New Acquisitions: Drawings by Beatrix and Bertram Potter of Peter Rabbit, Mushrooms and a Kestrel

A Family of Artists: Beatrix, Rupert, and Bertram Potter

A Family of Artists: Beatrix, Rupert, and Bertram Potter

Many people pity Beatrix Potter for her restrictive upbringing with limited contact with other children in the family home at 2 Bolton Gardens, London.  For someone with her gifts, there were hidden advantages to her circumstances.  Instead of being sent to school, she was educated by governesses, one of whom, Annie Moore, became a life-long friend.  Beatrix and her younger brother Walter Bertram sound as if they were allowed to do pretty much what they liked in the school room on the top floor, which contained a small menagerie, a lab furnished with space for the dissection of specimens and their examination under the microscope.  There was plenty of time for them to record what they saw in detailed sketches.   In fact, they both drew constantly.

An unfinished portrait of Beatrix by Bertram in the collection of the V&A.

Their parents Rupert and Helen were artistic themselves and greatly attracted to nature; the family’s wealth afforded many opportunities to take extended summer vacations in Scotland and the Lake District.  From their teens onward, Beatrix and Walter used their freedom to explore the countryside and draw in their sketch books.  They surely found inspiration in the classic story “Eyes and No Eyes,” by John Aikin from Evenings at Home (1792-1796).  Many Victorian writers, including John Ruskin, Charles Kingsley, and Mrs. Molesworth, testified that reading it awakened their curiosity and sense of wonder when William described everything he saw on a walk to Broom Heath.  Nothing escaped his attention and everything delighted him, from the shy kingfisher, a cluster of sea shells in a marl pit, the remains of a Roman or Danish camp, the water rat who disappeared into his hole in the river bank.  I can imagine Beatrix and Walter taking as much satisfaction in their adventures as did William.

In 2023 and 2024 the Cotsen Children’s Library was exceptionally fortunate to have acquired two natural history drawings by Beatrix and one by Walter.Attracted by their strange beauty, Beatrix began painting fungi in the late 1880s but it was not until she made the acquaintance of Charles McIntosh, the so-called Perthshire Naturalist, that she began to make a serious study of them.  This fine drawing was not signed or dated by Beatrix, but it was for a time owned by Captain Kenneth Duke, one of her executors.  Doris Frohnsdorff, the distinguished Potter collector and antiquarian bookseller, purchased it and it was acquired from her estate.

Also from the Frohnsdorff estate is this beautiful drawing of a kestrel executed by Bertram in 1886, which displays his considerable talent as a natural history artist.  The small bird of prey is standing on one leg, the other one resting against the fluffy feathers on the lower part of the body.  Its bright black eyes stare fearlessly at the viewer.   Kestrels can be identified by the way they hover while hunting.  Since Bertram drew this specimen, the species’ population has dropped considerably.

Beatrix’s splendid watercolor over pencil drawing of Peter Rabbit’s head from ten different angles dated 1901.  It was torn out of a sketch book by Beatrix in 1928 and presented to seventeen-year-old Ernestine t’Hooft.  She was the daughter of a curator at the Museum Fodor in Amsterdam, who was visiting with the Lake District with her family.  During the visit, Ernestine bought a copy of Jemima Puddle-duck for her collection of Potter little books and the saleswoman told her that her favorite author lived nearby.  Her father wrote to Potter (or rather Mrs. Heelis) and asked if they might visit her.  The t’Hoofts were invited to tea and spent a very pleasant afternoon at Castle Cottage.  Before they left, she presented Ernestine with this marvelous drawing of Peter from ten different angles, inscribed and dated it 1928.  Ernestine kept her entire life: after her death, it came on the Dutch market.Last but not least is another new Potter acquisition that fills a gap in the collection–a  Christmas cards published by Hildesheimer and Faulkner illustrated from a drawing by Beatrix.  I’m not sure why coconuts were associated with the holiday season in the 1890s, but perhaps someone has an explanation?!

 

Happy Valentine’s Day: A Scrapbook Made by Helen Potter for her Daughter Beatrix

Cotsen 33205

From the collection of Doris Frohnsdorff. Album of Victorian chromolithographed Christmas and Valentine’s Day greeting cards. [England: between 1872 and 1878] (Cotsen 33205)

Contained within the unassuming binding above lies a secret treasure trove of Victorian ephemera. Compiled between 1872 and 1878 by none other than Helen Leech Potter, Beatrix Potter’s mother, this quarto volume is an album of cards for Valentine’s Day and Christmas given to young Beatrix, beginning when she was six years old. The cards are mostly from family (especially “Mama” and “Papa” and “Grandmama Leech”) and family friends like the Gaskells, Nurse MacKenzie, Dora Hollins, and a certain Mr Goul. Perhaps few artifacts remain that can rival the perfection with which this album documents the ornate and frilly taste of the late 19th century English middle class.

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Located at the head of the front free endpaper, this inscription indicates that the album itself was an 1872 Valentine’s gift for Beatrix (full name Helen Beatrix Potter) from her affectionate mother.

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Card at top of leaf [3]

Interestingly, the cards contain no hand written messages or signatures. Either notes accompanying the cards were discarded when the cards were pasted into the album or the sentiments printed on the cards themselves (which as you will see, can sometimes be quite lengthy) were deemed sufficient. Helen Potter diligently recorded the name of the gifter and the year the card was given, either inside the card or immediately below it.

Helen Potter's inscription inside the card shown above.

“From MacKenzie 1872”, Helen Potter’s inscription inside the card shown above. “Mackenzie” was Beatrix’s nurse.

Bottom of leaf [3]

Card at bottom of leaf [3], “From Mama 1872”

Leaf [4], "Grandmama Leech 1872", perhaps the biggest fan of paper lace.

Card on leaf [4], “Grandmama Leech 1872,” perhaps the biggest fan of embossed paper lace.

Inside of the card on leaf [4], perhaps a later original drawing by Beatrix Potter?

Inside of the card on leaf [4].

Leaf [6]. This leaf is one of many with sections or cards cut away, perhaps by Beatrix for a later project.

Leaf [6]. This leaf is one of many with sections or cards cut away, perhaps by Beatrix for a later project.

Card at top of leaf [6], unfortunately, we might never know "What makes a husband like a little dog".

Card at top of leaf [6] from “Aunt Mary 1873.”. Unfortunately, we won’t ever know “Why is a husband like a little dog?”

Leaf [7], "Mama 1873" at top and "MacKenzie 1873" at bottom

Leaf [7], “Mama 1873” at top and “MacKenzie 1873” at bottom.

The cards were printed by various English, German, and French sources, many unidentified. The majority, however, bear the recognizable imprint of the publisher Marcus Ward, a British company known for publishing illustrated books and mass producing greeting cards since the 1860’s. Marcus Ward’s Art Director, Thomas Crane, employed popular artists like Kate Greenaway and his son Walter Crane to design and illustrate the company’s greeting cards.

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Card on leaf [8], unattributed.

Card on Leaf [11], "Grandmama Leech 1874", perhaps in a bid to win Beatrix's affections. . .

Card on leaf [11], “Grandmama Leech 1874,” perhaps in a bid to win Beatrix’s affections? This is by far the largest card. . .

Card at top of leaf [13]

Card at top of leaf [13], “Papa 1874”.

Card at bottom of leaf [13], "Mr. Goul 1874".

Card at bottom of leaf [13], “Mr. Goul 1874”.

Card on leaf [14], "MacKenzie 1874", including a

Card on leaf [14], “MacKenzie 1874”, includes altered lines from William Wordsworth’s To the Daisy (1807) reading: “When smitten by the morning ray,/ I see thee rise, alert and gay;/ Then, cheerful flower, my spirits play/ With kindred gladness.”

Card on leaf [26], "Mr. McLaren 1876"

Card on leaf [26], “Mr. McLaren 1876”.

Card at top of leaf [28], "Dora Hollins 1878".

Card at top of leaf [28], “Dora Hollins 1878.”

Card at bottom of leaf [28], "Papa 1878"

Card at bottom of leaf [28], “Papa 1878”.

Card at top of leaf [29], "Bertram 1878", Walter Bertram Potter's first card to his older sister Beatrix., when he was 4 years old.

Card at top of leaf [29], “Bertram 1878”, Walter Bertram Potter’s first card to his older sister Beatrix, when he was 4 years old.

Card at bottom of leaf [29], "Papa".

Card at bottom of leaf [29], “Papa”.

Card on leaf [30], "From Mama 1878".

Card on leaf [30], “From Mama 1878”.

The last Valentine’s Day card in the album is the real coup de grâce. This unattributed card has it all: bright colors, frills, real lace ties, printed flowers, an intricate daisy border, and inside, a sickeningly sentimental segment of poetry taken from Thomas Hood’s I love Thee! (also unattributed):

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Card at top of leaf [40]

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Though Valentine’s Day cards have changed a lot in style since the Victorians shared them with friends and family, we have them to thank for the perfecting the mass production of cards and promoting their distribution.

If you still haven’t gotten a card for your sweetie, I hope you can draw some inspiration here for a last-minute tribute.

Happy Valentine’s Day from Cotsen and Beatrix Potter!