Presentation inkstand by J M Wendt
Object No. 85/412
This fine and rare inkstand was crafted in the workshop of J M Wendt, a prominent Adelaide firm of silversmiths, jewellers and retailers in the second part of the nineteenth century; the firm still trades today. It was established by Joachim Mattias Wendt (1830-1917) who came to Adelaide from Schleswig-Holstein in 1854 to establish an enduring and productive business first at Pirie Street and then in Rundle Street. (The duchies of Schleswig and Holstein were much fought over by Denmark and Prussia particularly until 1866 when they became one as part of Prussia through the Peace of Prague.) He collaborated with Julius Schomburgk, who later worked in his own right. It is believed that between 1863 and 1870, much of the work produced under the Wendt name was Schomburgk's. (J.B. Hawkins, 19th Century Australian Silver ,Woodbridge: Antique Collector's Club, 1990,, vol. 2, p.61). The firm's gold jewellery was entered in the Sydney International Exhibition 1879 and was 'awarded a First Degree of Merit for Jewellery and Silverware'. Unlike some of its competitors, J M Wend managed to weather the financial crises of the 1890s. An advertisement from 1895, shows that they advertised themselves as 'The Cheapest House in Australia'. Wendts produced a wide range of objects in silver and jewellery, some of the best known being the candelabra, inkstands and silver mounted emu egg pieces which used Australian flora and fauna and figures of Australian Aborigines. Many were commissions. This inkstand with an innovative 'cameo' vignette was presented to Richardson Campbell the High Secretary of the Independent Order of Rechabites, most likely on his leaving Australia. The inkwell was presented to him by Robert Clerk, who was also a Rechabite of the Albert district of Australia. The English Rechabite movement, named after Rechab, a figure of the Old Testament, was widely represented in Australia in the nineteenth century; it promoted temperance and total abstinence from alcoholic beverages as well as being active as a benefit society. http://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/wendt-joachim-matthias-9046
Loading...
Summary
Object Statement
Presentation inkstand, emu egg and silver, made by J M Wendt, Adelaide, South Australia, c. 1880
Physical Description
Ebonised oval wooden stand, surmounted by a flat fitted sheet of silver with repousse grasses, ferns and wild flowers, rising at the centre into a circular stem in the form of a tree trunk with six roots extending outwards around the base, branches emerging from its top. Fixed into its base, branches, two grazing emus, a standing bearded aboriginal cast in a loin cloth, his left foot raised on the body of a kangaroo, his right arm raised holding a boomerang, the left a club. Central stem is surmounted by an emu egg mounted horizontally, perforated on one side. Inside is a cast silver scene of a running emu and a hopping kangaroo beneath a tree. The hollow is lined with silver sheet bordered with a scrolled crosshatched silver frame with four lobes. The cover is surmounted by a finial in the form of a cockatoo with wings outstretched, cast in silver, on a branch on the reverse of the egg is a round silver stud which secures the inkwell within. Inscribed on a shield- shaped silver plaque attached to the stand: "To R.C. from R.C. in grateful recognition".
DIMENSIONS
Height
270 mm
Width
270 mm
Depth
160 mm
PRODUCTION
Notes
Jochim Mathias Wendt (1830-1917) arrived in Australia in 1854. He established Wendt Jewellers in Adelaide in 1854 and began a career of over 30 years as a leading retailer and manufacturer of jewellery and silver. By 1887 Wendt's Rundle Street business was employing 12 craftspeople and assistants. Wendt retired in 1903 and the business was taken over by his Jule and stepson Herman Koeppen Wendt.
HISTORY
Notes
Richardson Campbell was the High Secretary of the Independent Order of Rechabites. The inkwell was presented to him by Robert Clerk, who was also a Rechabite of the Albert district of Australia. The Rechabite movement was widely represented in Australia and Robert Clerk went to England in 1905 for a conference. The former owner thinks that the inkwell was given to her grandfather at this time.
SOURCE
Credit Line
Purchased 1985
Acquisition Date
1 April 1985
Copyright for the above image is held by the Powerhouse and may be subject to third-party copyright restrictions. Please submit an Image Licensing Enquiry for information regarding reproduction, copyright and fees. Text is released under Attribution-Non Commercial-No Derivative licence.
Image Licensing Enquiry
Object Enquiry