultural Artifacts Collection.

content: Smithsonian Gardens

content: Floral frames

content: Wire

content: 11 1/2 × 9 × 1 in. (29.2 × 22.9 × 2.5 cm)

topic:
Funerary objects
Frame components
Floral designers
Floral decorations
Floral frames
Wire
Associations
Floral Accessories
Secret societies
Rites and ceremonies
Decorations
Holidays
Wirework
Funeral rites and ceremonies
Flower arrangement
Emblems
Anchors (watercraft equipment)
Military

content: <I>Wire frames, anchor</I>

title_sort: <I>WIRE FRAMES, ANCHOR</I>

label: Screen Image

title: <I>Wire frames, anchor</I>


label: Period

content: Victorian (1837-1901)

label: Description

content: Stick-stem bouquet holder of brass. The vase is formed by from five unembellished lotus petals, which curve slightly outward at the mouth of the vase. The flexible metal petals are encircled by a moveable ring impressed with foliate motifs. After the flowers are placed in the cup, the ring can be slid up from the base causing the petals to tighten around the bouquet to secure the flowers. The straight handle is cylindrical with three thin registers of engraved decoration and an engraved cap, the rest is a smooth unadorned surface. A link at the end of the handle suggests a missing chain that would be attached to a ring. This would allow the bouquet holder to be worn from the finger or on a chatelaine at the waist to free the lady's hands while dancing.

content: bouquet holders

content: bouquetiers

content: brass (alloy)

content: gilding

content: porte-bouquets

content: porte-fleurs

content: Posy holders

content: tussie-mussies

content: costume accessories

content: decorative arts

content: fashion

content: Victoriana

content: Horticultural Artifacts Collection

label: Exhibition

label: On View

content: Smithsonian Gardens

content: Bouquet holders

content: Gilded brass

content: 7 × 1 1/2 in. (17.8 × 3.8 cm)

topic:
Gilding
Tussie-mussies
Porte-fleurs
Decoration and ornament
Bouquet holders
Costume accessories
Victoriana
Brass (alloy)
Posy holders
Fashion
Bouquetiers
Porte-bouquets

building: Quadrangle

exhibitionTitle: Floral Fashions: From Bouquets to Buttonholes

content: <I>Bouquet holder, petals</I>

title_sort: <I>BOUQUET HOLDER, PETALS</I>

title: <I>Bouquet holder, petals</I>


content: Victorian (1837-1901)

content: Silver bouquet holder with spade handle. The vase is formed from two repeats featuring a column topped by a floral bouquet with flanking winged female figures. Each woman has flowing hair, bare breast, a skirt formed of leaf-like plumes, and holds an urn containing flowers. At the base of the vase a short length of chain connects to a floral pin. The pin would be inserted through the vase to pierce the stems of a bouquet in order to secure the flowers inside the holder. A second chain connects to a finger ring. The ring would allow the bouquet holder to be worn from the finger or on a chatelaine at the waist to free the lady's hands while dancing. The neck, which connects the vase to the handle, is form from acanthus leaves which splay outward. The handle is in a Gothic Revival trefoil shape that incorporates acanthus leaves on the inner and outer surfaces.

label: Label Text

label: Origin

content: Birmingham, England

label: Topic

content: bouquet holders

content: bouquetiers

content: porte-bouquets

content: porte-fleurs

content: Posy holders

content: silver

content: tussie-mussies

content: costume accessories

content: decorative arts

content: fashion

content: Victoriana

label: See more items in

content: Horticultural Artifacts Collection

label: Credit Line

content: Smithsonian Gardens

content: Bouquet holders

content: Silver

content: 6 × 2 in. (15.2 × 5.1 cm)

label: Style

content: Renaissance Revival

content: Birmingham

content: England

content: <I>Bouquet holder, women and shields, spade handle</I>

title_sort: <I>BOUQUET HOLDER, WOMEN AND SHIELDS, SPADE HANDLE</I>


content: Victorian (1837-1901)

content: Four-sided silver posy holder. The vase is composed of four symmetrical panels designed to appear like a stock of wheat. The delicate threadlike silver grows sinuously from a central shaft each ending in a tendril. Then intricate features are encapsulated in a thin silver lip that domes at the top. A chain and pin extend from the center of the holder. This pin would be pushed the vase, thus piercing the stems to keep them in place. The handle of the bouquet holder is a straight-shafted ending in a round ball. It is formed by two chased wheat stalks that extend up the handle and is repeated at the four lower corners of the bowl of the vase. A chain and ring are attached to the ball at the end of the shaft allowing the bouquet holder to be worn about the finger or on a chatelaine at the waist to free the lady's hands while dancing. Wheat was a popular motif at the time and symbolic the harvest, bounty, fertility, and the Resurrection. Typically associated with autumn, this may be indicative of the time of year or the occasion which it commemorated.

content: Birmingham, England, possibly

content: bouquet holders

content: bouquetiers

content: porte-bouquets

content: porte-fleurs

content: Posy holders

content: silver

content: tussie-mussies

content: costume accessories

content: decorative arts

content: fashion

content: Victoriana

content: wheat straw

content: Horticultural Artifacts Collection

content: Floral Fashions: From Bouquets to Buttonholes

label: Data Source

content: Smithsonian Gardens

label: Accession number

label: Type

content: Bouquet holders

label: Restrictions & Rights

label: Medium

content: Silver

label: Dimensions

content: 6 × 1 1/4 in. (15.2 × 3.2 cm)

topic:
Silver
Tussie-mussies
Porte-fleurs
Decoration and ornament
Bouquet holders
Costume accessories
Victoriana
Posy holders
Fashion
Wheat straw
Bouquetiers
Porte-bouquets

content: Birmingham

content: England

content: <I>Bouquet holder, wheat motif</I>

title_sort: <I>BOUQUET HOLDER, WHEAT MOTIF</I>

title: <I>Bouquet holder, wheat motif</I>


label: Date

content: ca. 1860-1940

content: Victorian (1837-1901)

content: It was common for social or business organizations to send flowers to the funerals of deceased members in the late-nineteenth and early-twentieth centuries. Flowers were sent by friendly and fraternal societies, temperance leagues, social clubs, veteran’s organization, and worker’s unions, among others. The floral tributes were often set pieces patterned after the emblem of the organization or club with flowers and ribbons in their colors. Designs had to be recognizable, thus accuracy was important for the florist, each flower frame must be made to an exact shape and carefully arranged with flowers in the appropriate colors. Depending on the size of the floral recreation, elements might be added or subtracted while maintaining an accurate overall impression of the emblem. In addition to the organization’s emblem recreated on flower frames, many of their other symbols, or assemblages of multiple symbols were recreated out of wire frames for floral arrangements. Emblem set pieces were also used for organizational functions other than just funerals, such as private ceremonies or special events sponsored by the group. Organizational emblem frames often comprised a significant portion of floral frame trade catalogs. Kiwanis International was founded as an American fraternal service club in Detroit, Michigan in 1915. Their motto is “Serving the Children of the World.” The Kiwanis’ emblem is a letter K inside a circle.

content: emblems (symbols)

content: Floral frames

content: frame components

content: wire

content: associations

content: ceremonies

content: decorations

content: Floral Accessories

content: Floral decorations

content: floral designers

content: Flower arrangement

content: funerals

content: funerary objects

content: secret societies

content: societies

content: symbols

content: wirework

content: Horticultural Artifacts Collection

content: Smithsonian Gardens

content: Floral frames

content: Wire

content: 16 × 16 × 1 in. (40.6 × 40.6 × 2.5 cm)

topic:
Funerary objects
Frame components
Floral designers
Floral decorations
Floral frames
Wire
Associations
Floral Accessories
Secret societies
Rites and ceremonies
Decorations
Wirework
Funeral rites and ceremonies
Flower arrangement
Emblems

label: Title

content: <I>Wire frame, Kiwanis emblem</I>

title_sort: <I>WIRE FRAME, KIWANIS EMBLEM</I>

label: High-resolution TIFF

label: High-resolution JPEG

label: Screen Image

label: Thumbnail Image

title: <I>Wire frame, Kiwanis emblem</I>


content: ca. 1879-1962

label: Period

content: Victorian (1837-1901)

label: Description

content: Symbols of mortality were collectively referred to as memento mori (meaning remember you will die), and many of these symbols that were translated to flower frames. Through their physical, formal, material, and functional characteristics, these objects evoked the brevity of life on earth. Iconic shapes such as the stopped clock, headstone, sickle, broken wreath, sheaf, scales, and hourglass were handed down from through funeral paraphernalia, mourning art, and in print from the Middle Ages.

label: Label Text

content: emblems (symbols)

content: Floral frames

content: frame components

content: wire

content: associations

content: ceremonies

content: decorations

content: Floral Accessories

content: Floral decorations

content: floral designers

content: Flower arrangement

content: funerals

content: funerary objects

content: holidays

content: secret societies

content: societies

content: symbols

content: weddings

content: wirework

content: Horticultural Artifacts Collection

content: Smithsonian Gardens, Horticultural Artifacts Collection. Gift of H. Weber & Sons Company.

content: Smithsonian Gardens

content: Floral frames

content: Wire

content: 31 × 21 × 9 in. (78.7 × 53.3 × 22.9 cm)

topic:
Funerary objects
Frame components
Floral designers
Floral decorations
Floral frames
Wire
Associations
Floral Accessories
Secret societies
Weddings
Rites and ceremonies
Decorations
Holidays
Wirework
Funeral rites and ceremonies
Flower arrangement
Emblems

content: <I>Wire frame, headstone</I>

title_sort: <I>WIRE FRAME, HEADSTONE</I>

title: <I>Wire frame, headstone</I>


content: ca. 1879-1962

content: Victorian (1837-1901)

content: The lyre was a popular design for funeral flower tributes in the nineteenth century. It could be free standing, hung, placed on a pillow, or combined with another frame such as a wreath or crescent. The lyre was appropriate for both men and women, the young and the old. The Greek lyre was a symbol of music in classical times and one of Apollo’s attributes. Representing harmony between heaven and earth, the lyre was a symbol of both peace and musical talent. The lyre often will have a broken string to symbolize a life that has been cut short. The strings could be made from a variety of materials including flowers, wire, and fabric strips such as chenille.

label: Topic

content: emblems (symbols)

content: Floral frames

content: frame components

content: wire

content: associations

content: ceremonies

content: decorations

content: Floral Accessories

content: Floral decorations

content: floral designers

content: Flower arrangement

content: funerals

content: funerary objects

content: lyres

content: symbols

content: wirework

label: See more items in

content: Horticultural Artifacts Collection

label: Credit Line

content: Smithsonian Gardens

content: Floral frames

content: Wire

content: 42 1/2 × 20 × 12 1/2 in. (108 × 50.8 × 31.8 cm)

topic:
Funerary objects
Frame components
Floral designers
Floral decorations
Floral frames
Wire
Associations
Floral Accessories
Rites and ceremonies
Decorations
Wirework
Funeral rites and ceremonies
Lyres
Flower arrangement
Emblems

content: <I>Wire frame, lyre in crescent on stand</I>

title_sort: <I>WIRE FRAME, LYRE IN CRESCENT ON STAND</I>


content: Victorian (1837-1901)

content: Cone-shaped bouquet holder of brass with evidence of gilded gold. The vase extends the length of the bouquet holder and acts as one of its supports. The opening is fluted and each is decorated with embossed designs. They alternate between blue and black enameling in a similar motifs of curving lines and geometric shapes. A delicate chain attaches to a pin that is inserted into the vase. This feature would serve to secure a bouquet from falling out of the holder. Three spring mechanized legs extend from the middle of the vase, this would allow the bouquet holder to act as a free standing table ornament or mantel piece. When closed the bouquet holder could be carried in hand.

content: Flowers used for personal adornment were a popular, almost mandatory, fashion accessory in the nineteenth century. Small bouquets, called nosegays, posies, or tussie mussies were carried by debutantes, matrons, and girls, and they were a popular gift in the mid to late 1800s among friends and suitors. They were typically created in concentric rings of flowers, tightly wound together, and were often tied with ribbon or placed in a bouquet holder depending on the tastes and fashions. By the 1830s carrying small bouquets of flowers in decorative holders was an established fashion accessory of the upper class and royalty of Europe. These small accessories, also known as posy holders, ‘porte-bouquets’, and ‘bouquetiers’ were both decorative as well as useful. By providing a water source in the bottom of the receptacle, they were able to keep the flowers fresh throughout an occasion, and they also protected the wearer’s gloves or clothing from being stained by the plant pigments. Queen Victoria helped popularize the bouquet holder, and she is seen holding one in her portrait “Queen Victoria at the Drury Lane Theatre, November 1837” painted by E.T. Parris. When the fashion of carrying hand bouquets in decorative holders caught the fancy of the wealthy and middle class, holders were copied and mass produced in a variety of sizes, materials, and embellishments. During the second half of the nineteenth century, holders might be commissioned or purchased from the stock at a jeweler or florist shop. Few were made in the United States, instead they were usually imported from Europe and Asia. They were often given as a commemorative memento of historic encounters or events by the royalty and courts of Europe, but they were also used to celebrate and commemorate important, though less prestigious, events of the wealthy and middle class. Bouquet holders reached the peak of their popularity between the 1830s and 1880s, but it began to dwindle as bouquets of long-stemmed flowers (the latest horticultural development) loosely tied with ribbons surpassed the posy bouquet style. They were not totally out of fashion until the “Roaring Twenties,” when such objects became regarded as trivial and useless. The diversity of styles and mechanisms of bouquet holders is evidence of their longevity as a fashion accessory.

label: Origin

content: Great Britain, possibly

content: bouquet holders

content: bouquetiers

content: brass (alloy)

content: gilding

content: porte-bouquets

content: porte-fleurs

content: Posy holders

content: tussie-mussies

content: costume accessories

content: decorative arts

content: fashion

content: Victoriana

content: Horticultural Artifacts Collection

label: Exhibition

label: On View

content: Smithsonian Institution, Quadrangle, S. Dillon Ripley Center

content: Smithsonian Gardens, Horticultural Artifacts Collection. Gift of Frances Jones Poetker.

label: Data Source

content: Smithsonian Gardens

label: Accession number

content: Bouquet holders

content: Gilded brass

content: 4 3/4 × 3 in. (12.1 × 7.6 cm)

label: Style

content: Aesthetic Movement

content: Great Britain

content: <I>Bouquet holder, tripod, cone shape</I>

title_sort: <I>BOUQUET HOLDER, TRIPOD, CONE SHAPE</I>


label: Date

content: ca. 1879-1962

content: Victorian (1837-1901)

content: The anchor flower arrangement was difficult to arrange. It required tight work and precise outlining, or the shape of the flower frame would be lost. It was appropriate to send to the funeral of men or women of any age. Anchors are symbolic of many things but was primarily associated with hope in the nineteenth century. The anchor was also an attribute of the allegory of Hope, who was one of the most popular allegories in both the home and the cemetery. The anchor was also the seaman’s last resort in the storm, and all his hopes for deliverance from the rough seas were placed in it. The characteristics of the anchor as a solid, heavy object whose weight held the ship secure made it symbolic of steadfastness and strength of character. Its ability to hold fast amid the pressures of whatever currents, also implied tranquility and faithfulness in the deceased. Many fraternal emblems also incorporated the anchor into their insignia, and anchor flower frames were often given by fellow members of an organization. The anchor was often used in its capacity of a marine symbol for boating as well, and it was given to members of the sailing profession, the navy, and the coast guard. Flower frame designs of national symbols and emblems of the military branch of the fallen celebrated their patriotism at the funerals of active military and veterans. Often flowers the same color as the American flag were employed in arrangements, such as roses, carnations, and cornflowers to create that patriotic red, white, and blue color scheme. Nationally symbolic designs such as anchors, American flags, eagles, and many other designs were also displayed in shop windows and at ceremonies for holidays such as Independence Day and Memorial Day. These designs remained popular into the twentieth century.

content: Set pieces or set designs were among the most popular floral arrangements in the second half of the nineteenth century. The term set piece is a usually applied to designs in a wide variety of forms, which are often symbolic in character. Shapes that expressed an overall theme for an occasion were very fashionable, such as designs made to depict the profession, associations, or hobbies of an individual. These flower arrangements were ordered for special celebrations, holidays, weddings, and funerals. Typical of the Victorian style, these designs were elaborate and massive, but unlike other forms of flower arrangement, the set piece was exclusively made by the professional florist.

content: Set pieces were usually made up on wire frames in the desired shape, which acted as a foundation for the floral arrangement. Commercially produced, heavy-gaged wire frames, fabricated from either plain or copper-plated wire, became available for flower arrangements between 1860 and 1864. The retail florist business was enhanced considerably by the high demand for arrangements on flower frames in the nineteenth century, and wire frames quickly became the basis of the retail florist’s inventory. The frames could be obtained for little cost to the florist, and if he managed to retrieve the skeleton after the occasion, it could be reused. Wire frames came in both straight and curved outlines and either as a box (three-dimensional frame) or flat frame. Most designs came in several sizes and could be hung or placed on a stand or were free-standing. Standard forms in wire works catalogues ranged in size from 10 to 60 inches. Outside of the standard frame designs offered in wireworks and florist’s supplies catalogues, designs could be made for almost any occasion, with some large enough to make life-sized reproductions.

content: Over the course of the nineteenth and twentieth century floral fashions changed. Some set pieces faded in popularity by the early 1900s, but some remained favorites well into the 1940’s. Many of these same designs are still used today, but the wire frames have been replaced by shapes made from more modern materials to save the florists’ time in making up the arrangement, as well as providing water to the flowers allowing for greater longevity.

content: anchors (watercraft equipment)

content: emblems (symbols)

content: Floral frames

content: frame components

content: wire

content: armed forces

content: associations

content: ceremonies

content: decorations

content: Floral Accessories

content: Floral decorations

content: floral designers

content: Flower arrangement

content: funerals

content: funerary objects

content: holidays

content: secret societies

content: societies

content: symbols

content: weddings

content: wirework

content: Horticultural Artifacts Collection

content: Smithsonian Gardens

label: Type

content: Floral frames

label: Restrictions & Rights

label: Medium

content: Wire

label: Dimensions

content: 47 × 24 × 14 1/2 in. (119.4 × 61 × 36.8 cm)

topic:
Funerary objects
Frame components
Floral designers
Floral decorations
Floral frames
Wire
Associations
Floral Accessories
Secret societies
Weddings
Rites and ceremonies
Decorations
Holidays
Wirework
Funeral rites and ceremonies
Flower arrangement
Emblems
Anchors (watercraft equipment)
Military

label: Title

content: <I>Wire frame, anchor on stand</I>

title_sort: <I>WIRE FRAME, ANCHOR ON STAND</I>

title: <I>Wire frame, anchor on stand</I>


label: Period

content: Victorian (1837-1901)

label: Description

content: Glass and iron tank aquarium or terrarium. The case has Doric columns at each corner with knob finials and plate glass windows. The knobs are screwed into the tops of the tank. The undulating base ornament paired with the Neoclassical columns is characteristic of the Revival Styles of the nineteenth century, which disregarded acuracy in favor of ornamentation. Originally a simple glass container, these cases evolved to suit the Victorian taste for decoration. They were made in all shapes, sizes, and styles, such as Gothic Revival, Neo-Grec, Rococo Revival, and Rustic. Cases were often finished with gilding or enamel, as suited to the design and budget of home, and could be made to look like miniature buildings such as churches and famous houses. Often placed on their own decorative stand, these cases became status symbols of the fashionable drawing room. The major characteristics of the art, architecture, and decorative arts produced in nineteenth century are historicism, eclecticism, and mixing multiple styles together. Romanticism and interest in the past led to revivals of the styles, ornamentation, and motifs of the past, and throughout the Victorian era there was a rapid succession of confused style revivals competing at the same time. Interest in the unique and novel, rather than accuracy and perfection, led to mixtures from Classical, Baroque, Rococo, Renaissance, and Gothic in eclectic combinations. Rather than copy specific objects, motifs and forms were adapted to suggest the impressions and associations of an idealized version of the past. The Revival styles are not reflective of their times and are inconsistently applied, often resulting in styles attributed by the majority or primary elements.

content: In the mid-1800s, interest in marine and fresh water life soared, which led to the development and widespread popularity of aquariums for the home. Aquariums served as fish tanks or small ornamental fountains in the Victorian home. They might contain wild plants and creatures combined with ferns and fountain feature. Some aquariums were salt-water, providing a glimpse of ocean life, but the majority were fresh-water aquariums. The large plate-glass windows gave a panoramic view of an underwater world and earned the aquarium a place of prominence in many homes. Books and articles were written with instructions on creating and maintaining parlor aquariums, as well as what forms of plant and animal life to stock in it. Water plants and animals were often transplanted from the wild to the drawing room to recreate an encapsulated living world. Victorians watched the antics, growing cycles, and symbiotic relationships that flourished within their parlor aquarium. Soon every home wanted an aquarium and, with price cutting innovations of the Industrial Revolution, many homes could now afford one. Because of their popularity, aquariums were mass produced in a variety of materials and sizes, and they were frequently combined with a Wardian case, bird cage, or plant stand to form a large showpiece for the parlors or conservatories of the mid-to-late-nineteenth century. Aquariums created an ostentatious display that provided an escape from the city and were evidence of the owner’s social superiority and interests in natural history. The household aquarium was a source of entertainment, but it also afforded Victorians with opportunity to for scientific study of the plants and creatures behind the glass.

content: Aquariums

content: aquariums (containers)

content: case furniture

content: cases (containers)

content: ferneries (greenhouses)

content: glass

content: iron

content: plate glass

content: terrariums

content: Wardian cases

content: Garden ornaments and furniture

content: indoor gardening

content: Victoriana

content: Horticultural Artifacts Collection

content: Smithsonian Gardens, Horticultural Artifacts Collection.

content: Smithsonian Gardens

content: Aquariums

content: Glass gardens

content: Iron, steel (possibly), plate glass, paint

content: Exterior: 14 1/4 × 15 × 12 in. (36.2 × 38.1 × 30.5 cm)

content: Interior: 12 1/2 × 12 × 8 1/4 in. (31.8 × 30.5 × 21 cm)

content: Neoclassical

topic:
Ferneries (greenhouses)
Glass
Indoor gardening
Iron
Plate glass
Cases (containers)
Gardens
Case furniture
Furnishings
Aquariums
Victoriana
Wardian cases
Terrariums
Aquariums (containers)

object_type:
Glass gardens
Aquariums (containers)

content: <I>Aquarium or terrarium, columns</I>

title_sort: <I>AQUARIUM OR TERRARIUM, COLUMNS</I>

label: High-resolution TIFF

label: High-resolution JPEG

label: Screen Image

label: Thumbnail Image

title: <I>Aquarium or terrarium, columns</I>


content: ca. 1880

content: Victorian (1837-1901)

content: The wreath was the most popular floral design of the nineteenth century and is still commonly used today at funerals, special occasions, and holidays. The wreath could be made in an endless array of styles and combinations from simple to ornate, either tightly arranged or in a loose spray. The wreath has a longstanding tradition of being used at funerals and was the earliest form of arranged flowers to be used in the funeral in the West. The classic wreath form, which has no end and no beginning, symbolized eternal life, love everlasting, and victory over death. The Victor’s Wreath is based after the form of a classical laurel crowns given to conquering heroes and athletes of the Olympic Games in ancient Greece. Victory over death is rooted in the tenants of the Christian faith, and in the nineteenth century this concept was magnified. Death and eternity in heaven were seen as the victory of faithfulness. Symbols of victory reminded the Christian that whatever pain and suffering one may endure, they would come out on the other side into glory and heaven. In addition to symbolic shapes, references to victory were made through the “Language of Flowers” by using palm, laurel, or nasturtium. As they alluded to the reward at life’s end, set pieces in the form of victory symbols were especially suited to funerals, but they might also be used at other religious events and occasions.

label: Label Text

label: Topic

content: emblems (symbols)

content: Floral frames

content: frame components

content: wire

content: associations

content: ceremonies

content: decorations

content: Floral Accessories

content: Floral decorations

content: floral designers

content: Flower arrangement

content: funerals

content: funerary objects

content: holidays

content: symbols

content: wirework

label: See more items in

content: Horticultural Artifacts Collection

label: Credit Line

content: Smithsonian Gardens

content: Floral frames

content: Wire

content: 27 1/2 × 21 × 1 in. (69.9 × 53.3 × 2.5 cm)

topic:
Funerary objects
Frame components
Floral designers
Floral decorations
Floral frames
Wire
Associations
Floral Accessories
Rites and ceremonies
Decorations
Holidays
Wirework
Funeral rites and ceremonies
Flower arrangement
Emblems

content: <I>Wire frame, victor's wreath</I>

title_sort: <I>WIRE FRAME, VICTOR'S WREATH</I>

title: <I>Wire frame, victor's wreath</I>


content: Victorian (1837-1901)

content: Silver-plated brass bouquet holder with rope and grapes design and looped handle. The vase is stamped with two repeats of a design featuring ropes intertwined with grape clusters and leaves, with clusters of grapes around the bottom. Between the topmost leaves are holes through the stamped design for a floral pin. The pin would be inserted through the vase to pierce the stems of a bouquet in order to secure the flowers inside the holder. The handle was stamped in two parts. It begins with a closed blossom and leaves, the stem of which loops up and curls around the base creating a ring.

content: Flowers used for personal adornment were a popular, almost mandatory, fashion accessory in the nineteenth century. Small bouquets, called nosegays, posies, or tussie mussies were carried by debutantes, matrons, and girls, and they were a popular gift in the mid to late 1800s among friends and suitors. They were typically created in concentric rings of flowers, tightly wound together, and were often tied with ribbon or placed in a bouquet holder depending on the tastes and fashions. By the 1830s carrying small bouquets of flowers in decorative holders was an established fashion accessory of the upper class and royalty of Europe. These small accessories, also known as posy holders, ‘porte-bouquets’, and ‘bouquetiers’ were both decorative as well as useful. By providing a water source in the bottom of the receptacle, they were able to keep the flowers fresh throughout an occasion, and they also protected the wearer’s gloves or clothing from being stained by the plant pigments. Queen Victoria helped popularize the bouquet holder, and she is seen holding one in her portrait “Queen Victoria at the Drury Lane Theatre, November 1837” painted by E.T. Parris. When the fashion of carrying hand bouquets in decorative holders caught the fancy of the wealthy and middle class, holders were copied and mass produced in a variety of sizes, materials, and embellishments. During the second half of the nineteenth century, holders might be commissioned or purchased from the stock at a jeweler or florist shop. Few were made in the United States, instead they were usually imported from Europe and Asia. They were often given as a commemorative memento of historic encounters or events by the royalty and courts of Europe, but they were also used to celebrate and commemorate important, though less prestigious, events of the wealthy and middle class. Bouquet holders reached the peak of their popularity between the 1830s and 1880s, but it began to dwindle as bouquets of long-stemmed flowers (the latest horticultural development) loosely tied with ribbons surpassed the posy bouquet style. They were not totally out of fashion until the “Roaring Twenties,” when such objects became regarded as trivial and useless. The diversity of styles and mechanisms of bouquet holders is evidence of their longevity as a fashion accessory.

label: Origin

content: Birmingham, England, possibly

content: bouquet holders

content: bouquetiers

content: porte-bouquets

content: porte-fleurs

content: Posy holders

content: tussie-mussies

content: costume accessories

content: decorative arts

content: fashion

content: Victoriana

content: Horticultural Artifacts Collection

label: Data Source

content: Smithsonian Gardens

label: Accession number

content: Bouquet holders

content: Brass, silver plating

content: 6 3/4 × 1 3/4 in. (17.1 × 4.4 cm)

label: Style

content: Rococo Revival

topic:
Tussie-mussies
Porte-fleurs
Decoration and ornament
Bouquet holders
Costume accessories
Victoriana
Posy holders
Fashion
Bouquetiers
Porte-bouquets

content: Birmingham

content: England

content: <I>Bouquet holder, rope and grape motif</I>

title_sort: <I>BOUQUET HOLDER, ROPE AND GRAPE MOTIF</I>


label: Date

content: Victorian (1837-1901)

content: Silver bouquet holder with straight handle. The openwork vase is formed from feather-like tendrils terminating in a snowflake motif. The neck, which connects the vase to the handle, is a hemispherical shape acting as a cap for the top of the bell-shaped vase. Attached to the join below this is a round-link chain that is connected to a simple ring. The ring would allow the bouquet holder to be worn from the finger or on a chatelaine at the waist to free the lady's hands while dancing. The handle is hexagonal with panels stamped with a column of foliate motifs facing in alternating directions. A large-ball finial completes the design.

content: Birmingham, England, possibly

content: bouquet holders

content: bouquetiers

content: porte-bouquets

content: porte-fleurs

content: Posy holders

content: silver

content: tussie-mussies

content: costume accessories

content: decorative arts

content: fashion

content: Victoriana

content: Horticultural Artifacts Collection

content: Smithsonian Gardens, Horticultural Artifacts Collection. Gift of Frances Jones Poetker.

content: Smithsonian Gardens

label: Type

content: Bouquet holders

label: Restrictions & Rights

label: Medium

content: Silver

content: 5 1/4 × 2 in. (13.3 × 5.1 cm)

content: Birmingham

content: England

content: <I>Bouquet holder, feathery motif</I>

title_sort: <I>BOUQUET HOLDER, FEATHERY MOTIF</I>

title: <I>Bouquet holder, feathery motif</I>


label: Period

content: Victorian (1837-1901)

label: Description

content: Silver bouquet holder with ring handle. The funnel-shaped vase is comprised of three concave layers with a flared lip. A ring on a straight bar is inserted through the end of the vase.

content: bouquet holders

content: bouquetiers

content: porte-bouquets

content: porte-fleurs

content: Posy holders

content: tussie-mussies

content: costume accessories

content: decorative arts

content: fashion

content: Victoriana

content: Horticultural Artifacts Collection

content: Smithsonian Gardens

content: Bouquet holders

content: Silver

label: Dimensions

content: 5 × 1 1/4 in. (12.7 × 3.2 cm)

label: Title

content: <I>Bouquet holder, ring handle</I>

title_sort: <I>BOUQUET HOLDER, RING HANDLE</I>

title: <I>Bouquet holder, ring handle</I>


content: ca. 1879-1962

content: Victorian (1837-1901)

content: The sickle flower frame was a popular funeral tribute, and one of the more recognizable symbols of death. As such, it was not appropriate for everyone. This design was an inexpensive option for the funeral because it did not require many flowers to achieve the shape. A few sprigs of wheat were often included, as if they had just been cut by the blade. The sheaf was made of the stabilized, dried grasses known as “everlastings,” many of which were imported from Italy. The sheaf of wheat also implied a rich harvest and plenty. The concept of the harvest saw the sickle flower frame frequently combined with a sheaf of wheat. Signifying both death and the harvest-cycle, the sickle and sheaf implied self-renewal. Though cutting the stalk meant certain death, spreading the seeds from the ear guaranteed new life, making this design symbolic of death and hope. It was also symbolic of a long and fruitful life, hence the saying “ripe old age.” This design was also only suitable for the elderly because they had opportunity to create a life well-lived; whereas for those who had died in youth, such a symbol only implied what the deceased had been denied. The harvest was a popular theme for funeral sermons, and the “Harvest Hymn” was frequently sung at the funeral services for the elderly. These designs were often taken home after the funeral and framed for a lasting tribute in the home. The sickle was also a mortality symbol. It is an attribute to both Death and Time. This connection came from the European tradition and carried over to New World. Death and Time, known to destroy all things, used the sickle as one of the “weapons of death” along with the ax, bow and arrow, lance, trident, and sword. This symbol, like death, brought all things down to the same level. It could be an instrument of punishment, choosing its victims, or a blind instrument, striking indiscriminately at all living things.

content: Set pieces or set designs were among the most popular floral arrangements in the second half of the nineteenth century. The term set piece is a usually applied to designs in a wide variety of forms, which are often symbolic in character. Shapes that expressed an overall theme for an occasion were very fashionable, such as designs made to depict the profession, associations, or hobbies of an individual. These flower arrangements were ordered for special celebrations, holidays, weddings, and funerals. Typical of the Victorian style, these designs were elaborate and massive, but unlike other forms of flower arrangement, the set piece was exclusively made by the professional florist.

content: Set pieces were usually made up on wire frames in the desired shape, which acted as a foundation for the floral arrangement. Commercially produced, heavy-gaged wire frames, fabricated from either plain or copper-plated wire, became available for flower arrangements between 1860 and 1864. The retail florist business was enhanced considerably by the high demand for arrangements on flower frames in the nineteenth century, and wire frames quickly became the basis of the retail florist’s inventory. The frames could be obtained for little cost to the florist, and if he managed to retrieve the skeleton after the occasion, it could be reused. Wire frames came in both straight and curved outlines and either as a box (three-dimensional frame) or flat frame. Most designs came in several sizes and could be hung or placed on a stand or were free-standing. Standard forms in wire works catalogues ranged in size from 10 to 60 inches. Outside of the standard frame designs offered in wireworks and florist’s supplies catalogues, designs could be made for almost any occasion, with some large enough to make life-sized reproductions.

content: emblems (symbols)

content: Floral frames

content: frame components

content: wire

content: associations

content: ceremonies

content: decorations

content: Floral Accessories

content: Floral decorations

content: floral designers

content: Flower arrangement

content: funerals

content: funerary objects

content: secret societies

content: societies

content: symbols

content: wirework

content: Horticultural Artifacts Collection

content: Smithsonian Gardens, Horticultural Artifacts Collection. Gift of H. Weber & Sons Company.

content: Smithsonian Gardens

content: Floral frames

content: Wire

content: 15 × 15 × 1 1/2 in. (38.1 × 38.1 × 3.8 cm)

content: <I>Wire frame, sickle</I>

title_sort: <I>WIRE FRAME, SICKLE</I>

label: High-resolution TIFF

label: High-resolution JPEG

label: Screen Image

label: Thumbnail Image

title: <I>Wire frame, sickle</I>


content: ca. 1879-1962

content: Victorian (1837-1901)

content: Some of the most popular designs in funeral flowers in the late nineteenth century were those that appealed to the sentimentality of the period. These flower frame designs were both more decorative and more personal in their references. Sentimental designs alluded to lives cut short and the loss of cherished relationships. The Broken Column was one of the most popular and poignant symbols in floral designs and mourning iconography in the nineteenth century and was also seen in the cemetery, in mourning art, and in sentimental literature. It was symbolic of the end of life, and more specifically the unfinished work and frustrated hopes brought by a life cut short. It could be used in the funeral of a proactive figure in society to emblemize their deeds that must now go undone. It was also commonly seen at the funerals of young persons to express the frustrated hopes and broken dreams that bereaved parents felt over the loss of a child. The idea of dashed expectations by a life cut off was essential to the theme of the Broken Column. It usually ranged in height from two to six feet, and a common inscription for this design, as well as for the broken wheel, was “Broken Hopes.” As an unbroken column, the set piece had different connotations. It was used as a tribute to the lives of prominent members of the community because columns, or pillars, in architecture are essential to the structure as supporting elements and ensure the stability and strength of the whole. Therefore, it was appropriate for the pillars society to be remembered with a pillar in a flower frame. Whether broken or intact, the visual impact of this design contributed to its popularity.

label: Label Text

content: Over the course of the nineteenth and twentieth century floral fashions changed. Some set pieces faded in popularity by the early 1900s, but some remained favorites well into the 1940’s. Many of these same designs are still used today, but the wire frames have been replaced by shapes made from more modern materials to save the florists’ time in making up the arrangement, as well as providing water to the flowers allowing for greater longevity.

label: Topic

content: emblems (symbols)

content: Floral frames

content: frame components

content: wire

content: associations

content: ceremonies

content: columns (architectural elements)

content: decorations

content: Floral Accessories

content: Floral decorations

content: floral designers

content: Flower arrangement

content: funerals

content: funerary objects

content: symbols

content: wirework

label: See more items in

content: Horticultural Artifacts Collection

label: Credit Line

content: Smithsonian Gardens

content: Floral frames

content: Wire

content: 12 × 6 × 6 in. (30.5 × 15.2 × 15.2 cm)

topic:
Funerary objects
Frame components
Floral designers
Floral decorations
Floral frames
Columns (architectural elements)
Wire
Associations
Floral Accessories
Rites and ceremonies
Decorations
Wirework
Funeral rites and ceremonies
Flower arrangement
Emblems

content: <I>Wire frame, broken column</I>

title_sort: <I>WIRE FRAME, BROKEN COLUMN</I>

title: <I>Wire frame, broken column</I>


content: Victorian (1837-1901)

content: Silver bouquet holder with ring handle. The vase is comprised of four repeats of a leafy vine and berry design. Through two large leaves opposite one another at the top of the vase is a hole for a pierced-headed-cotter, floral pin. The pin would be inserted through the vase to pierce the stems of a bouquet in order to secure the flowers inside the holder. It is connected to the vase by a long round link chain soldered to a leaf near the base. Halfway along this chain is also a plain finger ring. This arrangement is unusual, as rings typically have their own chain. The ring feature would allow the bouquet holder to be worn from the finger or on a chatelaine at the waist to free the lady's hands while dancing. The holder could also be carried by its handle. Two acanthus leaves form the stem of the handle into a cornucopia laden with grapes, which connects to a large oblong ring. The ring is comprised of a large ‘C’ scroll joined by an acanthus leaf and was stamped in two parts.

label: Origin

content: Birmingham, England, possibly

content: bouquet holders

content: bouquetiers

content: porte-bouquets

content: porte-fleurs

content: Posy holders

content: tussie-mussies

content: costume accessories

content: decorative arts

content: fashion

content: Victoriana

content: Horticultural Artifacts Collection

label: Data Source

content: Smithsonian Gardens

label: Accession number

content: Bouquet holders

content: Silver

content: 5 × 1 1/2 in. (12.7 × 3.8 cm)

label: Style

content: Naturalism

content: Birmingham

content: England

content: <I>Bouquet holder, grape and leaf motif</I>

title_sort: <I>BOUQUET HOLDER, GRAPE AND LEAF MOTIF</I>


label: Date

content: Victorian (1837-1901)

content: Silver bouquet holder with looped handle. The openwork vase design features an urn with flowers. The handle of the holder was stamped with two repeats with floral decoration. The bottom of the handle loops up creating a ring at the end of the handle.

content: Birmingham, England, possibly

content: bouquet holders

content: bouquetiers

content: porte-bouquets

content: porte-fleurs

content: Posy holders

content: silver

content: tussie-mussies

content: costume accessories

content: decorative arts

content: fashion

content: Victoriana

content: Horticultural Artifacts Collection

content: Smithsonian Gardens

label: Type

content: Bouquet holders

label: Restrictions & Rights

label: Medium

content: Silver

content: 5 1/2 × 1 1/2 in. (14 × 3.8 cm)

content: Rococo Revival

content: Birmingham

content: England

content: <I>Bouquet holder, urn and flowers</I>

title_sort: <I>BOUQUET HOLDER, URN AND FLOWERS</I>

title: <I>Bouquet holder, urn and flowers</I>


label: Artist

content: JC, Hopi Tribe

label: Description

content: Silver pouch shaped brooch. Stylized flower motif. Signed JC (Hopi Indian) Safety clasp on back.

content: Flowers used for personal adornment were a popular fashion accessory throughout the 1800s up to the mid-1900s. Carrying or wearing fresh flowers was an important aspect of not only fashion but of good breeding and refined tastes. Corsages worn by women and boutonnieres worn by men were essential elements of dress for the tasteful upper- and middle-class Americans and Europeans at social functions. Many wore flowers whenever they were in public, including President McKinley, who wore a carnation in his lapel every day. In 1840, Queen Adelaide, wife of King William IV of the Great Britain and Hanover, introduced the fashion of tucking a small posy into a high waistband or sash, and Queen Victoria popularized the bouquet holder as seen in her portrait at the opera painted by E.T. Parris in 1838. By the 1830s carrying and wearing small bouquets of flowers in decorative holders was an established fashion accessory of the upper class and royalty of Europe. These small accessories, also known as posy holders, ‘porte-bouquets,’ and ‘bouquetiers’ were both decorative as well as useful. By providing a water source in the bottom of the receptacle, they were able to keep the flowers fresh throughout an occasion, and they also protected the wearer’s gloves or clothing from being stained by the plant pigments. Some had a pin or clip attachment that allowed it to be worn on the clothing. These bouquet holders were usually light weight, so not to strain the garment. Similar holders were made for men to attach to their lapels and are often referred to as a boutonniere vase. Bouquet holders were copied and mass produced in a variety of sizes, materials, and embellishments. During the second half of the nineteenth century, holders might be commissioned or purchased from the stock at a jeweler or florist shop. Few were made in the United States, instead they were usually imported from Europe and Asia. They were often given as a commemorative memento of historic encounters or events by the royalty and courts of Europe, but they were also used to celebrate and commemorate important, though less prestigious, events of the wealthy and middle class. Bouquet holders reached the peak of their popularity between the 1830s and 1880s, but it began to dwindle as bouquets of long-stemmed flowers (the latest horticultural development) loosely tied with ribbons surpassed the posy bouquet style. They were not totally out of fashion until the “Roaring Twenties,” when such objects became regarded as trivial and useless. The diversity of styles and mechanisms of bouquet holders is evidence of their longevity as a fashion accessory.

label: Inscription(s)

content: Inscription on back: JC.

content: Arizona, United States of America

content: brooches

content: silver

content: costume accessories

content: decorative arts

content: fashion

content: Hopi

content: jewelry

content: Horticultural Artifacts Collection

content: Smithsonian Gardens

content: Bouquet holders

content: Silver

label: Dimensions

content: 2 1/4 × 1 in. (5.7 × 2.5 cm)

place:
United States of America
Arizona

topic:
Silver
Decoration and ornament
Costume accessories
Fashion
Jewelry
Brooches

culture:
Indians of North America
Hopi Indians
Native Americans

type: State

content: Arizona

content: United States of America

label: Title

content: <I>Bouquet holder, Hopi silver, brooch</I>

title_sort: <I>BOUQUET HOLDER, HOPI SILVER, BROOCH</I>


content: ca. 1879-1962

label: Period

content: Victorian (1837-1901)

content: Frame designs which honored the professional life of the deceased were a popular option for the late-nineteenth and early-twentieth-century funeral. Vehicles, tools, and products were recreated in flowers to celebrate a loved one’s life’s work. These designs were some of the largest and most innovative designs made in flower frames. Civil servants and government officials often received floral tributes on behalf of their city at their funerals. Floral replicas of badges, city and state seals, and items or tools specific to their work were popular subjects for designs. Firemen often received tributes from their fellow fireman, as well as a thankful city. A fireman’s hat, ladder, fire engine, axe, or trumpet were all created for the funerals of fallen firefighters.

label: Label Text

content: emblems (symbols)

content: Floral frames

content: frame components

content: wire

content: associations

content: ceremonies

content: decorations

content: firefighters

content: Floral Accessories

content: Floral decorations

content: floral designers

content: Flower arrangement

content: funerals

content: funerary objects

content: ladders

content: secret societies

content: societies

content: symbols

content: wirework

content: Horticultural Artifacts Collection

content: Smithsonian Gardens

content: Floral frames

content: Wire

content: 47 1/2 × 26 × 12 in. (120.7 × 66 × 30.5 cm)

topic:
Firefighters
Funerary objects
Frame components
Floral designers
Floral decorations
Floral frames
Wire
Associations
Floral Accessories
Secret societies
Rites and ceremonies
Decorations
Wirework
Funeral rites and ceremonies
Flower arrangement
Emblems
Ladders

content: <I>Wire frame, fire hook & ladder on base</I>

title_sort: <I>WIRE FRAME, FIRE HOOK & LADDER ON BASE</I>

label: High-resolution TIFF

label: High-resolution JPEG

label: Screen Image

label: Thumbnail Image


content: ca. 1860-1940

content: Victorian (1837-1901)

content: The lyre was a popular design for funeral flower tributes in the nineteenth century. It could be free standing, hung, placed on a pillow, or combined with another frame such as a wreath or crescent. The lyre was appropriate for both men and women, the young and the old. The Greek lyre was a symbol of music in classical times and one of Apollo’s attributes. Representing harmony between heaven and earth, the lyre was a symbol of both peace and musical talent. The lyre often will have a broken string to symbolize a life that has been cut short. The strings could be made from a variety of materials including flowers, wire, and fabric strips such as chenille.

label: Topic

content: emblems (symbols)

content: Floral frames

content: frame components

content: wire

content: associations

content: ceremonies

content: decorations

content: Floral Accessories

content: Floral decorations

content: floral designers

content: Flower arrangement

content: funerals

content: funerary objects

content: lyres

content: secret societies

content: societies

content: symbols

content: weddings

content: wirework

label: See more items in

content: Horticultural Artifacts Collection

label: Credit Line

content: Smithsonian Gardens, Horticultural Artifacts Collection.

label: Data Source

content: Smithsonian Gardens

label: Accession number

content: Floral frames

content: Wire

content: 22 × 11 × 6 in. (55.9 × 27.9 × 15.2 cm)

topic:
Funerary objects
Frame components
Floral designers
Floral decorations
Floral frames
Wire
Associations
Floral Accessories
Secret societies
Weddings
Rites and ceremonies
Decorations
Wirework
Funeral rites and ceremonies
Lyres
Flower arrangement
Emblems

content: <I>Wire frame, lyre on stand</I>

title_sort: <I>WIRE FRAME, LYRE ON STAND</I>

title: <I>Wire frame, lyre on stand</I>


label: Date

content: Victorian (1837-1901)

content: Copper bouquet holder with mother of pearl handle. The funnel-shaped vase is comprised of two pierced stampings with strapwork, shell, and foliate motifs. Above one of the panels is a capital with a classical woman’s head flanked by scrolls. On either side of the panels are wire scroll handles. The spindle handle is made from turned mother of pearl. Mother of pearl handles retained a cool feeling longer than some other materials; because of this, they were said to be appropriate for warmer months.

content: Flowers used for personal adornment were a popular, almost mandatory, fashion accessory in the nineteenth century. Small bouquets, called nosegays, posies, or tussie mussies were carried by debutantes, matrons, and girls, and they were a popular gift in the mid to late 1800s among friends and suitors. They were typically created in concentric rings of flowers, tightly wound together, and were often tied with ribbon or placed in a bouquet holder depending on the tastes and fashions. By the 1830s carrying small bouquets of flowers in decorative holders was an established fashion accessory of the upper class and royalty of Europe. These small accessories, also known as posy holders, ‘porte-bouquets’, and ‘bouquetiers’ were both decorative as well as useful. By providing a water source in the bottom of the receptacle, they were able to keep the flowers fresh throughout an occasion, and they also protected the wearer’s gloves or clothing from being stained by the plant pigments. Queen Victoria helped popularize the bouquet holder, and she is seen holding one in her portrait “Queen Victoria at the Drury Lane Theatre, November 1837” painted by E.T. Parris. When the fashion of carrying hand bouquets in decorative holders caught the fancy of the wealthy and middle class, holders were copied and mass produced in a variety of sizes, materials, and embellishments. During the second half of the nineteenth century, holders might be commissioned or purchased from the stock at a jeweler or florist shop. Few were made in the United States, instead they were usually imported from Europe and Asia. They were often given as a commemorative memento of historic encounters or events by the royalty and courts of Europe, but they were also used to celebrate and commemorate important, though less prestigious, events of the wealthy and middle class. Bouquet holders reached the peak of their popularity between the 1830s and 1880s, but it began to dwindle as bouquets of long-stemmed flowers (the latest horticultural development) loosely tied with ribbons surpassed the posy bouquet style. They were not totally out of fashion until the “Roaring Twenties,” when such objects became regarded as trivial and useless. The diversity of styles and mechanisms of bouquet holders is evidence of their longevity as a fashion accessory.

content: bouquet holders

content: bouquetiers

content: mother of pearl

content: porte-bouquets

content: porte-fleurs

content: Posy holders

content: tussie-mussies

content: costume accessories

content: decorative arts

content: fashion

content: Victoriana

content: Horticultural Artifacts Collection

content: Smithsonian Gardens, Horticultural Artifacts Collection. Gift of Frances Jones Poetker.

content: Smithsonian Gardens

label: Type

content: Bouquet holders

label: Restrictions & Rights

label: Medium

content: Copper, mother of pearl

content: 5 × 1 3/4 in. (12.7 × 4.4 cm)

label: Style

content: Renaissance Revival

topic:
Tussie-mussies
Porte-fleurs
Decoration and ornament
Bouquet holders
Costume accessories
Victoriana
Posy holders
Fashion
Bouquetiers
Porte-bouquets
Mother of pearl

content: <I>Bouquet holder, classical female head, mother of pearl handle</I>

title_sort: <I>BOUQUET HOLDER, CLASSICAL FEMALE HEAD, MOTHER OF PEARL HANDLE</I>


content: ca. 1880

content: Victorian (1837-1901)

label: Description

content: It was common for social or business organizations to send flowers to the funerals of deceased members in the late-nineteenth and early-twentieth centuries. Flowers were sent by friendly and fraternal societies, temperance leagues, social clubs, veteran’s organization, and worker’s unions, among others. The floral tributes were often set pieces patterned after the emblem of the organization or club with flowers and ribbons in their colors. Designs had to be recognizable, thus accuracy was important for the florist, each flower frame must be made to an exact shape and carefully arranged with flowers in the appropriate colors. Depending on the size of the floral recreation, elements might be added or subtracted while maintaining an accurate overall impression of the emblem. In addition to the organization’s emblem recreated on flower frames, many of their other symbols, or assemblages of multiple symbols were recreated out of wire frames for floral arrangements. Emblem set pieces were also used for organizational functions other than just funerals, such as private ceremonies or special events sponsored by the group. Organizational emblem frames often comprised a significant portion of floral frame trade catalogs. The Order of the Knights of Pythias (KP) was an international fraternal service organization founded in 1864. Their crest includes a triangular shield and two axes on either side of a helmet. The flower arrangement’s shield often featured the letters “K of P” or “F-C-B” standing for Friendship, Benevolence, and Charity.

content: Set pieces or set designs were among the most popular floral arrangements in the second half of the nineteenth century. The term set piece is a usually applied to designs in a wide variety of forms, which are often symbolic in character. Shapes that expressed an overall theme for an occasion were very fashionable, such as designs made to depict the profession, associations, or hobbies of an individual. These flower arrangements were ordered for special celebrations, holidays, weddings, and funerals. Typical of the Victorian style, these designs were elaborate and massive, but unlike other forms of flower arrangement, the set piece was exclusively made by the professional florist.

content: Set pieces were usually made up on wire frames in the desired shape, which acted as a foundation for the floral arrangement. Commercially produced, heavy-gaged wire frames, fabricated from either plain or copper-plated wire, became available for flower arrangements between 1860 and 1864. The retail florist business was enhanced considerably by the high demand for arrangements on flower frames in the nineteenth century, and wire frames quickly became the basis of the retail florist’s inventory. The frames could be obtained for little cost to the florist, and if he managed to retrieve the skeleton after the occasion, it could be reused. Wire frames came in both straight and curved outlines and either as a box (three-dimensional frame) or flat frame. Most designs came in several sizes and could be hung or placed on a stand or were free-standing. Standard forms in wire works catalogues ranged in size from 10 to 60 inches. Outside of the standard frame designs offered in wireworks and florist’s supplies catalogues, designs could be made for almost any occasion, with some large enough to make life-sized reproductions.

content: emblems (symbols)

content: Floral frames

content: frame components

content: wire

content: associations

content: Axes

content: ceremonies

content: decorations

content: Floral Accessories

content: Floral decorations

content: floral designers

content: Flower arrangement

content: funerals

content: funerary objects

content: secret societies

content: Shields

content: societies

content: symbols

content: wirework

content: Horticultural Artifacts Collection

content: Smithsonian Gardens

content: Floral frames

content: Wire

label: Dimensions

content: 27 × 27 × 1 in. (68.6 × 68.6 × 2.5 cm)

topic:
Funerary objects
Frame components
Floral designers
Floral decorations
Floral frames
Wire
Associations
Floral Accessories
Secret societies
Rites and ceremonies
Decorations
Wirework
Funeral rites and ceremonies
Flower arrangement
Axes
Emblems
Shields

label: Title

content: <I>Wire frame, Knights of Pythias emblem</I>

title_sort: <I>WIRE FRAME, KNIGHTS OF PYTHIAS EMBLEM</I>


content: ca. 1830-1920

label: Period

content: Victorian (1837-1901)

content: Stamped silver-plated copper bouquet holder formed of four identical female figures and tobacco leaf repeats. Each is dressed in a headdress, necklace, and flowing skirt with boots, and are likely meant to depict the stylized ideal of the "Indian maidens" of the Americas held by Europeans. A wire loop clip for attachment to clothing is soldered to the back of the vase. The looped, or rat-tail, handle is made from a single sheet stamped with a scaly pattern produced by seven encircled dots. The handle terminates with a tiny stamped flower. There is also a ring near the bottom for attachment of chain, but it is missing. The chain would connect to a pin to secure the flowers in place, or a finger ring that would allow the bouquet holder to be worn from the finger or on a chatelaine in order to free the lady's hands while dancing.

label: Label Text

label: Origin

content: Birmingham, England, possibly

content: bouquet holders

content: bouquetiers

content: copper

content: porte-bouquets

content: porte-fleurs

content: Posy holders

content: silver

content: tussie-mussies

content: costume accessories

content: decorative arts

content: fashion

content: Victoriana

content: Horticultural Artifacts Collection

content: Smithsonian Gardens

content: Bouquet holders

content: Copper, silver plating

content: 4 7/8 × 1 1/4 in. (12.4 × 3.2 cm)

topic:
Silver
Tussie-mussies
Porte-fleurs
Decoration and ornament
Bouquet holders
Costume accessories
Victoriana
Posy holders
Fashion
Bouquetiers
Porte-bouquets

content: Birmingham

content: England

object_type:
Bouquet holders
Copper (metal)

content: <I>Bouquet holder, female figure with tobacco leaf pattern, looped handle</I>

title_sort: <I>BOUQUET HOLDER, FEMALE FIGURE WITH TOBACCO LEAF PATTERN, LOOPED HANDLE</I>

label: High-resolution TIFF


content: Victorian (1837-1901)

content: Silver filigree bouquet holder with tripod base. The funnel-shaped vase is comprised of three filigree panels, which create a scalloped rim. The neck, which connects the vase to the handle, is decorated with filigree leaves with dangling acorns. Two short lengths of chain are attached to the side of the vase. The first attaches to a floral pin, which would be inserted through the vase to pierce the stems of a bouquet in order to secure the flowers inside the holder. The second chain has a filigree sphere-shaped charm hanging from it and terminates in a ring. The ring would allow the bouquet holder to be worn from the finger or on a chatelaine at the waist to free the lady's hands while dancing. The handle of the bouquet holder also serves as a tripod stand. This would allow the bouquet holder to act as a free-standing table or mantle ornament. Three curved panels with intricate filigree spring out, each with a foot at the end to add stability. The ring around the top of the legs could be slid down in order to secure the legs together. The when the legs were secured together, they acted as a straight, stem handle for the bouquet holder.

content: Birmingham, England, possibly

label: Topic

content: bouquet holders

content: bouquetiers

content: filigree

content: porte-bouquets

content: porte-fleurs

content: Posy holders

content: silver

content: tussie-mussies

content: costume accessories

content: decorative arts

content: fashion

content: Victoriana

content: Horticultural Artifacts Collection

content: Smithsonian Gardens

content: Bouquet holders

content: Silver

content: 7 × 1 3/4 in. (17.8 × 4.4 cm)

topic:
Silver
Tussie-mussies
Porte-fleurs
Decoration and ornament
Bouquet holders
Costume accessories
Victoriana
Posy holders
Fashion
Bouquetiers
Porte-bouquets
Filigree

content: Birmingham

content: England

content: <I>Bouquet holder, filigree, tripod</I>

title_sort: <I>BOUQUET HOLDER, FILIGREE, TRIPOD</I>

label: High-resolution JPEG

label: Screen Image

label: Thumbnail Image

title: <I>Bouquet holder, filigree, tripod</I>


content: Victorian (1837-1901)

content: Gilded brass bouquet holder with red ivory handle. The small vase is formed from single, pierce-cut sheets stamped and joined at the sides. The lip of the vase is crown-like with alternating acanthus leaf and grape cluster ornaments. The lower portion of this ornate vase features Gothic Revival ornaments, which are representative of the interest in historicism which characterizes much of nineteenth century design. Near the top are holes opposite one another for the floral pin. The pin is connected by a round-link chain connected near the base of the vase. The pin would be inserted through the vase to pierce the stems of a bouquet in order to secure the flowers inside the holder. The neck band, which connects the vase to the handle, has a textured surface of stamped dots. The spindle handle of the bouquet holder is made of turned ivory that has been dyed red. A ring on a second length of round-link chain is clasped around the base of the holder so that it could be worn about the finger or hung from a chatelaine about the waist.

content: France, possibly

content: bouquet holders

content: bouquetiers

content: porte-bouquets

content: porte-fleurs

content: Posy holders

content: tussie-mussies

content: costume accessories

content: decorative arts

content: fashion

content: Victoriana

label: See more items in

content: Horticultural Artifacts Collection

label: Credit Line

label: Data Source

content: Smithsonian Gardens

label: Accession number

content: Bouquet holders

content: Gilded brass, ivory

content: 4 1/4 × 1 1/4 in. (10.8 × 3.2 cm)

content: Gothic Revival

content: France

content: <I>Bouquet holder, red handle</I>

title_sort: <I>BOUQUET HOLDER, RED HANDLE</I>

title: <I>Bouquet holder, red handle</I>


label: Date

content: ca. 1879-1962

content: Victorian (1837-1901)

content: The lyre was a popular design for funeral flower tributes in the nineteenth century. It could be free standing, hung, or placed on a pillow or within a wreath or crescent. The lyre was appropriate for both men and women, the young and the old. The Greek lyre was a symbol of music in classical times and one of Apollo’s attributes. Representing harmony between heaven and earth, the lyre was a symbol, as well as an instrument, of both peace and musical talent. The lyre often will have a broken string to symbolize the life that has been cut short. The strings could be made from a variety of materials including flowers, wire, and fabric strips such as chenille. Some of the most popular designs in funeral flowers in the late nineteenth century were those that appealed to the sentimentality of the period. These flower frame designs were both more decorative and more personal in their references. Shapes alluded to lives cut short and the loss of cherished relationships.

content: Over the course of the nineteenth and twentieth century floral fashions changed. Some set pieces faded in popularity by the early 1900s, but some remained favorites well into the 1940’s. Many of these same designs are still used today, but the wire frames have been replaced by shapes made from more modern materials to save the florists’ time in making up the arrangement, as well as providing water to the flowers allowing for greater longevity.

content: emblems (symbols)

content: Floral frames

content: frame components

content: wire

content: associations

content: ceremonies

content: decorations

content: Floral Accessories

content: Floral decorations

content: floral designers

content: Flower arrangement

content: funerals

content: funerary objects

content: lyres

content: secret societies

content: societies

content: symbols

content: wirework

content: Horticultural Artifacts Collection

content: Smithsonian Gardens, Horticultural Artifacts Collection. Gift of H. Weber & Sons Company.

content: Smithsonian Gardens

label: Type

content: Floral frames

label: Restrictions & Rights

label: Medium

content: Wire

content: 14 × 9 1/2 × 1 in. (35.6 × 24.1 × 2.5 cm)

topic:
Funerary objects
Frame components
Floral designers
Floral decorations
Floral frames
Wire
Associations
Floral Accessories
Secret societies
Rites and ceremonies
Decorations
Wirework
Funeral rites and ceremonies
Lyres
Flower arrangement
Emblems

content: <I>Wire frame, lyre, small</I>

title_sort: <I>WIRE FRAME, LYRE, SMALL</I>

title: <I>Wire frame, lyre, small</I>


content: Victorian (1837-1901)

label: Description

content: Silver bouquet holder with straight handle. The funnel-shaped vase is comprised of a pierced design of interlacing wires with leaves hanging from the open lozenges by curly vines. The neck, which connects the vase to the handle, is a smooth sphere with two short lengths of chain are attached to the side of the vase. The first attaches to a floral pin, which would be inserted through the vase to pierce the stems of a bouquet in order to secure the flowers inside the holder. The second chain would have terminated in a ring. The ring would allow the bouquet holder to be worn from the finger or on a chatelaine at the waist to free the lady's hands while dancing. The straight handle is also pierced with same design as the vase.

content: Birmingham, England, possibly

content: bouquet holders

content: bouquetiers

content: porte-bouquets

content: porte-fleurs

content: Posy holders

content: silver

content: tussie-mussies

content: costume accessories

content: decorative arts

content: fashion

content: Victoriana

content: Horticultural Artifacts Collection

content: Smithsonian Gardens

content: Bouquet holders

content: Silver

label: Dimensions

content: 6 1/2 × 1 1/4 in. (16.5 × 3.2 cm)

label: Style

content: Aesthetic Movement

content: Birmingham

content: England

label: Title

content: <I>Bouquet holder, vine and leaf motif</I>

title_sort: <I>BOUQUET HOLDER, VINE AND LEAF MOTIF</I>


content: ca. 1860-1940

label: Period

content: Victorian (1837-1901)

content: It was common for social or business organizations to send flowers to the funerals of deceased members in the late-nineteenth and early-twentieth centuries. Flowers were sent by friendly and fraternal societies, temperance leagues, social clubs, veteran’s organization, and worker’s unions, among others. The floral tributes were often set pieces patterned after the emblem of the organization or club with flowers and ribbons in their colors. Designs had to be recognizable, thus accuracy was important for the florist, each flower frame must be made to an exact shape and carefully arranged with flowers in the appropriate colors. Depending on the size of the floral recreation, elements might be added or subtracted while maintaining an accurate overall impression of the emblem. In addition to the organization’s emblem recreated on flower frames, many of their other symbols, or assemblages of multiple symbols were recreated out of wire frames for floral arrangements. Emblem set pieces were also used for organizational functions other than just funerals, such as private ceremonies or special events sponsored by the group. Organizational emblem frames often comprised a significant portion of floral frame trade catalogs.

label: Label Text

content: emblems (symbols)

content: Floral frames

content: frame components

content: triangles (polygons)

content: wire

content: associations

content: ceremonies

content: decorations

content: Floral Accessories

content: Floral decorations

content: floral designers

content: Flower arrangement

content: funerals

content: funerary objects

content: secret societies

content: societies

content: symbols

content: wirework

content: Horticultural Artifacts Collection

content: Smithsonian Gardens, Horticultural Artifacts Collection.

content: Smithsonian Gardens

content: Floral frames

content: Wire

content: 16 × 14 × 1 1/2 in. (40.6 × 35.6 × 3.8 cm)

topic:
Funerary objects
Frame components
Floral designers
Floral decorations
Floral frames
Wire
Associations
Floral Accessories
Secret societies
Rites and ceremonies
Decorations
Triangles (polygons)
Wirework
Funeral rites and ceremonies
Flower arrangement
Emblems

content: <I>Wire frame, triangle</I>

title_sort: <I>WIRE FRAME, TRIANGLE</I>

label: High-resolution TIFF

title: <I>Wire frame, triangle</I>


content: Victorian (1837-1901)

content: Silver bouquet holder with looped handle. The vase is formed by oak leaves and acorns within branches, which form loops. The neck, which connects the vase to the handle is spherical with four repeats of figure-8 form. The handle of the bouquet holder was stamped in two parts and follows the curvaceous foliate form that his seen in the vase. It is made of a more substantial cast brass with looped ending with three notches that mimics leaves on a vine. A ring soldered near the top of the notched loop onto which a round-link chain is attached ending in a loop-headed floral pin. The pin would be inserted through the vase to pierce the stems of a bouquet in order to secure the flowers inside the holder. On the back of the vase is loop hook that would allow the bouquet holder to be worn on the clothing.

content: Flowers used for personal adornment were a popular fashion accessory throughout the 1800s up to the mid-1900s. Carrying or wearing fresh flowers was an important aspect of not only fashion but of good breeding and refined tastes. Corsages worn by women and boutonnieres worn by men were essential elements of dress for the tasteful upper- and middle-class Americans and Europeans at social functions. Many wore flowers whenever they were in public, including President McKinley, who wore a carnation in his lapel every day. In 1840, Queen Adelaide, wife of King William IV of the Great Britain and Hanover, introduced the fashion of tucking a small posy into a high waistband or sash, and Queen Victoria popularized the bouquet holder as seen in her portrait at the opera painted by E.T. Parris in 1838. By the 1830s carrying and wearing small bouquets of flowers in decorative holders was an established fashion accessory of the upper class and royalty of Europe. These small accessories, also known as posy holders, ‘porte-bouquets,’ and ‘bouquetiers’ were both decorative as well as useful. By providing a water source in the bottom of the receptacle, they were able to keep the flowers fresh throughout an occasion, and they also protected the wearer’s gloves or clothing from being stained by the plant pigments. Some had a pin or clip attachment that allowed it to be worn on the clothing. These bouquet holders were usually light weight, so not to strain the garment. Similar holders were made for men to attach to their lapels and are often referred to as a boutonniere vase. Bouquet holders were copied and mass produced in a variety of sizes, materials, and embellishments. During the second half of the nineteenth century, holders might be commissioned or purchased from the stock at a jeweler or florist shop. Few were made in the United States, instead they were usually imported from Europe and Asia. They were often given as a commemorative memento of historic encounters or events by the royalty and courts of Europe, but they were also used to celebrate and commemorate important, though less prestigious, events of the wealthy and middle class. Bouquet holders reached the peak of their popularity between the 1830s and 1880s, but it began to dwindle as bouquets of long-stemmed flowers (the latest horticultural development) loosely tied with ribbons surpassed the posy bouquet style. They were not totally out of fashion until the “Roaring Twenties,” when such objects became regarded as trivial and useless. The diversity of styles and mechanisms of bouquet holders is evidence of their longevity as a fashion accessory.

label: Origin

content: Birmingham, England, possibly

label: Topic

content: bouquet holders

content: bouquetiers

content: porte-bouquets

content: porte-fleurs

content: Posy holders

content: silver

content: tussie-mussies

content: costume accessories

content: decorative arts

content: fashion

content: Victoriana

content: Horticultural Artifacts Collection

content: Smithsonian Gardens, Horticultural Artifacts Collection. Gift of Frances Jones Poetker.

content: Smithsonian Gardens

content: Bouquet holders

content: Silver

content: 5 1/4 × 1 1/2 in. (13.3 × 3.8 cm)

content: Naturalism

content: Birmingham

content: England

content: <I>Bouquet holder, oak leaf motif</I>

title_sort: <I>BOUQUET HOLDER, OAK LEAF MOTIF</I>

label: High-resolution JPEG

label: Screen Image

title: <I>Bouquet holder, oak leaf motif</I>


content: ca. 1860-1940

content: Victorian (1837-1901)

content: Symbols of good luck, such as the horseshoe, four-leaved clover, horns of plenty, and wish-bones appeared at events such as store openings, graduations, and other celebrations. The floral horseshoe was also a popular novelty design for horse races, both for its equestrian reference and as an emblem of good fortune. Though far rarer, this floral frame design may appear as a center piece for dinner party.

content: Set pieces or set designs were among the most popular floral arrangements in the second half of the nineteenth century. The term set piece is a usually applied to designs in a wide variety of forms, which are often symbolic in character. Shapes that expressed an overall theme for an occasion were very fashionable, such as designs made to depict the profession, associations, or hobbies of an individual. These flower arrangements were ordered for special celebrations, holidays, weddings, and funerals. Typical of the Victorian style, these designs were elaborate and massive, but unlike other forms of flower arrangement, the set piece was exclusively made by the professional florist.

content: Set pieces were usually made up on wire frames in the desired shape, which acted as a foundation for the floral arrangement. Commercially produced, heavy-gaged wire frames, fabricated from either plain or copper-plated wire, became available for flower arrangements between 1860 and 1864. The retail florist business was enhanced considerably by the high demand for arrangements on flower frames in the nineteenth century, and wire frames quickly became the basis of the retail florist’s inventory. The frames could be obtained for little cost to the florist, and if he managed to retrieve the skeleton after the occasion, it could be reused. Wire frames came in both straight and curved outlines and either as a box (three-dimensional frame) or flat frame. Most designs came in several sizes and could be hung or placed on a stand or were free-standing. Standard forms in wire works catalogues ranged in size from 10 to 60 inches. Outside of the standard frame designs offered in wireworks and florist’s supplies catalogues, designs could be made for almost any occasion, with some large enough to make life-sized reproductions.

content: emblems (symbols)

content: Floral frames

content: frame components

content: wire

content: associations

content: ceremonies

content: decorations

content: Floral Accessories

content: Floral decorations

content: floral designers

content: Flower arrangement

content: horseshoes (animal equipment)

content: symbols

content: weddings

content: wirework

label: See more items in

content: Horticultural Artifacts Collection

label: Credit Line

label: Data Source

content: Smithsonian Gardens

content: Floral frames

content: Wire

content: 20 × 14 × 1 1/2 in. (50.8 × 35.6 × 3.8 cm)

topic:
Frame components
Floral designers
Floral decorations
Floral frames
Wire
Associations
Floral Accessories
Weddings
Rites and ceremonies
Decorations
Wirework
Flower arrangement
Horseshoes (animal equipment)
Emblems

content: <I>Wire frame, horseshoe</I>

title_sort: <I>WIRE FRAME, HORSESHOE</I>

label: Thumbnail Image

title: <I>Wire frame, horseshoe</I>


label: Date

content: Victorian (1837-1901)

content: Silver bouquet holder with looped handle. The vase is formed from chased bouquets of flowers interspersed with leaves. The handle begins with a closed blossom and leaves, the stem of which loops up and curls around the base creating a ring. Near the top of the handle a short length of chain connected to a loop-ended floral pin, and a second broken chain, which would have connected to a ring are attached. The pin would be inserted through the vase to pierce the stems of a bouquet in order to secure the flowers inside the holder, and the ring would allow the bouquet holder to be worn from the finger or on a chatelaine at the waist to free the lady's hands while dancing.

content: Flowers used for personal adornment were a popular, almost mandatory, fashion accessory in the nineteenth century. Small bouquets, called nosegays, posies, or tussie mussies were carried by debutantes, matrons, and girls, and they were a popular gift in the mid to late 1800s among friends and suitors. They were typically created in concentric rings of flowers, tightly wound together, and were often tied with ribbon or placed in a bouquet holder depending on the tastes and fashions. By the 1830s carrying small bouquets of flowers in decorative holders was an established fashion accessory of the upper class and royalty of Europe. These small accessories, also known as posy holders, ‘porte-bouquets’, and ‘bouquetiers’ were both decorative as well as useful. By providing a water source in the bottom of the receptacle, they were able to keep the flowers fresh throughout an occasion, and they also protected the wearer’s gloves or clothing from being stained by the plant pigments. Queen Victoria helped popularize the bouquet holder, and she is seen holding one in her portrait “Queen Victoria at the Drury Lane Theatre, November 1837” painted by E.T. Parris. When the fashion of carrying hand bouquets in decorative holders caught the fancy of the wealthy and middle class, holders were copied and mass produced in a variety of sizes, materials, and embellishments. During the second half of the nineteenth century, holders might be commissioned or purchased from the stock at a jeweler or florist shop. Few were made in the United States, instead they were usually imported from Europe and Asia. They were often given as a commemorative memento of historic encounters or events by the royalty and courts of Europe, but they were also used to celebrate and commemorate important, though less prestigious, events of the wealthy and middle class. Bouquet holders reached the peak of their popularity between the 1830s and 1880s, but it began to dwindle as bouquets of long-stemmed flowers (the latest horticultural development) loosely tied with ribbons surpassed the posy bouquet style. They were not totally out of fashion until the “Roaring Twenties,” when such objects became regarded as trivial and useless. The diversity of styles and mechanisms of bouquet holders is evidence of their longevity as a fashion accessory.

content: Birmingham, England, possibly

content: bouquet holders

content: bouquetiers

content: porte-bouquets

content: porte-fleurs

content: Posy holders

content: silver

content: tussie-mussies

content: costume accessories

content: decorative arts

content: fashion

content: Victoriana

content: Horticultural Artifacts Collection

content: Smithsonian Gardens

label: Accession number

label: Type

content: Bouquet holders

label: Restrictions & Rights

content: Silver

content: 5 3/4 × 1 1/4 in. (14.6 × 3.2 cm)

content: Naturalism

content: Birmingham

content: England

content: <I>Bouquet holder, flower motif</I>

title_sort: <I>BOUQUET HOLDER, FLOWER MOTIF</I>

title: <I>Bouquet holder, flower motif</I>


content: Victorian (1837-1901)

label: Description

content: Silver filigree vase and handle. The vase of the bouquet holder is made of silver filigree wires extending up from the handle and leveling out at top creating an exaggerated tulip shape. The lip of the vase is jagged with pointed arches where the wires reach the top and twist down. Leaves surround the base of the vase where it meets the handle. Below this foliate border, a short length of chain attaches to a pin. The pin can be inserted through the spaces in the wire. By piercing the stems, this mechanism secured the flowers from falling out of the holder. The spindle handle of the bouquet holder is a straight and elaborately ornamented with scrolling over an intricately textured surface. Each register of the handle is decorated with different floral motifs and trailing vines made by relatively thick wires atop the fine filigree network. The handle is capped with a ball finial to which a second chain for a finger ring might have been attached. This feature would allow the bouquet holder to be worn from the finger or on a chatelaine to free the lady's hands while dancing.

content: China, possibly

content: bouquet holders

content: bouquetiers

content: filigree

content: porte-bouquets

content: porte-fleurs

content: Posy holders

content: silver

content: tussie-mussies

content: wirework

content: costume accessories

content: decorative arts

content: fashion

content: Victoriana

content: Horticultural Artifacts Collection

content: Smithsonian Gardens

content: Bouquet holders

label: Medium

content: Silver

label: Dimensions

content: 6 × 2 1/4 in. (15.2 × 5.7 cm)

topic:
Tussie-mussies
Porte-fleurs
Bouquet holders
Costume accessories
Fashion
Filigree
Silver
Wirework
Decoration and ornament
Victoriana
Posy holders
Bouquetiers
Porte-bouquets

content: China

content: <I>Bouquet holder, wire and filigree</I>

title_sort: <I>BOUQUET HOLDER, WIRE AND FILIGREE</I>