The Edwardian aesthetic
QI am helping a friend with her family research. We have a particular problem with her great-grandfather, George Frederick Howe, a civil engineer. He married Apolline Wautier and their daughter, Alice Catherine Howe, was born in Brussels in 1869. Alice married Nelson Christopherson, my friend’s grandfather, in England in 1894. However, we can find no trace of either George, or his wife, Apolline. We have this family photograph and wonder if it could possibly represent George Frederick Howe and family members? However, their ages are currently difficult to reconcile with the probable ages of the subjects. Therefore it would be very helpful to know the likely date of the photograph and whether the furnishings and costumes suggest that it has a continental origin. Thank you for your advice.
AA domestic setting?
Dr Chris Pitcher
This is a beautiful photograph taken perhaps by an experienced amateur photographer accustomed to taking pictures indoors, but most likely by a professional operator. The elegant setting is a relaxed, airy room that reflects modern Edwardian aesthetic taste and the vogue for comfortable light-filled interiors. The leaded stained glass panes at the top of the windows that form the backdrop are of art nouveau (early-1900s) design, the lower glass panels shielded by fine lace-edged blinds. The striking assemblage of plants, from tropical palms, through exotic ferns, to cut flowers in glass vases, reflects the love of natural floral and botanical forms at this time.
The setting could well be a domestic interior – a favourite conservatory-like sitting room in a modern middle-class home that had areas set aside for family reading and quiet conversation; alternatively it could (but less likely, I feel) be a comfortable seating area within a hotel, perhaps a tea room or relaxed lounge. Either way, there is nothing here to suggest that the location is not British: it could conceivably be European, but there are no ‘continental’ stylistic elements obvious here, and on balance I believe this is a British family home.
Edwardian attire
Apart from the Edwardian furnishings, we can date this scene closely from your ancestors’ appearance to c.1906-1910. In particular, the ladies’ pale-coloured blouses, high-necked and displaying full, elbow-length sleeves are typical of those exact years. Their soft, upswept hair, drawn up full off their foreheads and dressed into high chignons, is also more broadly characteristic of the early 20th century. The man wears a respectable lounge suit, his neatly-shaped lapels customary in the Edwardian era, his moustache the usual choice of facial hair for a middle-aged male.
Does the photo depict the daughter?
I am afraid that the 20th century date means we cannot possibly be looking at the elusive George Frederick Howe or Apolline Wautier, who would have been far too elderly to match the people pictured here. However, I do wonder whether the lady could be their daughter Alice Catherine Howe (aged 40 in 1909) with her husband, Nelson Christopherson. If the date here were 1909/1910, that might mean that the girl could conceivably be their 15/16-year old daughter, if indeed they had a baby girl soon after they married in 1894. Hopefully the firm date and these suggestions will set your friend in the right direction and help to solve the conundrum. JS