Art Nouveau–A Bat–Some Lore–and More
New Art: A period between 1895 and 1905… represented by a movement
that bridged the psychological gap between old and new … dominated
by the fields of Arts and Crafts … a transitional time between the
influences of old and new … a time when creativity reigned and
imagery presented itself to the world in charismatic boldness.
The Bat – A Fact: The only species of animals on this earth that
are in their entirety a flying group. There are insects that can not
fly. There are birds that can not fly. However … there are no bats
that can not fly. Verry eenteresting … eh wot?
New Art: Late nineteenth century … early twentieth century. It was
the time of Lalique … and Fouquet … and Gaillard …and the
Vever brothers. It was also the time of an unknown – unknown to me
that is – of an unknown artist who created this strange and weirdly
beautiful Bat Necklace … made of base metal and Plique-A-Jour
enamel. I love it … but then again … I love the off-beat.
The Bat – Some LoRe: Take the heart of a Bat … dry it … bring
it down to a powder … carry it in your front pocket … and you
will be able to deflect bullets. Please pass this on only to crime
fighters. We don’t want this to get into the wrong hands
… do we now? Want to see in the dark … wash your face in Bat
Blood. There is a superstition that states that if you want good
luck you have but to kill a bat with a gold coin. And how does one
go about doing that I wonder. A quick Bat Fact. Of all the
anti-coagulants known to man … the chemical in Bat saliva is the
most potent known to modern medicine.
Art Nouveau: One of the interesting aspects of New Art was in its
rich treatment of surface texture. It is in this aspect that our
little furry flying fellow is quite distinct … for his little
mammalian textured bod is quite striking. He is worth … by the way
… about $4000.00 in today’s market. Not bad for a non- precious
metal creature about fourteen inches wide.
Bat Fact: As we plod along on those paths whose trails will one day
demarcate the history of our lives … we occasionally come across
the ridiculous. I pass one of these ridiculous items along to you
dear readers … as my final refrain to this Tidbit. In 1962 … in
New York City … an edict was passed by the City Council
prohibiting the sale of Voodoo drugs. Bat’s blood was one of the
items on the prohibited list. I wonder who it was that hired the
person who had the incredible acumen to think up that one.
For those of you who are new to this thing called Tidbits…may I
direct you to my home page at www.tyler-adam.com where you will
scroll down the left side menu till you get to the area that says
Tidbits Graphics … and then click on the link that says: Le Bat
… where you will see a graphic of our necklace.
And there ya have it. That’s it for this week folks. Catch you all
next week. Benjamin Mark
TYLER-ADAM CORP.–Jewelry Manufacturers
Tel – 1-800-20-TYLER
E-Mail: webmaster@tyler-adam.com