CHAPTER XVIII
A HISTORY OF ONE'S COLLECTION
Reasons for compiling a history of one's collection—The part played by photographs—Armour suggested as an example—Material for grangerizing
In this concluding chapter we have a suggestion to make to the collector of ample leisure moments; briefly, it is that he should draw up a history of his treasures. Such a work has many valuable advantages; first, it helps to co-ordinate the pieces which our collection contains; second, it provides work of a fascinating nature; third, it leads us to hunt through books and collections and so increases our knowledge; and fourth, it provides us with a kind of catalogue of our treasures which should prove of value for insurance and other purposes of identification.
Collectors of most kinds of curios are able to keep their specimens in methodical array. The philatelist, for instance, preserves his stamps within the covers of one or more albums; the print-lover places his pictures in portfolios, whilst the china-collector uses a cabinet for housing his treasures. The collector of military curios, however, cannot adopt any of these methodical arrangements, for it is impossible to assemble, we will say, armour, postage stamps, medals, and badges with any pretence of order. This is where the history of one's collection steps in; it describes the pieces and explains where each is to be found.
The first stage in making such a history consists in procuring photographs or well-executed drawings of every specimen in our collection. Photographs are, of course, much more useful than drawings, and as nearly every house boasts of a camera nowadays the former should not be hard to obtain.
The prints should be mounted in a loose-leaf album, the pages of which must be much larger than the prints. Mounting may be performed in many ways, but it will be well to use a photographic paste, to use it sparingly, and to paste the whole of the backs of the prints.
The third step consists in adding written matter under and around the prints. This data should describe not only the article portrayed, that is to say, its use, its sequence among other similar things, its composition, and so on, but also where and how it was personally obtained, what was paid for it, and in what particular place it is kept.
Personally, we do not think that a history should be limited to an account of the pieces figuring in our collection, but that a welcome should be extended to brief descriptions, both written and pictorial, of specimens which we hope to obtain as well as interesting specimens which we can never hope to obtain owing to their unique condition. The wider history will prove more complete and, therefore, more valuable; it will also serve as an indicator of the things which we do not yet possess but which are procurable by the average collector.
By way of an example, let us say that the reader has a small collection of armour and weapons and that he proposes to draw up a history of these interesting objects. The first thing would be to photograph each of the specimens in his collection and to mount them in an album as described above. Naturally, there would be many periods unrepresented in the collection, and pictures of these he should endeavour to find among the magazines and books that are available. As a discovery is made it should be carefully cut out and added to the history. Of course, when an additional piece of armour or a weapon is procured, its photograph should replace any print of a similar article which may already figure in the album.
The grangerite, for such is the name given to a person who creates a history on these lines, is often spoken of as one who mutilates valuable books to give birth to a volume of his own. We may say at once that we do not suggest that mutilation of any kind should be countenanced. The grangerite who needs extra illustrations can find material, in abundance, for his work in all sorts of quarters without tearing prints from volumes of worth. The old book-shop with its penny boxes and print portfolios provides all the pictures that are necessary in the ordinary way whilst back numbers of The Connoisseur are veritable gold-mines when representations of any kind of curio are needed.
But the grangerite must learn to search for material in all sorts of unexpected quarters. Armour, in many cases, adorns the heroes which grace our public statues in London (e.g. the Black Prince at Westminster), therefore, he should procure picture post-cards of such monuments. Again, many coins bear allegorical figures which include arms and armour in various forms. In this matter it is worth mentioning that the British Museum has on sale a large stock of picture post-cards depicting the coins reposing in its galleries. These, of course, the grangerite should procure. Lastly, we may mention that royal seals, church brasses, and even postage stamps often portray the warrior in shining armour and are worth noting by the grangerite.
Such, in outline, is the task of drawing up a history of one's collection. The work is fascinating and the magnum opus, when perfected, is of considerable value. Need more be said?
BIBLIOGRAPHY
WORKS DEALING WITH MILITARY CRESTS, BADGES, UNIFORMS, ETC.
Ackermann, R. Costumes of the British and Indian Armies. A collection of 67 coloured plates. 1840.
Army Clothing Regulations. Part I. Regular Forces. (Wyman.) 1914.
Atkinson, J. A. A Picturesque Representation of the Naval, Military, and Miscellaneous Costumes of Great Britain: with coloured plates. 1807.
Colnaghi,—. Costumes of the Army of the British Empire according to the Regulations of 1814. 1815.
Crests of the British Army. A coloured chart issued by Gale and Polden. Price 1s.
Crests of the British Army. (Six packets of crests arranged in book form.) Gale and Polden. Price 3s.
Fairbairn, J. Crests of the Families of Great Britain and Ireland.
Fores. Yeomanry Costume: with illustrations. 1844.
Fox-Davies, A. C. Armorial Families, 1910. 6th edition. Many coloured plates and otherwise profusely illustrated. (A valuable work, especially for students desirous of noting the early connection between noble families and regiments.)
Hull, E. Costumes of the British Army in 1828: many plates. 1828.
Knight and Butters. Crests of Great Britain and Ireland. 2 vols.
Lawrence-Archer, J. The British Army: its records, badges, devices, etc. 1888.
Lienhardt and Humbert. Les Uniformes de l'Armée Française.
Luard, John. A History of Dress of the British Soldier. 1852.
Martens and Norie. Costumes of the British Army and Volunteer Corps. Coloured plates. 1852.
Military Uniforms under the head of "Uniforms." Article in Encyclopædia Britannica. (A capital survey of the subject.)
Perry, O. L. Ranks and Badges in the Army. 1888.
Smith, C. H. Costumes of the British Army. (A fine collection of coloured plates.) 1815.
Spooner. Costumes of the British Army: with many coloured plates, by M. A. Hayes. 2 vols. 1840.
Uniforms of Europe, Past and Present. Four coloured plates depicting about 100 army dresses. Encyclopædia Britannica, 11th edition, vol. 27.
Walton, Colonel C. British Army. (Regimental Dress Histories.)
WORKS DEALING WITH ARMS AND ARMOUR.
Anderson, J. Ancient Scottish Weapons. (Edinburgh.) 1881.
Armour. A capital survey of the subject in Chambers's Encyclopædia.
Arrows and Arrow Makers. (Published by Judd and Detweiler, Washington.) 1891.
Ashdown, C. H. British and Foreign Arms and Armour. 1909.
Azan, P. Les premières mitrailleuses, 1342-1725. 1907.
Belloc, Hilaire. The Book of the Bayeux Tapestry. 1914.
Berthelot, M. P. E. Explosive Materials, to which is added a short sketch of Gunpowder. (New York.) 1883.
Bethel, A. H. Modern Guns and Gunnery.
Blanch, H. J. A Century of Guns. 1909.
Bond, H. Treatise on Military Small Arms. 1884.
Boutell. Arms and Armour. 1874.
Brett, E. J. Pictorial Record of Arms and Armour. 1894.
Burton. The Book of the Sword. 1883.
Calvert, A. F. Spanish Arms and Armour: an account of the Royal Armoury of Madrid. 1907. (Not a mere guide-book.)
Campbell, Lord A. Notes on Swords from Culloden. 1894.
Catalogue of the Museum of Artillery in the Rotunda, Woolwich. 1906. (Stationery Office Publication.)
Church, W. C. American Arms and Ammunition. Article in Scribner's Monthly, vol. xxix. p. 436.
Clephan, R. C. Defensive Armour and Weapons and Engines of War of Mediæval Times and of the Renaissance. 1900.
Demmin, Auguste. Illustrated History of Arms and Armour. 1901. (About two thousand illustrations, making the work a most useful reference book.)
Diener, Schoenberg Alfons. Die Waffen der Wartburg Mit 231 Waffen und 116 Marken. Abbildungen auf 78 Tafeln in orthochromatischem Lichtdruck. (Berlin.) 1912.
Dillon, Viscount. Guide to Tower of London, with a description of the Armoury. 1908.
Egerton, W. A Description of Indian and Oriental Armour. 1896.
Ffoulkes, Charles. Armour and Weapons. 1909.
Ffoulkes, Charles. European Arms and Armour in the University of Oxford. 1912. 19 plates.
Ffoulkes, Charles. The Armourer and his Craft from the Eleventh to the Sixteenth Century. 1912. 69 diagrams and 32 plates.
Firearms. A capital survey of the subject in Chambers's Encyclopædia.
Forgeries that were not Forged. Article in The Connoisseur, vol. iii. p. 35.
Gardner, J. S. Armour in England. (Portfolio Monographs.) 1897.
Gardner, J. S. Foreign Armour in England. (Portfolio Monographs.) 1898.
Gaythorpe, H. Notes on the Rampside Sword. 1909.
Greener, W. W. The Gun and its Development. 1899.
Hartley, C. Gasquoine. The Madrid Royal Armoury. Article in The Connoisseur, vol. iv. p. 239.
Hendley, T. H. Damascening on Steel and Iron. 1892.
Hewitt, J. Ancient Armour and Weapons in Europe, 3 vols. 1855.
Hutton, A. The Sword and the Centuries. 1901.
Joly, H. L. Japanese Sword Mounts. 1910.
Keller, M. L. The Anglo-Saxon Weapon. Names treated archæologically and etymologically. 1906.
Kelly, Francis M. Arms and Armour at the National Gallery. Article in The Connoisseur, vol. iii. p. 216.
Kimball, W. W. Small Arms of European Armies. Article in Scribner's Monthly, vol. vi. p. 363.
Laking, Guy F. Catalogue of Oriental Arms and Armour in the Wallace Collection. 1914.
List of Books and Photographs in the National Art Library Illustrating Armour and Weapons. (Victoria and Albert Museum.) 1883.
Maindron, G. R. M. Les Armes. 1890.
Marks, E. C. R. Evolution of Modern Small Arms. 1899.
Mason, V. L. New Weapons of the United States Army. Article in The Century Magazine, vol. 27, p. 570.
Mayne, C. B. The Infantry Weapon and its Use in War. 1903.
Meyrick. Ancient Armour in Europe. 1830.
Nugent, W. T. Art Ornamentation upon Armour. Article in The Magazine of Art, vol. 4, p. 78.
Sandars, Horace. The Weapons of the Iberians. 1913.
Sandringham Arms and Armour. (The Indian Collection presented to Edward VII, when Prince of Wales. 1875-6.) 1910.
Sargeaunt, B. E. Weapons: a Brief Discourse on Hand Weapons other than Firearms. 1908.
Sawyer, C. W. Firearms in American History, 1600-1800. 1910.
Seton-Karr, Sir Henry. Ammunition. Article in Encyclopædia Britannica, 11th edition, vol. 1.
Text-book of Small Arms. (Government Publication.) 1909.
Treatise on Ammunition: especially for Army Service. (Stationery Office Publication.) 1905.
Walsh, J. H. Weapons of War.
Westropp, M. S. D. Arms and Armour. 1906.
Wilkinson. Engines of War.
WORKS DEALING WITH MEDALS, DECORATIONS, AND MEDALLIONS
Adams, J. H. Some Rare Napoleonic Medals. Article in Cosmopolitan, vol. 17, p. 286.
Armand, A. Les Médailleurs italiens des quinzième et seizième siècles. 3 vols. 1883.
Carter, T. War Medals of the British Army, 1893. (Historical as well as technical information.)
Catalogue of the Bowles Collection, at Bristol, of Tokens, Coins, and Medals. Bristol. 1909.
Catalogue of the Coins, Tokens, Medals, Dies, and Seals in the Museum of the Mint. 2 vols. 1906.
Elvin, C. N. Handbook of the Orders of Chivalry, War Medals, and other Decorations. 1892.
Fabriczy, C. von. Italian Medals. 1904.
Fisher, J. F. American Medals. (Mass. Hist. Coll. 3d. Series 6, 286.)
Grueber, H. A. Guide to the Exhibition of English Medals in the British Museum, 1891.
Hawkins, E. Medallic Illustrations of the History of Great Britain and Ireland to the Death of George II. 2 vols. 1885.
Irwin, D. H. War Medals and Decorations issued to the British Forces since 1588. (This book is specially recommended.)
List of Books and Pamphlets in the National Art Library (Victoria and Albert Museum) on Coins and Medals. 1889.
Mayo, J. H. Medals and Decorations of the British Army and Navy. 2 vols. 1897. (Most of the actual documents relating to the issue of the various medals are quoted verbatim.)
Medallions. Notice des monuments exposés dans le Département des Médailles. Bibliothèque Nationale, Paris. 1889.
Medals of Honor as a Recognition of Gallantry. Article in Harper's Weekly, April 12, 1902.
Medals of the British Army. A coloured chart issued by Gale and Polden. Price 1s.
Myer, I. The Waterloo Medal. (Philadelphia.) 1885.
Patrick R. W. C. Catalogue of the Medals of Scotland. 1884.
Poole, Stanley Lane-. Coins and Medals. 1894.
Poole, Stanley Lane-. Coins and Medals: their Place in History and Art. 1885.
Simon, T. Medals, Coins, Great Seals, Impressions from the Works of T. Simon, 1648-65. 1753.
Simonis, J. L'Art du Médailleur en Belgique. 1900. (Brussels.)
Spink & Son. Hints to Collectors of Coins and Medals. 1898.
Steward, W. Augustus. War Medals and their Histories. 1915.
Steward, W. Augustus. War Medals Won by Boys. Article in The Boy's Own Paper, vol. xxxvii. p. 327.
Tancred, G. Historical Record of Medals conferred on the British Navy, Army, and Auxiliary Forces. 1891.
Weber, F. P. Medals of the Nineteenth Century relating to England by Foreign Artists. 1894.
Whalley, J. L. Gold War Medals. 1888.
WORKS DEALING WITH MILITARY PRINTS
(The collector of military prints will find many interesting items listed under the head of "Crests, Badges, and Uniforms.")
Ashton, John. English Caricature and Satire on Napoleon I. 1884.
British Volunteers, or a General History of the Formation and Establishment of the Volunteer and Associated Corps. With coloured plates. 1799.
Broadley, A. M. Napoleon in Caricature, 1795-1821. 1911.
Campion, G. B. Principal Evolutions of the Royal Horse Artillery. Coloured plates. 1846.
Cannon, R. Historical Records of the British Army. Contains a sumptuous collection of coloured reprints representing the various regiments of the Army. 1834.
Connolly, T. J. W. History of the Royal Sappers and Miners. Coloured plates. 1855.
Cruikshank, G. Life of Napoleon, by W. H. Ireland, and plates by G. Cruikshank. 1828.
Daubrawa, H. de. Costumes of the Indian Army. Coloured plates. 1843.
Davenport, Lieutenant-Colonel. The Light Horse Drill for the Volunteer Corps. Uncoloured plates. (A valuable work.) 1800.
Dayes, E. The First Regiment of the Foot Guards. Coloured plates. (Also companion volumes of the Second and Third Regiments.)
Ewart, Herbert. Henry Brinbury, Caricaturist. Article in The Connoisseur, vol. vi. p. 85.
Gillray, James. Caricatures, comprising the best Political and Humorous Satires of the Reign of George III. (Six hundred large engravings.) 1850.
Gunn, Maurice J. Print Restoration and Picture Cleaning. (With chapters on "Print Fakes and their Detection" and "Prints to Collect.")
Hayden, Arthur. Chats on Old Prints.
Heath, W. A Collection of 52 Coloured Plates of the Costumes of the British Cavalry and Infantry Regiments. 1827.
Nevill, Ralph. British Military Prints. (A valuable guide for collectors of military pictures.) 1909.
WORKS DEALING WITH MILITARY BRASSES
Beaumont, Edward. Ancient Memorial Brasses. 1913.
Beaumont, Edward. Three Interesting Hampshire Brasses. (Reprinted from the Hampshire Field Club Society's Papers.) 1914.
Boutell, C. Monumental Brasses and Slabs. 1847.
Boutell, C. The Monumental Brasses of Great Britain. 1849.
Brasses of England. (Antiquary's Books.) 1907.
Druitt, H. Manual of Costume as Illustrated by Monumental Brasses. 1906.
Fisher, Thomas. Drawings of Brasses in some Kentish Churches. 1913.
Griffin, Ralph. Some Indents of Lost Brasses in Kent, Canterbury Cathedral, Rochester Cathedral, Saltwood Church. 1914.
Gunther, R. F. A Description of Brasses and other Funeral Monuments in the Chapel of Magdalen College, Oxford. 1914.
Haines. A Manual of Monumental Brasses. 1861.
Hudson. The Brasses of Northamptonshire. 1853.
Macklin, Herbert. Monumental Brasses. 1892.
Macklin, Herbert. The Brasses of England. 1913.
Stoke D'Abernon Manor House. (Describes the oldest brass in England.) Article in The Country Home, vol. i. p. 6.
Stothard. Monumental Effigies of Great Britain. 1840.
Suffling, Ernest R. English Church Brasses of the Thirteenth to Seventeenth Centuries. (Contains over two hundred illustrations.)
Transactions of the Monumental Brass Society, 1887.
Waller. A Series of Monumental Brasses. 1842.
Ward, J. Brasses. (Cambridge Shilling Manual.) 1910.
WORKS DEALING WITH AUTOGRAPHS
Broadley, A. M. Chats on Autographs. 1910.
Scott, Henry T. Autograph Collecting.
Scott, H. T. Rational Autograph Collecting. Article in The Connoisseur, vol. i. p. 114.
WORKS DEALING WITH WAR POSTAGE STAMPS
Armstrong, D. B. Postage Stamps of War. 1914.
Johnson, Stanley C. Peeps at Postage Stamps. 1915. (Chapter XIII.)
Melville, Fred J. Chats on Postage Stamps. 1911.
Melville, Fred J. The Postage Stamp in War. 1915.
Nankivell, Edward J. South African War Stamps. Article in The Connoisseur, vol. i. p. 40.
WORKS OF A MISCELLANEOUS CHARACTER OF INTEREST TO COLLECTORS OF MILITARY CURIOS
Abell, Francis. Prisoners of War in Britain, 1756-1815. 1915. (Includes an interesting account of objects made by prisoners during their confinement.)
Alexander, Sir J. E. Life of the Duke of Wellington. 2 vols. 1839.
Atkinson, Captain J. The A B C of the Army. 1910.
Baily, J. T. Herbert. Napoleon. (Published by The Connoisseur.)
Barnard. Companion to English History. (Middle Ages.) 1902. (Especially the chapters on "Costume, Military and Civil"; and also "The Growth of Firearms.")
Broadley, A. M. The Collectanea Napoleonica: being a catalogue of the collection of Autographs, Historical Documents, Broadsides, Caricatures, Drawings, Maps, Music, Portraits, Naval and Military views, etc., relating to Napoleon I and his Times, 1769-1821. Formed by A. M. Broadley. 1905.
Catalogue of the Royal United Service Museum. 1914. (Not only a catalogue but a reference book containing much useful information on military curios.)
Clifford, W. G. The British Army. (The "Peeps" Series.) 1915.
Cope Cornford, L. The Black Watch: the Story of the Regiment. (Wayfarers' Library.) 1915.
De Lacy Lacy, C. The History of the Spur. (Issued by The Connoisseur.)
Fortescue. A History of the British Army. 1899.
Freeth, Frank. Some Old English Delft Dishes. Article in The Connoisseur, vol. iii. p. 148.
Grose. Military Antiquities, 1801. (Though some of the information contained in this volume has been discredited, the work is, none the less, one that the student should carefully note.)
Hodgkin, John E. Rariora collected between 1858-1900. 3 vols. (Published by Sampson, Low, Marston.)
Hood, George. Famous Fighting Regiments.
Johnson, Stanley C. Saturday with My Camera. (Chapter XXXIII, which deals with the photography of curios such as medals, brasses, etc.)
King Albert's Book. A Tribute to the Belgian King and People from representative men and women throughout the World. Hodder and Stoughton. 1914. Price 3s.
Lillingston, Leonard W. The Art of Extra-Illustration. Article in The Connoisseur, vol. iv. p. 272.
Lillingston, Leonard W. The Catnach Press. Article in The Connoisseur, vol. iii. p. 180.
Lumsden, Sir P. Lumsden of the Guides. (Publisher, Mr. Murray.)
Morris and Jordan. An Introduction to the Study of Local History and Antiquities. 1910.
Nelson, Philip, Dr. The Copper Coinage of Ireland. 1905.
Nelson, Philip, Dr. The Obsidional Money of the Rebellion. 1907.
Scott, S. The British Army: its Origin, Progress, and Equipment, 1860.
Smith, Sir Harry. The Autobiography of. (Publisher, Mr. Murray.)
Willoughby, Leonard. Naworth Castle. (An Account of the Military Curios of the Castle.) Article in The Country Home, vol. vi. p. 111.
Willson, Beckles. Portraits and Relics of General Wolfe. Article in The Connoisseur, vol. xxiii. p. 3.