Statement

This poster which is advertising for a Christmas play entitled The Grecian Carver most certainly dates from the same period as the advertisement for Dedham Grammar School in the same collection. It is illustrated in the same way and refers to the same headmaster and illustrator. The illustrations which are italianated are quite varied. The top left design represents an antique scene with a Greek temple, a statue of Hermes and a man, a sculptor probably, with a bust and some instruments at his feet. On the other side in the right hand corner there is the picture of a naval scene referring to the city of Argos which in the antiquity had acquired great wealth thanks to its strong fleet. The artist makes then the comparison with Britain’s naval superiority which contributed to the acquisition of riches from such places as India. On the bottom right hand side there is an engraving of an Italian landscape which illustrates three Italian proverbs and three lines all referring to the idea that diligence and economy lead to wealth. On the bottom left the engraving of a Florentine city illustrates the sentence ‘A city of good repute’ written above. The moral theme goes further in the central design where characters from Aesop’s Fables such as The Fox and the Crow can be seen. There are also some Italian actors in the centre. So altogether a complex poster with a moral theme in line with the ethos of the school and its Latin and Greek based education.

Bibliography

Dedham in an area of outstanding natural beauty, Booklet published by the Dedham Vale Countryside Centre, Essex, 1999

Yearsley, Ian, Dedham, Flatford & East Bergholt, Phillimore & Co Ltd, Chichester, West Sussex, 1996

Evelyne Bell