BBC History of the World in Objects Screenshot

A screenshot of the page containing the True Lover's Knot, which was accepted following review by the BBC A History of the World in 100 Objects. The "Knot" also appears in their Flash timeline, by scrolling along the vertical bar on that page to 1801.

BBC History of the World Submission

I submitted the True Lover's Knot to the UK's BBC Channel 4 Radio program "A History of the World in 100 Objects." The show details human history via objects in The British Museum's collections. They have been reviewing objects which listeners can voluntarily submit, and which relate to the concept. I've been downloading the podcasts of the show via iTunes, and it's fascinating.

I'm happy to say The True Lover's Knot was accepted following a confirmation email, transcribed below, received today!

"Congratulations. You've made history. Your object is now part of A History of the World."

See your True Lover's Knot on the website:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/ahistoryoftheworld/objects/-pl2cwtBR8-Dy0Sm4CsgeQ

Quaker Schoolmasters

Re Hugh Pugh (b. 1747-d. aft 1807) the pen artist who made the 1801 "True Lover's Knot" for my great great great grandmother Mary Fisher, was an itinerant Quaker Schoolmaster by profession. He migrated from southeastern PA's Chester County westward into Bedford and later Washington Counties, beginning around 1770 and into the early 19th c.

Reading about Chester Co. Quakers in the 18th c. from the book West Chester to 1865: That Elegant & Notorious Place. (Douglas R. Harper, Chester County Historical Society, 1999) Apparently, school teachers at the time were often "selected not so much for their learning but because they were men incapacitated for farm work by the effects of diseases or injuries."

Hugh was born with "but one hand" (per a mention by his father—Hugh Pugh Sr.'s last Will & Testament in the Chester Co. Archives), thus his career was essentially decided for him @ birth. His father specifically stipulated in his will that his youngest son—who was only about 2 years of age at his father's death—be educated so that he could make a living. Making it still more wondrous that he was such an excellent draftsman.

His father bequeathed him a sum of money—£80 pounds—to be dispersed to him at age 21 as well, but no property. £80 of unskilled wages in the latter 18th c. calculates to an equivalent worth in today's dollars of somewhere around $69K.

Fraktur Symposium

Attended the Fraktur Symposium yesterday held at the main branch of the Free Library of Philadelphia. A day long free (!) event featuring speakers who are expert scholars in the field.

Dr. Don Yoder, U of P, spoke in the afternoon—detailing his suggestions for advancing research on Pennsylvania's Fraktur traditions.

Thrilled to hear him suggest that research needs to be done regarding True Lover's Knots, which he termed a "parallel form to Fraktur." I was delighted to introduce myself to him after the program and showed him an image of my TLK, which he pronounced to be an important example of the form.

Looking forward to receiving a copy of his article, written some years back, specifically on the topic of Lover's Knots. I've heard of it, but haven't been fortunate enough to encounter a copy of it to date. Of course, I do hope he follows up and sends it on to me. If not, I met two other attendees who have access to a copy, so I can pursue those avenues if necessary.

This link is to just one of the 5 TLKs in the Free Library's collection, which I saw in person last year, thanks to an aid in the Rare Books Department:

http://tinyurl.com/y9md9vb

Clearly it relates to the piece I own, both in terms of geometric form and the copy included in the labyrinth bands—tho it dates a full 20 years after. All five TLKs in the PFL collection date after mine, and—unlike Hugh Pugh's—all are anonymous (unsigned) and undated.

I highly recommend a visit to the current exhibit of Fraktur in the 3rd Floor Rare Books department galleries. The exhibit is entitled Art and Artifact: Pennsylvania German Fraktur. It's on display until November 10th of this year. This links to the fantastic Digital Collection of 13,000 Fraktur in the PFL's collections:

http://libwww.freelibrary.org/fraktur/index.cfm

Appraisement Update

The appraisement for Insurance purposes of this early 19th century Lover's Knot or Valentine is complete and I've received an Affadavit Copy to that end, from Freeman's (America's Oldest Auction House) in Philadelphia, to that end from Lynda A. Cain, Appraiser.

The document states that the fixed value by her in the appraisement is the fair market values for replacement purposes, taking into consideration wear, tear and depreciation, to the best of her knowledge, information and belief, as follows:

American School, 19th Century
A Lover's Knot or Valentine for Mary Fisher
Bedford County, Pennsylvania,
signed and dated "Hugh Pugh, 1801"
watercolor and ink on laid paper,
12-3/4 inches square, framed.

$XX,XXX.XX

Note: Correspondence and accompanying
genealogy and publications.

Genealogy Guys Acknowledgment

The Genealogy Guys, George G. Morgan and Drew Smith discuss genealogy-- their podcast is the longest-running, continuous genealogy podcast in the world. ( http://www.genealogyguys.com/ )

They kindly made a follow-up mention in the June 4th '08 episode to the True Lover's Knot referencing their original story in their December '07 podcast. They generously mention the Real Simple magazine publication and link to it and this blog.

(The story begins at about the 14th minute into the recording.)

Here's the link to that particular mp3 Direct download:
genealogyguys-2008-06-04.mp3

And here's the original podcast story from the Guys' December '07 episode mp3 Direct download:
genealogyguys-2007-12-29.mp3

Keep it or Sell it?

I submitted the Knot to Real Simple magazine, via a contact at Time, Inc., last year. As a result, its image was published along with a brief caption in the June 2008 issue which hit the newstands the week of May 11th.

It also appears online at this link:

http://www.realsimple.com/realsimple/gallery/0,21863,1739324-9,00.html

The article, "Keep It or Sell It?" appeared in the Home section and was subtitled: "Sometimes only an expert can tell whether an object is worth $350 or $3.50. Nine Real Simple readers find out the value of their stuff."

The image and the copy relating to the Knot appeared in the 9th, last column, of the 4-page piece. I suppose it was the penultimate placement, as it was the piece with potentially the most monetary value attached to it.

The article was written by Nicole Sforza, the editor of the Home section, and Kendell Cronstrom. The appraisers they enlisted to examine the submissions included two who were quoted regarding the Knot's value-- and their opinions differed.

Susan Bednar Long, a principal of Tocar Interior Design in NYC, suggested it could be worth thousands, but that it "probably has more sentimental value"... while Jim Antone, owner of Pleasant Cove Antiques in Florida, disagreed, suggesting it "belongs in a museum" and estimating its worth at tens of thousands.

Today, I followed up my email correspondence with Samuel T. Freeman of Freeman's -- "America's Oldest Auction House" on Chestnut Street in downtown Philadelphhia.

I met with two representatives at their bi-monthly Wednesday open appraisal days-- Amy Parenti, the Coordinator and Jim Buckley, the Executive Vice President.

They seemed intrigued, and suggested that I leave the piece-- yes, I got a receipt!-- for review by one of their Americana experts in the field. I should have their appraisal in writing in about two weeks. In the meantime, the Lover's Knot resides in their temperature-controlled vault until I can retrieve it.

I supplied them with lots of "provenance" materials for reference, which they made copies of as well. I feel that I'm doing the right thing, protecting this family asset by having it properly appraised, and ultimately insured.

Hugh Pugh's fine work is now published nationally and I'm thrilled to have brought his legacy into the light of day.