Search History

Holdings Information

    • Author/Creator:Dennis, Sarah, 1712-1761.
    • Title:Shellwork flower arrangement.
    • Production:County Cork, Ireland, circa 1730.
    • Physical Description:1 shellwork flower arrangement : shell, silk, fish scales, wood, glass ; in cabinet 49 x 39 x 19 cm
    • Yale Holdings

      • Location:BRITISH ART CENTER, Rare Bks & Mss (Non-Circulating)
      • Call Number: RBW.CS 1
      • Status:No information available 
      • Notes: Restricted fragile material. Use requires permission of the Curator of Rare Books and Manuscripts
      • Provenance:Yale Center for British Art, Paul Mellon Fund
       
    • Notes:Provenance: Sarah Dennis (née Newenham), Woodhill, County Cork, Ireland; by descent to Cooper Penrose, Woodhill, County Cork, Ireland, until 1773; by descent to Anne Penrose, until 1827; by descent to Elizabeth Penrose, until 1862; by descent at Woodhill, County Cork, Ireland, until 1933; David Beadle Antiques, Staffordshire, England; Johnston Antiques, Dublin, Ireland; private collection, Ireland; Johnston Antiques, Dublin, Ireland; Private collection, Dublin, Ireland.
    • Access and use:Restricted fragile material. Use requires permission of the Curator of Rare Books and Manuscripts.
    • Summary:Shellwork flower arrangement made by Sarah Dennis (née Newenham), of County Cork, Ireland. The original damaged limewood vase has been replaced with a modern reproduction, copied from the vases depicted as item 91 (pages 180-181) of the Ronald Phillips Ltd. Catalog (2006). The shellwork is encased in a black and gilt japanned wood cabinet, with hinged front door.
      In addition to original shell specimens, the outer petals of one of the flowers include material from a fish of the genus Gadus (i.e., a cod or one of its relatives).
    • Variant and related titles:Shell cabinet
    • Format:Visual Material
    • References:Thomas, I. Shell: a world of decoration and ornament, page 144
      Directory and picture of Cork and its environs, pages 17-21
    • Genre/Form:Shellwork.
      Lacquering.
    • Also listed under: Crafting Worldviews: European Instruments of Art and Science from Yale University (Yale University Art Gallery, February 17, 2023-June 24, 2023)