Category: Historical Images

The Ma’agan Mikhael, a 5th-century BCE Cypriot merchantman, was found off the coast of Israel in 1985. The wreck was an important find in learning more about ancient shipbuilding techniques and trade practices. After excavation and preservation the reconstructed hull was placed in the Hecht Museum in Haifa.

Three wooden boxes were found in the wreck: one in a heart shape with a pivoting lid and two violin-shaped boxes. There is plenty of evidence in the archeological records that these boxes were of a type used for cosmetic pastes and creams.

In 2004 Yigal Sitry published, “Unique Wooden Artifacts: A Study of Typology and Technology” part of a series of research articles in “The Ma’agan Mikhael Ship – The Recovery of a 2,400 Year Old Merchantman” by Yaacov Kahanov and Elisha Linder.

In his article Sitry provides a full description of the heart-shaped box and outlines, with illustrations, “the order of operations” in the making of the box (and easy for a modern woodworker to follow).

The box, before conservation that caused uneven shrinkage, measured 110 mm x 109 mm x 34.5 mm (about 4.3″ x 4.3″ x 1.4″) and was made of oak. One note: the heart-shaped box has been renamed the ivy leaf box as that shape was more consistent with shapes found in contemporary pottery and art.

The link to Yigal Sitry’s article is here.

For the “recently spurned:” Put Nirvana’s “Heart-shaped Box” on a loop, make the box, burn it, repeat.

— Suzanne Ellison

If you are looking for some light reading to add to your digital book wheel I have two short stories for you featuring woodworkers.

The first story, from 15th-century Italy, is “La novella del grasso legnajuolo” (The Story of the Fat Woodworker). The story was discovered by Andrea, a farmer and woodworker, from Cremona. In September he featured the story on his blog.

“The Story of the Fat Woodworker” involves the antics of Renaissance luminaries Brunelleschi, Donatello and the unfortunate Manetto Ammanatini, known as Il Grasso. I prefer to call him merely robusto.

Andrea was able to locate several copies of the story published between 1485 and 1856 and, as he pointed out, the 1485 copy has a nice woodcut with a low workbench.

If you would like to read the 1820 Italian version featuring the illustration of Manetto clicca qui.

There is also an English translation from UC-Santa Barbara, about 20 pages long, and you can find it here.

The second short story is about the chairmaker Gilbert Nickerson, known as the Old Chairmaker, of Shag Harbour, Nova Scotia.

“The Old Chairmaker” was written by Evelyn M. Richardson and was published in the Dalhousie Review, Volume 27, Issue 1 in 1947. You can find the story here and it is 8 pages long.

To visit Andrea’s blog, L’angolo di spoglia inferior, and read his comments in Italian and English, clicca qui.

Andrea, grazie per la tua scorperta!

–Suzanne Ellison

Three hundred years ago today, Jacob Arend (1688-1744), a journeyman cabinetmaker in his brother’s workshop in Würzburg, wrote a letter and hid it in a magnificent Baroque writing cabinet. The letter was not placed in one of the secret drawers common in 18th-century desks and cabinets – he hid the letter so well it was not found for 253 years. Sometime after writing the letter Jacob and fellow journeyman, Johannes Witthalm, left Würzburg to seek their fortunes elsewhere.

In his letter Jacob allowed us a rare look into his world and the extreme contrast between his living conditions and the luxury of the writing cabinet he and Johannes had made. You can read Jacob’s letter and what is known about his life here.

In the last year I found two notes that shed some light on what happened to Jacob in the ten-year gap between leaving Würzburg in 1716 and arriving in Fulda in 1726. The clue comes by way of Carl Maxillian Mattern (1705-1774), a more well-known German cabinetmaker. While C.M. Mattern was a journeyman he worked for a time with Jacob Arend in Pfaffendorf across the river from Coblentz (Koblentz). So, at one point during the ten-year gap Jacob returned to his hometown of Coblentz.

The possible dates for Mattern working with Jacob in Pfaffendorf are 1722-1726. The next tidbit is Jacob was called to the court of Fulda by Prince-Abbot Adolf. In March of 1726, Konstantin, Prince-Abbot of Fulda, died and was succeeded by Adolf von Dalberg (pictured below with a view of Fulda). Prince-Abbot Adolf ruled from 1726 to 1737.

There are a few pieces made by Jacob in museums, including the writing cabinet in the Victoria and Albert Museum. I found one more writing cabinet that was up for auction a while ago.

The cabinet is dated 1738 making it a work from Jacob’s Fulda shop. The dimensions are 200 cm x 134 cm x 69 cm (78.7 in x 52.8 in x 27.2 in). The veneers are nut wood, nut wood root and plum wood on a softwood base. This cabinet is not as ostentatious, nor does it have the exotic woods and rare materials as that last cabinet made in Würzburg, but it is splendid nevertheless.

At the end of Jacob’s letter he asked that the finder drink to their (his and Johannes’) health, or if they were no longer living, to their eternal rest and salvation. Scott Stahl, a dedicated reader of the Lost Art Press blog, suggested we follow Jacob’s wish and designate October 22 as Jacob Arend Day. So, raise your glass and honor Jacob and the artisans of the past.

Dinner tonight is cabbage and peas all around.

–Suzanne Ellison