French, circa 1790-1810
This pattern is licensed to Adelphi Paper Hangings by the Historical Society of Old Newbury.
Colorway A - two widths shown
© Richard Walker
Found in two front rooms of a 1777 Newburyport, Massachusetts house built for Captain William Pierce Johnson, this highly refined pattern reflects the taste for imported French papers in the early American Republic.
The manufacturer has not yet been identified, although other examples of work attributed to the same maker are in the collection of the Musée de Papier Peint in France. The highly refined Arabesque pattern suggests strongly that it was executed by one of the great Parisian manufacturers at the end of the 18th century.
The motifs are a subtle combination of the neoclassical themes, made fashionable by the then recent excavations at Herculaneum, combined with traditional florals, a specialty of the French. The printing and design are precise and of a quality far surpassing any of the wallpapers produced in America at that time.
The taste for neoclassical French papers continued from the 1790s right through the first decade of the 19th century. Neoclassical patterns similar to Adelphi’s Votive Goddess Arabesque are found in the 1805 Hancock-Wirt-Caskie House in Richmond, Virginia, and at the Mount in Bristol, Rhode Island, which was decorated after 1808.
Imperial Measurements: Repeat 21 ¼ inches, width 21 ½ inches, custom length, straight match.
Metric Measurements: 54 cm, 54.6 cm.
InquireFrench (Paris), circa 1780
Samples are available for all Adelphi Paper Hangings patterns. Standard pattern samples are 12 inches by 23 inches and are available for $15. for each pattern. Small samples, business envelope size, are available on request, at no charge (limited to 10 per customer).
Color choices for our patterns are not limited to those shown.
All Adelphi patterns can be custom colored to better acknowledge the paper's context. Additional lead time is required for all custom work.