Allegorical Figure: Flora1840–188053 1/2 × 14 3/4 × 17 1/2"Paint on woodGift of Ralph Esmerian2005.8.580Full-bodied standing figure of woman holding a wreath and cornucopia with fully articulated flowing hair with rose ornaments, facial features, draped Grecian dress, on block base, all painted shades of brown, cream, red, green, yellow and black. Cornucopia in (P) right arm extended at side; (P) left hand crooked at elbow holding wreath; Weight on (P) right leg, (P) left leg seen through drapery. Neoclassical face with rose above each ear.1545393380Artist unidentifiedSculptureThe American Folk Art Museum believes this work to be in the public domain. New YorkNew YorkUnited StatesUnited StatesNew YorkNew YorkThree Dimensional WorkseMuseum - Collection HighlightsNew YorkA captivating image of ideal beauty, this allegorical figure is a prime example of nineteenth-century American figure carving. Found on Staten Island, she was probably used as a garden or architectural figure, though her present condition suggests that she was protected from the elements for most of her existence. The delicate handling of her face, her flowing hair adorned with roses, her pose, and the treatment of her drapery in a late neoclassical style indicate that she was made by a master carver who was familiar with current trends in the fine arts.
The figure was created by either an American shipcarver or, more likely, a European-trained carver who immigrated to the United States around midcentury. A number of German figure carvers came to the United States after the Revolution of 1848. Many of them had trained with master sculptors who were proficient in both wood and stone. In these workshops, apprentices studied ancient and modern sculpture and learned principles of drawing and composition as well as carving techniques.
The figure holds a cornucopia and a wreath and is adorned with many roses. She may represent Flora, the Roman goddess of flowers, who was usually portrayed with a cornucopia of blossoms that she scattered over the earth. The ancient image of Flora became quite popular in the early nineteenth century due to the revival of interest in flower symbolism, otherwise known as the "language of flowers." Starting in Napoleonic France, a seemingly endless number of gift books, dictionaries, and emblem books gained a huge audience on both sides of the atlantic. Books like Charlotte de Latour's La Langage des fleurs (1819) and Elizabeth Wirt's Flora's Dictionary (1829) became international best-sellers, inspiring all sorts of related visual imagery, from prints to ceramic figures. In the United States, language of flowers books reached a high point of popularity in the 1840s and 1850s, though they maintained their appeal until the end of the century.
Ralph Sessions, "Allegorical Figure: Flora," in Stacy C. Hollander, American Radiance: The Ralph Esmerian Gift to the American Folk Art Museum (New York: Harry N. Abrams in association with American Folk Art Museum, 2001), 549.
A captivating image of ideal beauty, this allegorical figure is a prime example of nineteenth-century American figure carving. Found on Staten Island, she was probably used as a garden or architectural figure, though her present condition suggests that she was protected from the elements for most of her existence. The delicate handling of her face, her flowing hair adorned with roses, her pose, and the treatment of her drapery in a late neoclassical style indicate that she was made by a master carver who was familiar with current trends in the fine arts.
The figure was created by either an American shipcarver or, more likely, a European-trained carver who immigrated to the United States around midcentury. A number of German figure carvers came to the United States after the Revolution of 1848. Many of them had trained with master sculptors who were proficient in both wood and stone. In these workshops, apprentices studied ancient and modern sculpture and learned principles of drawing and composition as well as carving techniques.
The figure holds a cornucopia and a wreath and is adorned with many roses. She may represent Flora, the Roman goddess of flowers, who was usually portrayed with a cornucopia of blossoms that she scattered over the earth. The ancient image of Flora became quite popular in the early nineteenth century due to the revival of interest in flower symbolism, otherwise known as the "language of flowers." Starting in Napoleonic France, a seemingly endless number of gift books, dictionaries, and emblem books gained a huge audience on both sides of Atlantic. Books like Charlotte de Latour's La Langage des fleurs (1819) and Elizabeth Wirt's Flora's Dictionary (1829) became international best-sellers, inspiring all sorts of related visual imagery, from prints to ceramic figures. In the United States, language of flowers books reached a high point of popularity in the 1840s and 1850s, though they maintained their appeal until the end of the century.
Ralph Sessions, "Allegorical Figure: Flora," in Stacy C. Hollander, American Radiance: The Ralph Esmerian Gift to the American Folk Art Museum (New York: Harry N. Abrams in association with American Folk Art Museum, 2001), 549.
Object information is a work in progress and may be updated with new research. Records are reviewed and revised, and the American Folk Art Museum welcomes additional information.
To help improve this record, please email photoservices@folkartmuseum.orgAllegorical figure of Flora or Spring, found on Staten Island, NY, carved by either an American shipcarver or a European-trained carver who immigrated to the US mid-19th century18401880 2005 8 58 A captivating image of ideal beauty, this allegorical figure is a prime example of nineteenth-century American figure carving. Found on Staten Island, she was probably used as a garden or architectural figure, though her present condition suggests that she was protected from the elements for most of her existence. The delicate handling of her face, her flowing hair adorned with roses, her pose, and the treatment of her drapery in a late neoclassical style indicate that she was made by a master carver who was familiar with current trends in the fine arts.
The figure was created by either an American shipcarver or, more likely, a European-trained carver who immigrated to the United States around midcentury. A number of German figure carvers came to the United States after the Revolution of 1848. Many of them had trained with master sculptors who were proficient in both wood and stone. In these workshops, apprentices studied ancient and modern sculpture and learned principles of drawing and composition as well as carving techniques.
The figure holds a cornucopia and a wreath and is adorned with many roses. She may represent Flora, the Roman goddess of flowers, who was usually portrayed with a cornucopia of blossoms that she scattered over the earth. The ancient image of Flora became quite popular in the early nineteenth century due to the revival of interest in flower symbolism, otherwise known as the "language of flowers." Starting in Napoleonic France, a seemingly endless number of gift books, dictionaries, and emblem books gained a huge audience on both sides of Atlantic. Books like Charlotte de Latour's La Langage des fleurs (1819) and Elizabeth Wirt's Flora's Dictionary (1829) became international best-sellers, inspiring all sorts of related visual imagery, from prints to ceramic figures. In the United States, language of flowers books reached a high point of popularity in the 1840s and 1850s, though they maintained their appeal until the end of the century.
Ralph Sessions, "Allegorical Figure: Flora," in Stacy C. Hollander, American Radiance: The Ralph Esmerian Gift to the American Folk Art Museum (New York: Harry N. Abrams in association with American Folk Art Museum, 2001), 549.
Object information is a work in progress and may be updated with new research. Records are reviewed and revised, and the American Folk Art Museum welcomes additional information.
To help improve this record, please email photoservices@folkartmuseum.orgAllegorical figure of Flora or Spring, found on Staten Island, NY, carved by either an American shipcarver or a European-trained carver who immigrated to the US mid-19th century