Author
Unknown
Publication Date
1705
Publication Place
Istanbul (City) (made) Turkey (made) -
Subject
Fashion Leather
Type
Other
Language
Undetermined
Digital
Yes
Manuscript
No
Physical Dimensions
Height: 10.5cm, Width: 19.1cm
Library
Victoria and Albert Museum
Library Asset ID
W.13-1967
Record ID
W.13-1967
Library Location
Middle East Section
Date
1705
Notes
Object Type This purse is one of a number of leather wallets in existence that were brought back to Britain as souvenirs from Constantinople (Istanbul). These wallets are all personalised with gold and silver embroidery which states the owner's name and the date and place of purchase. Time & Place Constantinople, situated on the Bosphorus Straights, was the capital of the Byzantine empire for 1,100 years. After the Ottoman Turks captured the city in 1453 they renamed it Istanbul. However, Europeans usually referred to the metropolis by its former name. It was a shopper's paradise, crammed with boutiques that sold sophisticated luxuries, such as this leather wallet. People We do not know anything about Robert St Leger. The early date of 1705 makes it unlikely that he was a tourist. However, many English merchants were active in the Ottoman empire at this time. For example, in Aleppo, Syria, the English had the largest khan (warehouse) of all the European traders. 'Factors' or representatives of the English trading houses tended to be younger sons of wealthy families, looking to make a fortune in exchanging such commodities as English wool for Iranian silk. Perhaps this was Robert St Leger's occupation. He may have commissioned the wallet as a memento of his stay abroad on returning home to Britain via Constantinople.
Malzemeler ve teknikler
Leather, embroidered with silver and gold thread
Fiziksel açıklama
Leather case of brown leather, now faded (the original colour can be seen beneath the flap). Embroidered with silver and gold thread with formal floral motifs. Under the flap is embroidered in silver ROBERT:S(t): LEGER, and on the back 'Constantinople' in italic with elaborate scrolls, and below the date 1705. Inside is a pocket and a flat of the red leather.
Üretim
Made for Robert St Leger
