Two dilemmas have been niggling at me and I possibly have two apologies to make. The first to John Harkness (1857-1933) for omitting his work from my review of C19th Rose Literature and the second to Miss Mary Lawrance/Lawrence (Died 1831) for the misspelling of her name in my review and other research I have done.
When writing my review of C19th literature I left out the publication by John Harkness ‘Practical Rose Growing’ (1889) thinking at the time it was a pamphlet rather than a published book. In my defence Mrs H.R.Darlington in her comprehensive review of ‘Rose Literature of the Past Fifty Years’ written for the 1926 Rose Annual (National Rose Society) refers to it as a “useful pamphlet on the cultivation of the Rose for exhibition and decorative purposes”. Theo Mayer in his article ‘Victorian Rose Literature’ printed in the 1970 Rose Annual does not mention the work at all.
Looking a little further Werger and Burton in their ‘Roses. A Bibliography of Botanical, Horticultural, and other works related to the Genus Rosa’ (1972) list only the second edition of 1898 and describe the work as having 68 pages with illustrations. Stock in his ‘Rose Books. A Bibliography of books and important articles in journals on the genus Rosa, in English, French, German and Latin, 1550-1975’ published in 1984 goes a little further by including both editions together with their printers:
1st ed. 1889 Armitage and Ibbetson, Bradford 1889
2nd ed. 1898 J.H. Blackett, Bedale 1898
None of this is conclusive, however, as to whether this is a published book or a printed pamphlet as it must be remembered that in Victorian times and earlier the printer was often also the publisher.
The work is not mentioned in the bibliographies of Vergara or Thory.
A suggestion that it may be a ‘book’ came from Amazon where it is listed but currently unavailable. It is also currently unavailable from ABE Books. I went to one of my favourite searching grounds and where I should have gone in the first place, the catalogue of The Lindley Library only to find that it was not listed there. Finally I went to the catalogue of The British Library where it was listed as a ‘book’ under the title ‘Practical Rose Growing: a guide for amateurs etc’ (1889).
That is a good lesson learned – go to the largest library in the country first but I did enjoy the journey and I needed to have a few excuses for leaving out a strategic work! I have not seen the book, cannot find it anywhere other than The British Library and the only description of the text I can find is that given by Mrs Darlington who says John Harkness gives very careful instructions on the thorough making of the soil for Rose beds and
“His chapter on Developing Exhibition Roses is interesting in that it strongly advocates and minutely describes the art of ‘dressing’ exhibition Roses. The quotations at the headings of the chapters are well chosen and suggest a knowledge of Milton not possessed by all writers of the Rose”.
I am almost convinced that this work is a published book, unless you the reader, know otherwise, so my apologies to John Harkness.
So on to Mary Lawrance/Lawrence and I must say from the start of this discussion that there are copies of her book ‘A Collection of Roses from Nature’ (1796-1799) in both The British Library and The Lindley Library and they list her as Mary Lawrance. So why the confusion? Why do some authors write of Lawrance and others of Lawrence? Rather than follow the line of my research as I did with Mr Harkness I will cut straight to the chase so to speak!
According to Rondeau and Verdegem in their massive and striking book ‘The Quest for the Black Rose’ (2006) Mary Lawrence Kearse, better known as Miss Lawrence, a botanical artist and much acclaimed teacher, exhibited at The Royal Academy between 1794 and 1830. They suggest in their footnotes on P. 32
“A certain confusion exists as to the spelling of the name, ‘Lawrance’ being the spelling of the first edition. But in later editions it is corrected to ‘Lawrence’. Many modern authors still use the spelling from the first edition.”
Whether they mean here the first of the 30 parts issued or the first of the groups of the parts dated 1796, 1797, 1798 and 1799 I am not sure but I am unaware of any further editions of the original whole text being printed. I have a contact in The Linley Library who is very helpful with research matters but I know that their rare books are not available currently due to refurbishment but I will check with her at a later date. Perhaps you, the reader, may be able to help!
The correction is supported by Stock in his bibliography who writes that Lawrance is corrected to Lawrence in Errata to Vol. 111 of ‘Les Roses’ 1824. It is originally spelt as Lawrance in the bibliography written by Thory at the end of Vol. 1 (1818). I have checked this out as I have a facsimile of the bibliography entitled ‘Bibliotheca Botanica Rosarum’ and have consulted the entry. I have also checked the Errata through this website:
Stock continues by referring to various authors and how they have spelt the name. When researching it seems pretty even to me but it would be good to know one way or another. I need to apologise anyway as I have spelt her name both ways in research I have done. Perhaps I will currently follow the lead of The British Library or spell it both ways ‘Lawrance/Lawrence’!
I am happier now that I have ‘aired’ these issues.
I have had printed recently an article entitled ‘Nineteenth Century British Rose Literature; a brief discourse on the 19th century literature, written in Britain, that is dedicated solely to the Rose.’
This is the first of a series of articles exploring the nature of 19th century Rose Literature. Further articles will include, through a study of the literature, The Growth in the Popularity of Roses, the Development of Rose Varieties and their method of Cultivation, the Rosarians and American and European Rose Literature.
Article Cover
I am including the first and last paragraphs below, together with some illustrations from the text. If after having perused these you would like a copy of the article please send me your details via my Contacts Page.
Article Title Page.
“It must have been the turning of the century or the whispers from France about the garden at Malmaison that prompted John Wedgewood to have the inspirational idea for the Horticultural Society of London. After this seed of an idea in 1800 it flowered on the 7th March 1804 when he called together a group of seven distinguished men from the world of Botany. The society was founded, the aim of which was to allow and encourage members to present papers on their horticultural activities and discoveries, to encourage discussion of them and implement their publication.”
Some of the C19th texts. Photograph taken from the article.
“From these informative old books of the 19th century we can track the trends in rose cultivation, rose exhibiting and the development in the numbers and varieties of rose. We can also glean a great deal about the challenges faced by the writers of the time and the developments in printing. They did not have to hand our modern writing methods nor did they have, at the beginning of the century, the facility for illustrating their text with diagrams and photographs. These were expensive to produce. The artists at the beginning of the century had to acquire considerable financial backing in order to produce their beautiful monographs and it is documented that ‘William Paul rounded up one hundred and eighty seven sponsors to underwrite the fifteen colour plates in the First Edition of the Rose Garden’. We can see that line drawings printed using woodcuts appeared regularly about the middle of the century, closely followed by more intricate drawings and then black and white photos leaving the coloured photos to make their appearance at the beginning of the next century. We can only thank the writers for their knowledge, diligence and skill under what we would now regard as tedious circumstances. I, for one, am very thankful that each and everyone of them made the effort. Their works contribute so much to our knowledge of the Rose.”
‘The Most Comprehensive Rose Library in the World’. I wonder whether this would still be true today. This description by the Royal National Rose Society (RNRS) of their library was written regularly in their publications. This library has now been incorporated into The Rosarian Library so I am wondering whether we can still boast the world ranking. I have no reason to believe that the RNRS library lost some of its books; it is more a matter of whether other libraries have overtaken The Rosarian Library in the number and range of texts.
Annuals (1907 – 1984?) produced by the society came in a range of colours over the years.
Prior to the demise of the RNRS which sadly happened in May last year I was, (it now seems very coincidental) communicating with the society with regard to the books they held in their library. They seemed the obvious organisation to have a wide range of titles which would enable me to add to my ever growing list of rose texts. They kindly sent me an inventory of their old and rare titles. I am thankful now that I had this to hand when I was bidding to buy the entire contents of their library. It was these old and often rare books that I coveted for The Rosarian Library, some of which I had been searching for in vain. I had no proof, however, these titles still remained on their shelves. When a company goes into administration anything can happen. I had been sent only a couple of photographs by the administrators showing about 200 books and many of the titles I could see were books I already had in my library. It was with severe trepidation that I bid for these books with the added proviso that if certain titles were present I would pay more. I listed half a dozen books and quoted what I thought to be a fair price for each.
I was able to add to my 19th century texts, a few of which can be seen here.
I desperately wanted the books; I am not quite sure why. I had read about the history of the society and its growth over the years. I knew many committed and enthusiastic people had been involved in setting up the National Rose Society in 1876 and others continued developing the society throughout the 20th century and I knew that my father was a member in the 1960s and 1970s and occasionally wrote for them. What I did not know and I am sure it came as a shock to many was how financially unstable the society had become prior to May 2017. I was in the process of building my library and I knew that I would love all the books. I could not bear to see them go to a dealer for resale.
William Paul (1822-1905). In my opinion the greatest rosarian and rose writer of the 19th century.
Success! It was a long and occasionally difficult negotiation but finally I have added about 200 ‘new’ titles to the library. The total number of different books written in English and dedicated solely to the rose now totals 540. I have a number of copies of some of the more popular books but most importantly I have added several titles to my collection of 19th century rose literature, in some cases several editions, to the point where the majority of the rose books written during that century are now in my library. I have also been able to add to the list of rose titles that have been written; this now totals 1001 so I still have plenty of collecting to do!
An attractive binding from an early 20th century text.
Can one have a pleasant dilemma? Or is that an oxymoron? Well I have one. With the books from the RNRS came many (100+) French titles, the majority of which are 19th century publications and in one or two cases 18th century titles. When I started The Rosarian Library I set a boundary within which I would include books written in English only. I will adhere to this but a separate special feature in the library will be the French titles and some are really special with glorious illustrations. They will also help with my research.
Some of the French texts have some stunning illustrations.
The titles that do not appeal to me quite so much are those relating to manures and fertilisers! ‘The Manual of Manures’ or ‘Common Sense Compost Making’ and the like are not titles that appeal to one who loves the books that include history, fragrance, colour, poetry or art. Monty Don would certainly appreciate the compost books more than me! What I do love about many of these books, however, is that they are bound with the classic black covers and gold lettering that make many of the books from the RNRS so distinctive.
Having catalogued the books dedicated solely to the rose I need now to turn my attention to the books that contain some information about roses which have their own section within the library. Perhaps the texts about manures, fertilisers, pests, hybridisation etc can join them. I can see their relevance to rose growing even if they are not my top priority.
Books waiting to be catalogued.
A real dilemma I have always had with regard to my rose books is how to classify them. With some books it is easy because they are written about specific aspects of the rose or specific types of roses but the majority are about roses in general including a bit of everything: history, varieties, cultivation, roses in the garden etc. I personally think it is time we studied the rose in greater depth when writing to include only original factual and truthful information based on research or experience. Some books are so wide ranging and unspecific they need to go in a General Section. Well I expect that solves my problem.
There are a number of these in various formats and they are my pride and Joy!
The Rosarian Library is now a tremendous resource and I will continue to collect more of the 1001 books (there are bound to be others still remaining to be discovered) that have been written since the first in 1799. The library contains 540 of these books written in English and dedicated solely to the rose so there is still plenty of scope to increase this number. It is a sad fact that the library has benefited from the sale of the RNRS library but I am content that the books are safe and possibly part of ‘the most comprehensive rose library in the world’!
Of the thirty-one books dedicated solely to the Rose written in Britain during the C19th the most popular, undoubtedly, was ‘A Book about Roses’ by the clergyman Samuel Reynolds Hole. Written in 1869 it has since had a miraculous history of new editions, impressions and reprints. Between 1869 and 1894 there were fourteen editions, some only a matter of months apart. In ‘The Letters of Dean Hole’ (1907 P. 141) we learn that ” . . .the eleventh edition of my little Book was sold in 6 months – 3000 copies.”
‘A Book about Roses’ First Edition 1869. (Note the green cloth and gold rose)
The fifteenth edition was revised and largely rewritten bringing the information, especially the lists of roses up to date. It was subsequently published in two formats: a Presentation Edition which included colour plates and was ‘hansomely bound’ for 10s and 6d and a Popular Edition, with frontispiece, for 3s and 6d. This additional format was apparently at the request of the many admirers of the book who wished for a more ‘handsome and illustrated edition’. The fifteenth edition that I have in the Rosarian Library has no colour plates but does have the John Leech illustration as frontispiece thus I still search for the Presentation Edition of 1896!
The sixteenth editions, both Popular and Presentation, were reprints and revisions published in 1898 by E. Arnold of London. The original publishers were W. Blackwood and Sons of Edinburgh and London but E. Arnold took over publication for the eleventh edition in 1891. Further publications followed in 1900, 1901, 1902, 1903, 1904, 1905, 1906, 1907 and 1909 with the twenty-sixth publication being in 1910, six years after the death of the author. A New Edition with an additional chapter and lists of roses by Dr. A. H. Williams was published by E. Arnold in 1911 with reprints following in 1913 and 1915. It was reprinted as a Nelson Classic in 1911. The final edition in Britain, I believe, was a New Edition published by J.M. Dent and Sons Ltd: London and Toronto in 1932.
Several different editions of ‘A Book about Roses’. It is possible to date a book reasonably accurately by the colour and pattern of the cover.
Quite plain internally, in the beginning, with the occasional line drawings, a few black and white photographs began to creep in with coloured ones appearing in the Presentation Editions after 1896. The covers, however, have been another matter, always being very attractive with some form of artistry on their front and spine. The first edition has a stunning golden rose in the centre of the green cloth of the front cover and it is the only edition to have this. The gilt lettering on the spine is quite plain. This cannot be said for the next few editions with the spines being beautifully decorated with glorious gilt lettering and the golden rose. The front covers are beautiful too with gilt and black designs on the green cloth. The covers and spines have remained attractive with changes in colour as time has passed and with changes in the designs. It is possible to date an edition reasonably accurately from its front cover.
During the earlier years there were several publications in America by William S. Gottsberger: New York and I believe it has been translated into German. Knowing that this little book of 1869 started life in instalments in The Gardener, a C19th periodical it is amazing to see such a history. A little book in size it was, but full of character created by the ideas of one true admirer of roses and his collection of anecdotes that brought roses into the homes of the growing number of gardeners in Victorian England. It would seem that the success of this notable book was a result of the common sense it contained, the beautiful roses it celebrated, the stories it told and the huge charisma, not to mention the hard work of this unique clergyman.
Samuel Reynolds Hole, Dean of Rochester, photograph taken by A.H.Fry and printed in The Windsor Magazine of 1901. (The King of the Roses).
Dean Hole, as he was generally known, became well respected in the Rose world throughout the latter part of the C19th and I presume that those who knew him or knew of him, whether a rosarian, a gardener, an exhibitor or purely a lover of roses wanted to have a copy of his very readable book. Who would not want to read the following:
“Enter then the Rose-garden when the first sunshine sparkles in the dew, and enjoy with thankful happiness one of the loveliest scenes of earth. What a diversity, and yet what a harmony, of colour! There are White Roses, Striped Roses, Blush Roses, Pink Roses, Rose Roses, Carmine Roses, Crimson Roses, Scarlet Roses, Vermilion Roses, Maroon Roses, Purple Roses, Roses almost black, and Roses of a glowing gold. What a diversity, and yet what a harmony, of outline! Dwarf Roses and Climbing Roses, Roses closely carpeting the ground, Roses that droop in snowy foam like fountains, and Roses that stretch out their branches upwards as though they would kiss the sun; Roses “in shape no bigger than an agate-stone on the fore-finger of an alderman” and Roses four inches across; Roses in clusters, and Roses blooming singly; Roses in bud, in their, glory, decline and fall. And yet all these glowing tints not only combine, but educe and enhance each other’s beauty.”
Chap. 3 P.45.
or
“In a Rose-garden . . . . no formalism, no flatness, no monotonous repetition should prevail. There should the Rose be seen in all her multiform phases of beauty. There should be beds of Roses, banks of Roses, bowers of Roses, hedges of Roses, edgings of Roses, pillars of Roses, arches of Roses, fountains of Roses, baskets of Roses, vistas and alleys of the Rose. Now overhead and now at our feet, there they should creep and climb. New tints, new forms, new perfumes should meet us at every turn.”
Chap 7. P. 113.
It is no wonder that this book written about Roses in 1869 was a success. It includes many descriptions, witticisms and anecdotes which bring not only the roses but the rose world of the C19th to life. The author was a well-respected and well educated clergyman who became quite an authority on roses. The information the book contains about rose growing was original and had been tried and tested by the author. I personally believe if this was the only rose book available today we would all, at least in this country, be able to grow beautiful roses both in the garden and for exhibition. In conclusion I will end here as he began
” He who would have beautiful roses in his garden must have beautiful Roses in his heart.”
(All references have been taken from the revised edition 15. This is an extract from an article ‘Dean Reynolds Hole and his Book about Roses’.)
Is this the total number of book titles, solely about roses and printed in the English language that are sitting on our library shelves waiting to be read? I am sure there are one or two still in hiding but hopefully the majority are now discovered. (I said this a month or so ago when I listed 760 but they keep appearing when least expected!) This list does not include the many editions of the same book nor does it include all the annual publications by the various rose societies. I have included only one each of these with the date range of publication.
One of the oldest ‘The Rose Amateurs’s Guide’ (1840) Thomas Rivers and one of the newest books in the library.
I have collected these titles from a range of sources, largely from the Lindley Library (RHS) and the British Library. As their data bases have to be searched using key words it is not possible for me to ensure that all have been identified. Just typing in ‘roses’ is not sufficient as subjects such as ‘Guns and Roses’ emerge and all the books of fiction with ‘the rose’ in their title. I have typed in as many sensible phrases I can think of such as ‘Rose cultivation’, ‘Rose Growing’ and ‘Rose Gardens’ in the hope that I have sought out all the books dedicated to the rose. The list of old book sent to me by The Royal National Rose Society proved valuable and the published bibliography by Joanne Werger and Robert E. Burton ‘A Bibliography of Botanical, Horticultural, and Other Works Related to The Genus Rosa’ (1970) was invaluable for those books printed before that date of publication. I have also used many of the Bibliographies of the 268 books that are in The Rosarian Library and have scoured websites such as Amazon and Ebay.
Some of the Victorian and pre first World War books in The Rosarian Library.
The very first rose book written in Britain, as opposed to a catalogue of roses of which there were several, seems to be ‘A Collection of Roses from Nature’ by Mary Lawrence written in 1799. To the end of the reign of Queen Victoria my list includes 41 books of which 31 are British with the remainder being American. It seems that it was not until 1920 that the first book about roses was printed in the Antipodes. This was ‘The Australian Rose Book’ by R.G. Elliott. Some of these books are now out of print and virtually impossible to purchase. Facsimiles of a number of these, however, are now being printed by such companies as ‘Forgotten Books’ and ‘Oxford World Classics’, which at least allows us to read the content if not feel the atmosphere!
A painting by Beatrice Parsons, several of which illustrate ‘Roses and Rose Gardens’ (1914) Walter P. Wright.
I love how some of the history of printed books can be learned from looking at these older books. Obviously in the beginning there were no photographs and my very oldest book by Thomas Rivers printed in 1837 does not even have a line drawing. The line drawings were the first illustrations to appear followed by black and white photographs and then early coloured photographs which differ greatly from those in our modern books. Some early rose books were illustrated by beautiful prints of paintings. I believe the ‘Genus Rosa’ by Ellen Willmott to be the best example of this with all the botanical paintings by Alfred Parsons. Sadly, I only have Part 14 of this tremendous book which was published in 25 parts over a four year period. I console myself with a book of the paintings which illustrated it, which is far more easily attainable. In the library there are one or two stunning books which include some colourful prints of paintings and some early black and white photographs. These include ‘Roses and Their Cultivation’ by T.W. Sanders, the first edition of which was printed in 1904 and ‘Roses and Rose Gardens’ (1914) by Walter P. Wright. In some of the early books, also, you can see how the pages had to be cut before you could read them. Some survive without being cut totally. My part of ‘The Genus Rosa’ is totally uncut and I hesitate to cut it knowing that, for me, some of the character will be lost. In the early days too the printers excelled with their gold lettering on the covers and occasionally impressed paintings of roses.
A great front cover on Shirley Hibberd’s Book 1894 (1874)
The majority of the early books about roses focussed on rose cultivation and rose varieties available at the time. One or two such as ‘The Rose Garden’ by William Paul first published in 1848 included sections on the history of roses and some poetry featuring roses. During the Victorian era showing roses for competition grew in popularity so a number of books include information about this aspect of rose growing. At this time it seems that the books were written by two very different sets of authors: first, those involved with rose cultivation such as William Paul (‘The Rose Garden’), a nursery man from Cheshunt and later Waltham Cross and Thomas Rivers (‘Rose Amateur;’s Guide’) who had a nursery at Sawbridgeworth, Hertfordshire or secondly, the dedicated amateur rose grower who loved the rose as a beautiful flower and who often were men of the church such as Samuel Reynolds-Hole, Dean of Rochester (‘A Book About Roses’) or Reverend A. Foster-Melliar, Rector of Sproughton, Suffolk (‘The Book of the Rose’). I must not leave out Shirley Hibberd and his ‘The Rose Book’, a favourite of mine who was neither but purely an amateur rose grower who loved roses.
Dean Samuel Reynolds Hole. This books has undergone more than 26 reprints.
As we travel through the years the subject matter of rose books does not shift greatly. You may say that this is not surprising as all the books are about roses which is a well defined subject in itself. Throughout the twentieth century there were hundreds of books written which focussed largely on rose cultivation and I wonder why we need so much repetition when the C19th rose growers did such a good job and little of the basics seem to have changed. It is easier to understand why there are many books which focus on rose varieties, with lists of roses included, as these were constatntly changing with new roses being bred and introduced. However, on e of the comprehensive rose encyclopedias such as that written for the RHS covers this ground well. As we move further through time the books could describe ‘the old rose varieties’ as there were newer varieties such as the Hybrid Teas, Polyanthas and Floribundas coming on the garden scene. Books about rose gardens were also coming to the fore. Here too, however, there are many books which often repeat or contradict each other.
Is there so much repetition because there are so many discrepancies and varied beliefs and each author believes s/he can improve on that said before. Sometimes I feel there have been authors who have or still are ‘jumping on the bandwagon’ and have little additional information to offer. Even their own books can repeat heavily their previous books . Is there a competition to see who can write the most books or is it a money making exercise?
Some of the larger books in the library.
Norman Young in ‘The Complete Rosarian’ (1971) makes an interesting comment which adds to this discussion. He says”It has been said, and with some degree of truth, that the literature of the rose comprises seventy-five percent folklore, twenty percent personal prejudice and five percent fact.” So when it comes to establishing a body of knowledge about roses is it necessary to read many books to acquire a few truthful facts or is it the nature of the subject that we can believe very little.
Books often now celebrate the rose with photographs to the extent that the text seems to be immaterial and I wonder by how many it is read! These books are beautiful but limited with regard to new information; I suppose there is little wrong with that if you are looking for a ‘coffee-table’ book and appreciate the beauty of roses. Perhaps it may be a good idea if todays writers restricted their ideas to one aspect of roses and offered something new and truthful rather than a wide range of detail on several aspects that is purely repetetive and offers little.
I must admit that I am biased and rose cultivation to me is not the only subject in my study of roses. From that which I have read rose growing seems largely to be common sense; grow the plants appropriate for your climate and soils and keep them healthy with appropriate nutrients and pruning. This information cannot really change over time so let us preserve the good books that have been written on the subject. I am not going to dare to suggest which they are as I am not an authority on growing roses, as you can see from my comments! My suggestions above for cultivation are a little flippant to say the least but I believe, in their limited way, accurate.
(1994)
The books I love can be divided into two groups: those which I feel contribute to the body of knowledge about roses and those which are a little more frivolous and focus on the wider stories about ‘The Queen of flowers’. Those which I would place in the first group include: ‘The Complete Book of Roses’ (1981) by Gerd Krussmann, ‘The Graham Stuart Thomas Rose Book’ (1994) by Graham Stuart Thomas, ‘The Rose’ (2010) by Jennifer Potter, ‘The History of the Rose’ (1983) and ‘The History of the Fragrant Rose’ (2004) by Allen Paterson. I particularly include these two because many books about roses have a preliminary section about the history of the rose, saying much the same things but the books by Allen Paterson really do, in my opinion, have a great deal to contribute to this subject area. I should mention here the informative books by the American Historian Brent C. Dickerson, especially ‘Old Roses: The Master List’, which as its title suggests lists all the old roses which he has been able to discover, and there are many.
(1985) I loved reading this book.
The books focussing on the wider stories about roses are relatively few and one or two are so captivating they make good bedtime reading! The great characters in Jack Harkness’s book ‘The Makers of Heavenly Roses’ (1985) are brought back to life by the author’s superb story telling. Thomas Christopher recounts some great adventures in his ‘In Search of Lost Roses’ (1989) and Douglas Brenner and Stephen Scanniello provide a wealth of interesting detail surrounding the naming of many roses. Two interesting biographical works by Antonia Ridge are well worth a read by anyone but particularly a rose lover. ‘The Man who Painted Roses’ (1974) details the life story of the botanical painter Pierre-Joseph Redoute and ‘For the Love of a Rose’ follows the Meilland family as they create the famous ‘Peace’ rose. I have found one or two tiny books of poems and paintings, the most notable being ‘Roses: A Celebratiion in Words and Paintings’ (1993) selected by Helen Exley but nothing really noteworthy in this area. Two books about rose painters are of interest ‘The Life and Art of Paul de Longpre’ (2001) by Nancy C. Hall and ‘Fantin Latour’ (1977) by Edward Lucie-Smith. There must be other similar books which, as yet, I have not discovered.
(1989)
Recently I came across a book that I thought was really going to satisfy my need for a book celebrating the wonderful stories surrounding roses. It is entitled ‘The Book of Roses’ (2000) and has been translated into English from its French original. It certainly has some stunning photographs and one or two great stories but sadly for me it has been written by an interior designer Sylvie Girard-Lagorce and focusses too much on this aspect. A lovely book, however, and I am pleased to have it in The Rosarian Library.
I am hoping that there will soon be a serious book written about the fragrance of roses which contributes to the body of knowledge in this area. After a brief spell when fragrance was forgotten in the euphoria surrounding colour and remontancy in the early twentieth century it has once more come very much to the fore and is one of the rose’s greatest attributes. There could also be a book about colour. After I listed at least twenty different shades of pink from one book only, one of which was ‘face-powder pink’ it seems that we may need some comprehensive order in this area! There are also so many interesting stories surrounding roses that I hope there will not be many more books providing a repeat performance but there will be some new facts and ideas presented to us. I read that the rose is going out of fashion because many growers find it difficult to keep them healthy. They are now often planted with companion plants rather than in dedicated beds but to me it is not a question of fashion it is a necessity to be surrounded by roses, all the year round.
I am reminded of this incredible Victorian artist (1836-1904) every day as Fantin Latour, the rose is blooming beautifully in my garden now at the beginning of June. I planted this old Centifolia rose not only because all the Centifolias are stunning and fragrant but because I so admire the artist and his paintings of roses. I do not know who named the rose but it is a fitting tribute to this great man.
Fantin Latour in my garden. Still shining despite the rain!
Henri Fantin-Latour did not only paint still-lifes, many of which were of roses, but he was also a great portrait painter, especially group portraits, and for this he is probably best known. It is obviously his paintings of roses that I love but realise the talents of this man knew no bounds. In his later years he also had a passion for music, which began during his visits to London in the 1860s.
Roses (1890) in the National Gallery, London.
He was born in Grenoble on 14th January 1836 but when he was five his family moved to Paris. He always drew as a boy and his father encouraged him with this. When he was fourteen Henri joined a professional drawing school where he was a successful student. He then moved to the Ecole des Beaux Arts where he continued for three months only as it was thought he was making little progress. From then on he relied on the Louvre as his teacher , where he would copy the paintings of his choice or those that he was commisioned to paint. While he worked in the Louvre he met a number of his contemporary artists including Manet, Morisot and Whistler. It was here also that he met his future wife, Mlle Dubourg whom he later married in 1876.
Roses (1884) Location unknown to me.
At this time the route to professional success was through the Salon in Paris and in 1859 he made his first attempt to gain admission by submitting three paintings. They were rejected. In 1861 he tried again and was successful with a portrait of an English painter W.M.Ridley to whom he had been introduced by Whistler. From that point on he had a typically artistic career with its high and low points, lucrative and otherwise.
Fantin-Latour self portrait.
It was in England, during the 1860s, that his first flower paintings began to sell, they were virtually unknown in France at this time. It is perhaps true to say that if Henri Fantin-Latour had only painted portraits he would not be as well known as he is today. His flower studies have a special quality and were neatly summed up by Emile Blanche when he said “Fantin studied each flower, its grain, its tissue, as if it were a human face”. He painted many flowers but the one that occurs most often is the rose, fortunately for me and all other lovers of roses. Apparently he did not regard himself to be a very good portrait painter as he felt he needed to know the sitter really well, which resulted in him painting more than one self portrait but also allowed him the time to paint his still-lifes of fruit and flowers.
Throughout his life he continued to paint both portraits, mostly group, and still-lifes. For me his paintings of roses, although similar in style, have differing appeal. They are all beautiful and I love all that I have seen but as with all artists’ pictures we tend to feel some are more beautiful than others!
White Roses (date and location unknown)
Henri Fantin-Latour is included in the Rosarian Library in the form of prints and postcards and the informative book ‘Fantin Latour’ by Edward Lucie-Smith. If you wish to find out more about this great man, as this short piece has not done him justice, this book is not only informative but includes many of his paintings.
I have bought a couple of things on line recently that haven’t quite materialised into what I thought they were going to be! The first was miniature roses which I will tell you about in another blog – I am beginning to think the term ‘miniature rose’ is an oxymoron!
The second was a book ‘The Trail of the Wild Rose’ by Anthony Eglin which has turned out to be a great mistake! I thought I was buying a reference book which delved into the history of the species roses and other old roses many of which have sadly become lost but really I bought ‘An English Garden Mystery’. I enjoyed reading it so much that I ordered and read his other garden mysteries.
The mysteries, of which there are six, are what they claim to be ‘garden mysteries’ but they include a wealth of detail about gardens and plants, particularly roses. The stories are, of course, fictional but the plant detail is correct. Anthony Eglin is more than just a keen gardener and admits to escaping into the garden when he has finished his writing for the day’. He spent many years in advertising before, in his words ‘defecting to indulge his passion for gardening’.
The books, in order of publication are: The Blue Rose, The Lost Gardens, The Water Lily Cross, The Trail of the Wild Rose, Garden of Secrets Past and The Alcatraz Rose. For me they make interesting reading, more mystery than crime; some violence but nothing too sinister. A genuine love of roses and plants in general by the central character, a retired botany professor illustrates Anthony Eglin’s interest in horticulture and allows me to indulge my passion for roses and rose gardens while enjoying a fictional read.
Retired professor, Lawrence Kingston, after a busy life of research and lecturing now only does consultancy work. After his wife died he moved from his large house and garden near Edinburgh to a flat in West London where he now keeps busy visiting museums and galleries, wining and dining with his small group of friends and of course keeping his hand in with the botanical world. After he was called upon to look into the mystery of the blue rose he gained a reputation for being an amateur sleuth which led to him being called upon to solve further botanical mysteries.
I wish I had read the books in the order they had been written because the character of Lawrence Kingston develops throughout the series. If I find an author I like to read I usually read their books in chronological order and if the writer is contemporary I am usually waiting for the next publication as I am now with Anthony Eglin’s mysteries.
My rosy fabric collection continues to grow even though the sewing seems to have declined! I still occasionally find a length of fabric that is irresistible and often it will prove to be from the Sanderson range. How many rose fabrics they have printed since their birth in 1860 I have no idea but I intend to find out.
“Chelsea” (1988) with “Little Chelsea”.
I know a little about the company and obviously some of the rose patterns they have produced with great names such as “Gather ye Roses”, “Country Roses”, “Eglantyne”, “Moss Rose”, or “Geisha Floral Roses” but I would like to find out more and extend my own range. It would be great to know not only the number of patterns but also their dates of origin and the talented designers behind them. I have emailed the company because I understand they have in their archives a sample from every fabric they have produced . That must amount to hundreds of samples but I am particularly interested in the ones portraying roses.
A Sanderson fabric from the 1930s
For me the classic Sanderson rosy fabric is a linen union with textured pink and yellow roses named “Chelsea” which, I am sure, has been made into many curtains and upholstered chairs across the world since its production in 1988. It has a sibling called “Little Chelsea” which has smaller roses and is pretty but to me is not so elegant and beautiful.
A beautiful fabric; design not known by me.
Although the Sanderson firm was founded in 1860 by Arthur Sanderson, who began by selling imported wall coverings from premises in Soho Square, it was not until 1921 that fabric was made in any great quantity with the main focus of the company originally being wallpaper. A second factory for the production of fabric was opened in Uxbridge, the original then being in Chiswick. Sanderson had established his own wall paper factory here in 1879 because it was evident that the wall papers that he imported could not meet the rising demand.
A Sanderson fabric design from the 1950s.
Arthur Sanderson died in 1882 leaving his sons John, Arthur and Harold in charge of the business which prospered and grew dramatically. The first printing machine was increased by 7 more and the staff increased from 40 to 300. In 1900 Sanderson and Sons Ltd was formed and became part of the cooperative of Wallpaper Manufacturers which controlled 98% of all wallpaper manufacturing.
A fabric design is usually produced in several different colourways.
Although the company has a detailed history which has included family deaths, a devastating fire, changes of name and ownership the name of Sanderson still survives today and it is the oldest surviving English brand name in its field.
A rather vivid design!
Fabric printing continued on the Uxbridge site until 1999 when it was transferred to a printing company, Standfast and Barracks of Lancaster. The latest notable change seems to have been in 2003 when Walter Greenbank PLC bought the business which was suffering financially. There has been significant investment and Sanderson is well and truly back on the map even though a family member has not been involved since the 1960s. Sadly for me it would appear that fashion has changed to the point where the classic English roses fabrics are a little too chintzy for our modern world and they do not seem to be manufactured any more.
This must be quite an old design.
Fortunately there are plenty of beautiful rosy Sanderson fabrics from previous years to keep me occupied. The terrible fire of 1928 at the Chiswick factory destroyed much equipment and records as well as premises but the fabric archives , which would have been at Uxbridge seem to have been safe from harm.
Sanderson “Rose and Peony”; my latest acquisition.
You know how one thing leads to another . . . . . well, last week the auction site The Saleroom contacted me because they knew of a painting of roses that was coming up for auction. They do this because I am an avid collector of rose paintings and rose books so when they are notified of either in a sale they send me an email alert. A super facility – you should try it.
Flower still life with roses, flowering branches and raspberries, at the water’s edge (1864) Jean-Baptiste Robie. (c) Paintings Collection; Supplied by The Public Catalogue Foundation
The painting was by Jean-Baptiste Robie (1821-1910), who was born in Brussels but lived in London between 1848 and 1875; it was dated 1864 so of this period. It looked beautiful, a towering arrangement of flowers, mostly roses by the trunk of a tree with a plate of raspberries to one side. The roses were stunning Centifolias, the roses chosen by the Dutch and Flemish artists of the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries.
I had recently been doing some research into the Centifolia Roses (Provence Roses)so know that they aren’t the ancient variety that so many people mistakenly think they are. I know that they had gradually and slowly evolved from the end of the C16th to the beginning of the C18th when they apparently reached their perfection. I know that we have the Dutch breeders to thank for creating these Roses des Peintres which we are privileged to see in so many wonderful paintings of this period.
The beautiful clear pink ‘Cabbage Rose’ with its ‘hundred leaves’ and rich fragrance nods gracefully on its delicate but prickly stem. It little resembles the cabbage, a label acquired early in its history but is immediately recognisable immortalised in many Old Masters. There are equally beautiful varieties which exist today and are grown in our gardens.
Painting by Jan Brueghel (1568-1625)
Great painters from the beginning of this enlightened era included Jan Brueghel, Ambrosius Bosschaert, Roelandt Savery and Jacques de Gheyn, great botanical craftsmen who portrayed their flowers with great accuracy towering them symmetrically in a vase with a dark background. There were usually roses featuring prominently together with tulips and other flowers popular at the time. How they were painted so beautifully with the limited paint colours and painting surfaces is difficult to understand. It was wonderful, however, that flowers had finally been freed from supporting portraits or religious scenes and had taken centre stage. The painters had finally the courage to be proud to be painters of flowers.
Painting by Ambrosius Bosschaert (1573-1621).
As time passed the desire for botanical accuracy gave way to sophistication and taste as the patrons wanted the paintings they bought to blend well with their furniture and decor. Painters, as their colours developed and canvas replaced panel and copper, could revel in different sizes, less preparation and greater colour combinations. Painting became less symmetrical and botanical and even more varied and beautiful.
Jan Van Huysum (1682 – 1749)
Great painters of the C18th included Jan van Huysum and Rachel Ruysch. Van Huysum has been referred to as the Phoenix of Flower painters with the majority of his work being ‘snapped up’ by aristocracy and royalty. He was one of the greats if not the great in flower painting history and influenced much work that was to come. Rachel Ruysch painted many beautiful works that retained accuracy in their productiion. Not only is Rachel the most distinguished of lady flower painters but among the greatest of all. For some of you it may be interesting to know that she had ten children!
Rachel Ruysch (c) Glasgow Museums; Supplied by The Public Catalogue Foundation
Flower painting in Holland continued into the C19th. A number of painters gravitated to Paris one of whom was Gerard van Spaendonck, equally gifted as an easel painter and botanical draughtsman well known for his tutelage of Pierre-Joseph Redoute. Other great names of this time included Jean-Baptiste Robie, a brilliant artist who is chiefly known for his paintings of fruit and flowers and for occasionally breaking with the tradition of meticulous arrangements. His paintings stand out for their exquisite rendering of texture and colour.
An exquisite painting by Jean-Baptiste Robie.
Which brings me back to where I started. Jean-Baptiste Robie’s painting was estimated at £150,000. I do not know the final hammer price as the Dutch auction house chose not to publish it! One can dream . . . . . . .
Much of the detail about the artists in this article has been taken from ‘European Flower Painters’ by Peter Mitchell. (1973).
760 is the total number of book titles of books dedicated solely to the rose that I have managed to find. I am sure there must be others, as I continue my search, but I do think that I have discovered the majority. My number does not include more than one edition of a book nor does it include all the annual publications by the various rose societies. I have included only one of each of these with the date range where possible.
A few of the larger rose books in the Rosarian Library.
I have collected these titles from a range of sources including: an online trawl through the books held in the Lindley Library (London), a list of books kindly sent to me by The Royal National Rose Society and the bibliographies of the 196 books dedicated to the rose that I have in The Rosarian Library. Another excellent source, for the books published before 1970, has been the published bibliography by Joanne Werger and Robert E. Burton ‘A Bibliography of Botanical, Horticultural and Other Works Related to the Genus Rosa’. I have also scoured websites such as Amazon and Ebay.
One of the many titles.
Unlike Werger and Burton who have included books from many languages I have limited my list to those written in English, including books that have been translated into in English. I felt I needed to draw boundaries here otherwise the task would be too difficult and impossible for me to manage. I must admit, however, to owning one or two French titles and that there are a few French books that I would dearly love to own. These are not included in the list.
The oldest book in the library MDCCCLXXX (1880)
My own collection of books dedicated to the rose is expanding and by the end of this month should clear the 200 mark, only 560 to go! My oldest is an1880 edition of ‘A Book about Roses’ by S.Reynolds Hole and my newest is the beautiful ‘The Rose’ by Brent Elliott , a historian at the RHS, which includes 40 stunning and frameable plant portraits taken from the RHS archives. As, I believe, the oldest rose book was printed in 1799 mine is quite new! I am aware of one or two that will be published this year but I have none as yet.
A stunning book published in 2016. (One of the biggest in the library).
There are several rosarians that have written a number of books but the most prolific writer seems to be David Austin (I have him down for 15 books), a well know rose breeder who is still writing at the age of 90 and who has a book to be published this year. He is closely followed by Peter Beales (1936-2013) one of the country’s leading experts on roses and Michael Gibson, a horticultural writer specialising in roses. They both seem to have notched up 14! Others with several titles to their credit include the Harkness father and son Jack and Peter and Graham Stuart-Thomas all well known rosarians. (My figures could be incorrect as I may not be aware of all books and if so I apologise now!)
I found this useful information inside this attractive cover.
I am enjoying collecting these titles of books dedicated solely to the rose and the books themselves. One day I will declare that there are no more book titles to be found. I am indebted to Werger and Burton who collated all the older titles and perhaps when it comes to 2020 I will be able to add my list for 50 further years!! That gives me three years to ensure I have them all and hopefully I will personally have added to the list by then.
Perhaps I should add that there are many, many gardening books that contain quite a lot of rose information so the books dedicated to the rose do not necessarily document all that has been said. I will, however, leave the collation of these to someone else. I have quite a few to give them a headstart!
I personally believe that there is too much repetition on some aspects of roses and that one or two aspects are sadly lacking. If you are a rose grower, especially if you are one interested in old roses, or if you are keen on their history you are well catered for but if, like me, you are more interested in the aesthetic qualities of the rose well. . . . I must do something about that. . . . . . . .
Most of us must have seen images of Pierre-Joseph Redoute’s rose paintings as they not only hang on our walls but also decorate a huge range of merchandise for the home: mugs, trays, tea towels, lamp shades, calendars, waste bins and more. In this way he gives pleasure to millions of people throughout the world but do you know much about the man and his unusual story?
Rosa Centifolia – taken originally from the work ‘Les Roses’.
Do you know that Pierre-Joseph Redoute came from humble beginnings but in his later years was appointed court painter to Marie-Antoinette, Queen of France. Do you know that many of his rose paintings were at the request of Josephine, the one time wife of the illustrious Emperor of France who commisioned him to paint the roses in her gardens at Malmaison, Paris. Do you know that he had the opportunity to become a well-paid and highly regarded portrait painter to the French aristocracy but chose to follow his love of painting flowers or do you know he died very much in debt and his wife and surviving child were virtually penniless after paying off all he owed.
Rosa Eglanteria (Rosa foetida).
Redoute was barely known outside France when he died in 1840, the year of Queen Victoria’s coronation. His paintings, especially those of his flowers, that are known to exist, and his name have become more famous in recent years and the rose paintings have become extremely popularised today, perhaps, in my opinion, to the point of detracting from their individuality and beauty.
Rosa indica fragrans (R. odorata).
Redoute was born on the 10th July in 1759 but not in France as is so often thought but in the village of St Hubert in the forests of the Belgian Ardennes. He was one of five children and his early years were happy but frugal. His father was a painter and decorator who had the skill to be employed in the painting and decorating of the Abbey of St Hubert. The relative poverty of the family was alleviated a little by the additional money he made painting the occasional commissioned portrait. Pierre-Joseph was taught to paint from an early age as was his father before him, so too were his two brothers.
Pierre-Joseph Redoute.
At the age of thirteen he was expected to leave home and make his own way in the world so on 10th July 1772, his thirteenth birthday, he left home with his few possessions. The first few years were difficult but he did not starve as he managed to pay his way by painting portraits, religious or mythological pictures or whatever was wanted by those who employed him and often accommodated him as part payment. He became known as a good all round painter and could usually find work painting chateaux or the mansions of wealthy noblemen.
Rosa Gallica.
His father had advised him that whenever he had the opportunity to see the pictures of the great painters he should endeavour to do so. In Amsterdam he saw some of the great works of Hals, Rembrandt and Vermeer but it was the work of the great flower painter Jan van Huysum which he stared at in awe. From that time on he began to include flowers in all his paintings. He had loved plants and flowers from an early age, helping his teacher in the abbey gardens.
He gained many commissions before travelling to Paris to work with his brother painting a new theatre. From then on he and his painting flourished leading to court notoriety in later years . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . for the full story of his life and work a good read is ‘The Man Who Painted Roses’ by Antonia Ridge. His paintings of roses from ‘Les Roses’, the work including the rose paintings commissioned by Empress Josephine, have been produced in various books.; one such publication is ‘The Complete Book of 169 Redoute Roses’ by Frank J. Anderson.
Redoute Roses
It is unbelievable that many of his flower paintings are now so well known but the paintings from his first ten years of painting for a living seem to have been lost to the world!
Cigarette cards seem to be a strange item to collect when you are a lover of roses but the sets illustrating roses that I have are quite beautiful as each card depicts a painting of a rose and is accompanied on the reverse by a description of the featured rose. As some are over a century old they tell me the roses that were popular at the beginning of the C20th in a way that only a range of catalogues from that time could do and there aren’t many of those about.
No. 3 from the 1926 set.
Cigarette cards have been produced illustrating a huge range of subjects but Wills seem to be the only company in Britain that produced sets devoted solely to roses. Their first rose cards appeared in cigarette packets in 1912. A set of fifty could be collected by the serious smoker. This series was closely followed by a second 50 in 1913 and as the numbers followed on up to 100 the two sets together make one complete set.
No1. in the 1912 set.
A further set of fifty followed in 1926 with the majority of the cards featuring equally beautiful but mostly different roses. A final set of 40 larger cards appeared in 1936. These are still beautiful but to me do not have the charm of the previous sets being more like photographs in appearance and with quite dark backgrounds in many cases.
No. 8 in the 1936 set.
Kensitas, in the 1930s, produced a set of 60 woven silk Flower cards which are really collectable. These came in small, medium and postcard size with each card enclosed in a protective folder with a detailed description. A small card came in a packet of ten, a medium one in a packet of twenty and to get a postcard size you needed to buy a tin of fifty. For the bulk buyer a tin of one hundred would reveal two postcard size silk cards. This set includes several roses: a Tea rose, a red rose, a Moss rose and a Rambler rose. These are still quite easy to come by although they, like everything else that becomes more rare, are rising in price. A silk postcard size will cost you now as much or more than fifty cigarettes.
A Kensitas silk card of a red rose from the 1930s.
Trade cards, of which these rose cards by Wills and Kensitas are examples, began in 1875 with an American tobacco company, Allen and Ginter producing cards of Baseball Players, Indian Chiefs and Boxers. In the UK, in 1887, W.D. and H.O.Wills were one of the first companies to include advertising cards with their cigarettes. In 1893 John Player and Sons produced one of the first general interest sets which portrayed Castles and Abbeys. Other companies soon followed suit with Wills issuing their first interest set of Ships and sailors, closely followed by Cricketers in 1896. The first full colour set was produced by Ogdens depicting footballers in their club colours! To make collection easier a small booklet in which to mount the cards was available for purchase.
Albums were printed to make card collecting easier.
Throughout the first part of the C20th, until the outbreak of World War 2 the majority of the many tobacco companies produced these cards on a huge range of topics. Many are used today to study aspects of our social history such as dress, uniforms etc. The custom of issuing cards in cigarette packets was curtailed during the war to save paper. The production was never restarted although today reproduction sets can be bought.
The cards can look good in frames.
These old Trade Cards are collected by many people today and there are annual catalogues issued and regular auctions take place devoted solely to them. Early in 2007 a record price of 2,800,000 dollars was paid for a card depicting Honus Wagner, one of the great names in American baseball. Apparently he was a dedicated non-smoker who objected to being portrayed on a cigarette card. Legal action prevented its release but before action could be taken a few had been issued.
I keep most of my complete sets in plastic wallets to keep them clean.
The largest cigarette card collection on record is that of Edward Wharton-Tigar, which was bequeathed to the British Museum on his death in 1995. Although I have quite a collection of these cards, largely flowers, art and literature, which I have picked up at various places my focus is on roses!
One thousand copies of this now very rare text were published between 1910 and 1914. The cost of printing and publication were totally funded by Ellen Willmott (1858 – 1934) herself. The book at the time was sold in parts at £1 each and subsequently bound into 2 volumes. Today they are difficult to purchase as they rarely come up for sale. When they do they command a good price; in 2012 the complete book was sold at Christies for £1,125.
Part one of The Genus Rosa, sold for £1 when published in 1910.
Unbelievably when published many copies were left unsold. The path to the final publication of the work was beset with difficulties and the marketing was chaotic and came to an abrupt halt with the outset of World War 1. Both writer and publisher made little money. A sad testament to the years of hard work put in by writer and artist and then publisher.
Ellen Willmott – a plant collector and rosarian.(Taken from A Garden of Roses (1987) published in association with the RHS).
The Genus Rosa is a largely scientific book discussing the ancestry and classification of the roses collected by the writer and grown in her three gardens. It is beautifully illustrated with 132 watercolours by Alfred Parsons, a well-known painter at the time, whom she commissioned because although she was a competent painter she felt her own paintings were not of a sufficient standard. Ellen Willmott also secured the services of John Gilbert Baker, the Kew botanist, to write the Latin and English descriptions of the species concerned.
One of the 132 paintings by Alfred Parsons to illustrate The Genus Rosa. (Taken from A Garden of Roses published in association with the Royal Horticultural Society.
It seems that Ellen Willmott wished to follow in the footsteps of Empress Josephine of France who had commissioned Pierre-Joseph Redoute to paint all of her collection of roses for the book Les Roses, the text of which was written by the eminent botanist Claude Antoine Thory. It is known that she owned a copy of this work and being a great lover of roses herself and also being a wealthy woman it is understandable that she should wish this.
A second watercolour from The Genus Rosa.
Ellen Willmott, the eldest of three daughters, inherited her family home when her father died in 1892. She continued to develop the gardens cultivating many thousands of different plants and employing up to one hundred gardeners at any one time. She had previously been left a substantial inheritance by her godmother which had enabled her to buy her first home, in France, in 1890. She liked to spend and bought a third estate in Italy, where she was able to grow more exotic species
She joined The Royal Horticultural Society in 1894 and became a prominent member. She won many awards for her work with roses and other plants including the Dean Hole Medal from the National Rose Society in 1914.
Warley Place, the Willmott family home. A painting by Alfred Parsons taken from A Garden of Roses.
Sadly, during her lifetime there was some controversy about the text in her book and the book and the paintings did not achieve the acclaim they deserved. Although Ellen Willmott was a highly intelligent and knowledgeable woman she was not a scientist and being a woman of her time was not educated at Oxford or Cambridge. (Although the female colleges were just emerging her parents were not of the belief she should attend). Today, however, The Genus Rosa is regarded as one of the notable texts about roses from that period and even though there has been much work conducted into the genetics of roses controversy still remains with regard to the ancestry and classification of roses!
After the death of Ellen Willmott the original paintings for The Genus Rosa passed by bequest to the safe keeping of the Lindley Library at the RHS in London, where they remain. A selection of 70 of them, chosen by Graham Stuart – Thomas can be seen in the book A Garden of Roses (1987) published in Association with the RHS.
(Miss Willmott of Warley Place: Her Life and Her Gardens (1980) written by Audrey le Lievre documents the life story of this interesting woman. It is likely that a future article in my blog will discuss the life of Alfred Parsons – a notable painter of roses.)
A few of my collection showing their fragility. Often when I find them they have cracks or breaks which is inevitable as they have often seen 50 years or more of life.
Love them or hate them! As I have well over 100 I think I must at least like them but, of course, only the ones with roses! I continue to collect them with my local antique shops and bazaar being my primary sources.
Each of these bone china posies is unique but when I started acquiring them they all looked similar to me. They have been handmade, hence their individuality, and apparently each maker could identify their own work. A skilled maker could produce a dozen flowers in 15 minutes which I am sure was encouraged by the fact they were paid by the number they made.
Adderley.
I can identify the origins of one or two of the posies when I see them but not all as some seem to be much rarer than others, having been made by the smaller potteries of which there were many. Two great names are Adderley and Coalport; I can usually identify these. When it comes to Denton, Radnor, Royal Doulton, Five Towns China, Royal Stafford, Masefield, Thorley, Stratford, Crown and so on I am lost. Over 1500 pottery firms have operated in Stoke on Trent since the early 1700s. Some lasted only a few years but some over 200. Happily for me each posy has its origins written underneath. It is a pity they don’t have their date. I can only guess a broad date by knowing the dates each pottery survived.
Coalport.
Sadly the majority of the companies making flowers closed in the latter part of the C20th and there is only one pottery still making them now. This is the Aynsley Pottery which acquired Denton China (Longton Ltd 1954) in 1969. Denton was well known for its flowers and a few of their posies contribute to my collection. The Aynsley floral factory is today one of the very few remaining truly handcraft industries left in Stoke on Trent. Decorating by hand a skilled team of artists create an effect which is recognisably different. Three separate firings in high temperatures ensure longevity and colour retention.
Royal Albert
The history of the posies is fascinating and runs alongside the history of all bone china. Flower making dates back to the 1740s but really took off when the second Josiah Spode developed bone china in 1797. (It is made from 50% bone ash, 25% Cornish stone and 25% China stone). Together with the flowers for floral posies flowers were also used to make jewellery, mostly brooches of which I have a growing collection.
During the 19th and 20th centuries the potteries grew around the five towns of Burslem, Fenton, Hanley, Longton, and Tunstall joining with Stoke and forming the larger town of Stoke on Trent in 1910. In 1907 there were 391 potteries with several thousand bottle kilns firing their wares with some companies having one kiln and others up to 25. Many of these potteries made flowers as well as their tea and dinner services and other pots. The success of the potteries continued until the late C20th. In the 1960s and 70s it is estimated that 70,000 people worked in the industry.
Bottle kilns of the mid C20th of which there were up to 4,000.
The number of potteries has dwindled to around 100, only 15 of which have any size and with only the one continuing the tradition of flower making. Today the number of workers in the industry is closer to 5,000. Where there were bottle kilns there are now office blocks and retail parks. One or two icons of British industry have been saved such as Wedgewood , Spode and Moorcroft but others have sadly been abandoned. The Royal Doulton factory which opened in 1877 stands empty and decayed while the Minton works is a Sainsburys.
Some of my collection which continues to grow.
So only relatively few of these nostalgic posies continue to be made but this, of course, makes them more interesting and more collectible. They are a little bit of our social history so whether you love them or hate them they have a contribution to make.
The number of books in the Rosarian Library continues to increase. I am continually searching for new titles, especially those that are reasonably priced. Fortunately the majority of books in the library have been purchased second hand at good value prices. A small number of new books, published this year, have been bought but most of the books are not new but are in remarkably good condition. There is a point, however, when their age makes them valuable and more difficult to find. Thus titles published before 1900 are usually expensive. There are many titles I covet but these will have to be collected gradually.
Roses:A Bibliography of Botanical, Horticultural, and Other Works Related to the Genus Rosa by Joanne Werger and Robert E. Burton.
Knowing the literature available is important and until now I have compiled a ‘wanted’ book list from the bibliographies of works that I have read. Suddenly this wanted list has become catastrophically long, challenging and expensive as a result of a much sought after gift from one of my children; the title above.
This work and it must have been hard work compiling it, lists all the books about roses including all aspects of horticulture such as propagation, growth, display and pest and disease control. It includes books about rose history, botany, industry, symbolism, poetry, art and literature. It includes books in the major languages of Western and Eastern Europe and Asia. It is a book I will use regularly not only to identify titles but also to keep a record of titles in the library. (Thank you very much Susannah).
So part of my work has been done for me but it has made me realise that I must set some boundaries for the Rosarian Library. I am yet unsure how I will do this. I cannot do it by language as the countries of Western Europe, particularly France, play a significant part in rose history and development. I do not want to limit the library to European titles as I already have a good number oif titles from North America and Australasia. Perhaps I should set a financial limit but that is not my nature. I already covet a pair of books which I know will cost several hundred pounds, that is if I can find them for sale! I could set a date boundary collecting only those since 1900 but I can see from the bibliography there are many publications between 1800 and 1900 and I so love old books! I expect the boundaries will be what I can find and what I think is a fair price.
This book was published in 1972. I wonder whether anyone is compiling a list of rose books published between then and now!
The day I discovered Albert William’s paintings my life was enriched. Dramatic I know but every day I look at the prints and one original that I have collected and take great pleasure and enjoyment from their stunning beauty.
Several years ago, in a local charity shop, I saw two little prints and thought how pretty they were. I had no idea who had painted the roses but handed over my £3 for the two . I always research my rosy purchases, that is for me half the fun of buying them, so later that day found me at the computer typing in the name of Albert Williams.
When I discovered all the beautiful pictures of roses he had painted I was near to tears. They were not any rose pictures; they were beautiful. Painted in oils in a rainbow of colours they portrayed the lovely old roses I adore. I was also near to tears about a month ago when I managed to find and purchase my first original. It will not be the last.
Sadly, I discovered that he had died in 2010 in his late eighties. He painted virtually every day until the day he died and what a legacy he has left.
Albert Williams was born in Hove, Sussex on the 20th March 1922. He was the son of Arthur C. Williams, also a floral painter. His grandfather, too, was an artist and Albert studied Art under both of them. He also attended Art Schools in Brighton, London and Paris. He tried other genres of painting and is well known for them but he always returned to his floral work.
His paintings have been exhibited at the Royal Academy, the Royal Society of Oil Painters, the Royal Watercolour Society, the Royal Society of British Artists, the Paris Salon, the Edinburgh Festival and at numerous prestigious other galleries in London and around the country. In Art circles he was well known. It makes me regret that I had not heard of him before especially as I have loved roses for many years.
When painting roses Albert Williams always painted straight from the rose with each flower in his painting being a portrait of a particular bloom. Apparently if he did not complete a picture during the flowering season of his chosen flowers he would put it aside and wait until the next flowering season!
Since I discovered Albert Williams I have discovered more great painters of roses but I believe he will always be my favourite.
My eldest daughter brought me this book, Roses and Rose Gardens by Walter P. Wright back from a trip to Herefordshire earlier this year. I think perhaps it was the inspiration that made me catalogue all my books into a library. It has certainly made me search for more of the older books about roses.
The older the better. No doubt I will tell you about some of my others over time.
This book would inspire most people. Published in 1914 (the second edition; the first was published in 1911) it has the delightful musty smell of age and a few speckles of a rusty nature.
Inside there are six beautiful prints of Beatrice Parsons paintings of gardens, together with early photos and diagrams. They nearly make me forget about the content of the text which is about rose growing – planting, pruning and grafting but also includes the wider subjects of their history, use as a cut flower and their beauty and fragrance. A really great old book full of information and inspiration.
Inside old books you can find such intriguing snippets that have been left behind unnoticed. In this one there is a brown and tattered old ‘Carters Detailed List of Choice Named Gladioli and other Spring Planting and Summer Flower Bulbs’. It is only a small leaflet but if anyone is interested they are welcome. I know I would love similar about roses!
When I saw this painting I knew that I had seen it before; on an old ‘postkarte’ that I had in my collection. I was sure I was looking at a Catharina Klein (1861-1929) or a copy, as I am quite familiar with her work.
The dealer either didn’t recognise it or knew that it was not authentic (there is no characteristic signature) as he certainly was not asking a Catharina Klein price. I paid without hesitation because I had nothing to lose. I would enjoy the picture anyway as it is beautiful.
It came with a Certificate of Authenticity as an ‘Early C20th oil- Bowl of Roses’, which is indisputable because of its appearance. Therefore if it is a copy it was painted at the time Catharina Klein was painting and could possibly be by one of her students.
As I know that many of her original paintings were destroyed or damaged in the two wars I like to think it is an original that has been ‘restored’! There are one or two minor discrepancies, as well as the major one of no signature, between painting and postcard and for me the mystery will continue. . . .
Any ideas?
The ‘postkarte’.
Catharina Klein was born in the small town of Eylau to the North East of the Polish border. She moved to Berlin to study and her paintings became popular among the German nobility. Although it is reputed she painted over two thousand pictures including flowers, fruits and birds many of her original paintings have not survived but many prints were made which are featured in books and on postcards. The old Meissner and Buch postcards are perhaps the best way to collect her work.
