A 17th Century Dutch artist, born in Amsterdam, Hendrick Avercamp (1585-1634) specialized in winter landscapes.  His father Barent Avercamp was the town apothecary of Kempen.  Hendrick was deaf, and he may not have been able to speak. He was known as the Mute of Kampen. He suffered frequent illnesses. Winter landscape became his most popular subject, although he also could paint portraits, and his sketches sold well. He was probably taught to draw and paint by the Flemish artist Gilles Conixloo (1544-1607) and the Dutch artist David Vinckbooms (1576-1632).

“Winter Landscape with Skaters” (1608)

 “Winter Landscape with Skaters” (1608) (30’’x60’’) (Rijks Museum) (oil on wood panel) is thought to be one of the earliest paintings by Avercamp. He enjoyed skating on the winter ice with his parents. The setting is the town of Kampen, with homes, other buildings, and a church. The trees are leafless; the sky is almost as white as the ice, but people are out and about, some at work, while others enjoy games on the ice. Several small boats are ice bound. Kemper was a prosperous town because it was on the trade route between the Rhine River and the Zuiderzee.

The Dutch people were Protestants and the first to believe in education for everyone. They owned their homes and land, worked hard, and prospered. The clothing they wore indicated whether they were on the day at leisure or   working. Throughout the scene well-dressed men and women walk about in groups, engaging in conversation. Others skate or play colf, an early form of golf. A figure near the center of the painting has fallen on the ice. Several horse-drawn sleds provide rides. Typical of Avercamp’s painting, so much is happening.  At the lower left corner is a bird trap, a piece of wood held up by a stick. Tucked in the corner, a dog chews on a dead carcass. At the horizon, and hard to see, are the sails of a ship setting out to sea. The Dutch used landmarks and wind to aid navigation. 

“Winter Scene with Skaters Near a Castle” (1608)

“Winter Scene with Skaters Near a Castle” (1608) (16’’ in diameter) (National Gallery, London), another of Avercamp’s early paintings, depicts a castle as the focal point. Many of the same winter activities are depicted. There is a snowball fight going on at the left, as two young boys, one in a blue top and the other in orange, chase a young girl in the open area of the painting. Birds perch in the branches of the dead tree. 

The winter scenes are attributed to the Little Ice Age, a climate phenomenon that began in the 13th Century and ended in the early 18th Century. Winter came early and lasted well into spring. Heavy snows were frequent. Temperatures during the time of Avercamp’s paintings averaged well below zero.

“Winter Scene on a Canal” (1610)

Avercamp’s “Winter Scene on a Canal” (1610) (20”x36”) (Toledo Museum, Ohio) presents much the same array of people and events. The Toledo Museum closely examined the painting and produced the next three close-up images.

Winter Scene on a Canal” (1610) (detail 1)

In the foreground at the left, the elderly man with the white beard carries a basket. He is warmly wrapped from his head to his heavy pants and thick shoes. A rooster and two hens pick at the ice where feed has been thrown.

#5 Winter Scene on a Canal” (1610) (detail 2)

Along the foreground to the right, three men stand together. One is a fisherman with a net. He has used his axe to cut a hole in the ice. He holds a long spear to reach deep into the water to catch fish, and has a net to keep them in. He talks with a second man. A third man is carrying two baskets.  The two men likely came to buy fish from the first man. Just behind this group is a man colfing.

Winter Scene on a Canal” (1610) (detail 3)

Next to the group of fishermen are two couples in traditional Dutch black clothing. The men’s cloaks reach down to their knees, and the women’s cloaks reach to the ground. The men wear white ruff collars and tall black hats. The men wear wool bouffant knee breeches, both warm and comfortable. Leather boots or hose and shoes complete their attire. The attention of the black dog has been caught by a young lady whose image is found in the full scene.

“Winter Landscape with Flask Players” (1625)

“Winter Landscape with Flask Players” (1625) is a portrait of Averkamp and his brother Lambert as they compete hitting flasks. Both men have dark beards, but we may guess that the artist wears the colorful clothing.  Looking on is a well-known fisherman, in the red hat, and his son. The tools of their trade are the hatchet and a basket to carry the fish. The son carries the net to lift the fish from the water.

Several ships and boats are placed in the background. A consequence of the Little Ice Age, landmarks necessary to carry on trade became harder to find. Sailors’ journals record a sense of placelessness, at times unable to see or sense where they were, where they were going, or how to find home. Their English, French, and Danish rivals were all looking for a trade route to Asia. 

Avercamp’s paintings show the resilience of the Dutch to enjoy, survive, and thrive in difficult times. His paintings, although generally on one theme, were popular. He painted many and he prospered.

Beverly Hall Smith was a professor of art history for 40 years. Since retiring to Chestertown with her husband Kurt in 2014, she has taught art history classes at WC-ALL and the Institute of Adult Learning, Centreville. An artist, she sometimes exhibits work at River Arts. She also paints sets for the Garfield Theater in Chestertown

Christmas traditions we cherish were established during Queen Victoria’s reign (1837-1901).  Others are as old as the ancient Roman Saturnalia celebration held on December 17, still others were traditions from the time of the Tudors. Decorating Christmas trees was one of the earliest and most important traditions.  Germans brought cut fir branches into the house for their wonderful scent. Queen Charlotte (1744-1818) of Germany, who married George the III of England in 1760, was known by 1800 to decorate fir branches in the Queen’s Lodge at Windsor. These decorations may or may not have been complete trees. The British public was not yet aware of this practice.

“Christmas with Queen Victoria and Prince Albert” (1848)

When Prince Albert of Germany married Victoria, he decorated a full tree. “Christmas with Queen Victoria and Prince Albert” (1848), was published in the Illustrated London News, and everyone emulated the Queen. By the end of the century, the Christmas tree had become one of the most important elements of the Christmas celebration. The wood-engraving by Joseph Lionel Williams is a depiction of Victoria and Albert standing by a table that holds a decorated tree and hand-made wood figures. Five of their girls look on with pleasure. The tree is decorated with lighted candles and hanging from it are highly decorated packages and an assortment of Christmas treats. The rich and the poor of England were able to decorate their trees with paper wrapped treats. 

“First Christmas Card” (1843)

The decoration of a Christmas tree was only one of the new elements added to the celebration of Christmas. Sir Henry Cole, the first director of the South Kensington Museum, was too late to write his usual Christmas letter, and he commissioned artist John Calcott Horsley (1817-1903), a member of the Royal Academy, to design somethings for him to send. “First Christmas Card” (1843) depicts a merry middle-class family raising a glass to toast everyone as they sit down to a sumptuous Christmas dinner. A wooden grape arbor frames this central scene. At one side a poor man and his family share a meal. At the opposite side, charity is shown to a woman holding her baby. The spirit of Christmas is shared by all. 

Sending Christmas cards became popular. Victoria encouraged her children to make cards, and poor children also began to make cards. Cole had1000 cards printed, and he sold those he did not send. The first illustrated newspaper was published by 1842, and the first printed books were available by 1863, among them was Dickens’s very popular A Christmas Carol. Advances in the printing industry included the ability to print hand-colored lithographs, and then machine-colored ones. The mass sprinting of wrapping paper, cards, books, and newspapers all became possible during the time. 

“Buying Mistletoe” (1850)

Mistletoe became popular in Victorian households by the 1870s. The green leaves and white berries were symbolic of fertility and romance. The berries represented male fertility. The Romans regarded mistletoe as symbolic of peace and love, and it was hung over doorways to protect the household. Druids and Celts also decorated with mistletoe since it was native to the British Isles and to Europe.  “Buying Mistletoe” (1850), a Victorian print, shows a middle-class woman and her daughter purchasing mistletoe from a girl in the woods. Mistletoe is a parasite that grows on the tops of trees and remains green and white throughout the winter months. Popular with the serving-class, mistletoe became popular because it was possible for any man to kiss a girl under it. If the girl refused, she would have bad luck in finding a husband the following year.

“Pulling Christmas Crackers”

Christmas Crackers were invented by Tom Smith sometime between 1845 and 1850. On a visit to Paris in 1840, he saw French bon bons made of sugared almonds wrapped in a paper twist. He brought the idea back to London. He made and tried to sell bon bons that included a message wrapped with the candy. They did not sell. As he sat by a fire, the idea came to add noise to the candy. He bought a recipe for fireworks that would make a small bang. He added a cardboard tube, a strip of paper treated with a small amount of gunpowder, a short sentiment, usually a joke, and some type of paper crown or hat. When both ends of the cracker were pulled, the strip of paper ignited the gun powder. He named them “Bangs of Expectation.” They delighted young and old. 

“By Royal Warrants Tom Smith’s Illustrated Catalogue of Christmas Novelties”

The Tom Smith company expanded its Christmas Novelties collection. It was appointed by the Queen in 1847 to be the official supplier of crackers and wrapping paper 

“Children Singing Christmas Carols” (1886)

The book Christmas Carols New and Old, by Henry Ramsden Bramley and Sir John Stainer, was published in 1871. “Children Singing Christmas Carols” (1886), a Christmas carol book for children, was published by Ward Lock and Company. Various artists illustrated the book. Victorian caroling originally was called wassailing, the word meaning be well and in good health. Carolers went about the town singing and receiving cups of wassail, a hot spicey drink, for their efforts. In later years, carolers received gifts they then distributed to the poor. 

Singing songs and dancing in a circle in Europe is thousands of years old. Saturnalia is just one of the origins. The word carole is French.  Carols were written for all four seasons. Christians in Rome sang them in Latin. The carols were not popular since most people did not understand the words. St Francis of Assisi wanted Christmas songs to be sung in native languages. He also introduced pageants. Christmas carols were first introduced to England in 1426 by a Shropshire chaplain. During the age of Cromwell and Puritanism, Christmas caroling was considered pagan, and the practice was outlawed. Caroling was revived in 1880, and new carols were written, such as “Good King Wenceslas,” “God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen,” and “We Three Kings of Orient Are.”

WASSAIL!

Beverly Hall Smith was a professor of art history for 40 years. Since retiring to Chestertown with her husband Kurt in 2014, she has taught art history classes at WC-ALL and the Institute of Adult Learning, Centreville. An artist, she sometimes exhibits work at River Arts. She also paints sets for the Garfield Theater in Chestertown.

A Christmas Carol (1843) (title page of first edition)

Charles Dickens’s A Christmas Carol was published by Chapman and Hall in London in1843. The first illustrator John Leech created four hand-colored etched plates and four black and white wood engravings. His first illustration was “Mr. Fezziwig’s Ball” from Ebenezer Scrooge’s early life when he was in love and happy. By Christmas Eve, the first edition of 6000 books had sold out. Two new editions were sold out by the New Year. The story has never been out of print. The celebration of Christmas grew in popularity, and the Victorians developed new traditions.

Leech’s etching, the first appearance of the Ghost of Christmas Past, shows the jolly and rotund Mr. and Mrs. Fezziwig leading the dance. Fezziwig’s annual Christmas parties were famous. Known for his generosity and kindness, Fezziwig has provided a feast for all. A fiddler plays music from the balcony. Fezziwig’s elderly mother sits with some children and smiles at the joyous occasion. A young couple enjoy a kiss under the mistletoe. Holly hangs    from the ceiling. 

”Marley’s Ghost” (1843)

In “Marley’s Ghost” (1843), Scrooge’s former partner who has just died is an unexpected visitor on Christmas Eve. Dressed in his burial clothes, Marley drags chains and weights, the penance for his sins. Scrooge, in his nightclothes, sits near a small fire, eating a meager dinner. Only one candle lights the room. Leech has depicted the candle flame as a ghostly light. Marley warns Scrooge of the sins they both have committed in their business, and he forecasts the arrival of three spirits that will visit before Christmas Day. Scrooge must mend his cruel and miserly ways, or he will end up like Marley.

The Ghost of Christmas Present” (1843)

Leech draws upon the popular image of Father Christmas for “The Ghost of Christmas Present” (1843). He wears a dark green robe with white fur collar and sleeves. The room is filled with hanging greens. His torch and the fire provide light and warmth. His robe does not cover his chest, and his feet are bare. He wears a holly wreath decorated with mistletoe atop his curly brown hair. Around his throne are a rabbit, plum pudding, sausages, hams, and assorted other meats. He has a bowl of warm punch ready to share with Scrooge. He says to Scrooge, “Come in! Come in! and know me better, man.” He smiles, his eyes twinkle, and his voice is welcoming. 

This image is one of the most popular in the story. The Spirit introduced Scrooge to another world. They first visit a flourishing market, where the rich are purchasing provisions for their feasts. The Spirit then takes Scrooge to a poor man’s house, and then to the home of his nephew, Fred. Every year the kindly nephew invites Scrooge to the party, but he never attends. They visit the home of Bob Cratchit, Scrooge’s poor clerk. Scrooge learns about tiny Tim and that he will not live long. The Ghost repeated Scrooge’s own words to him, “If he be like to die, he had better do it, and decrease the surplus population.”

“Ignorance and Want” (1843)

The theme of the woodcut “Ignorance and Want” (1843) was for Dickens a main element in A Christmas Carol. The Spirit shows Scrooge two starving, and poor children. Scrooge asks, “Spirit, are they yours?” “They are Man’s,” said the Spirit, looking down upon them. “And they cling to me, appealing from their fathers. This boy is Ignorance. This girl is Want. Beware them both, and all of their degree, but most of all beware this boy, for on his brow I see that written which is Doom, unless the writing be erased. Deny it!  Slander those who tell it ye! Admit it for your factious purposes, and make it worse. And bide the end!” “Have they no refuge or resources?” cried Scrooge. “Are there no prisons?” said the Spirit, turning on Scrooge for the last time with his own words. “Are there no workhouses?”

Dickens was born into the middle class. His father was a spend-thrift. He squandered the family money and was committed to debtor’s prison. Dickens was forced to sell everything. His interest in the poor was established as a result, and he visited several locations where children were forced to work in intolerable conditions. He intended A Christmas Carol to send a moral message and to expose the dire circumstances created by the Industrial Revolution. He wrote letters, gave speeches, and fought to address the deplorable conditions of children in as many ways as he found possible.

“Bob Cratchit and tiny Tim” (1878)

Dickens enlisted artists to create additional images for the early publications of A Christmas Carol.  The black and white illustrations by Fred Barnard (1846-1896) are thought to be superior to the work by earlier artists. Barnard called himself the Charles Dickens among illustrators. “Bob Cratchit and tiny Tim” (1878) was another of the popular Dickens’s images. Bob Cratchit carried tiny Tim all over town, but particularly to church. His devotion to Tim was noted by everyone, young and old, rich and poor. A young boy with his dog delivers a large platter with the Christmas bird. A wealthy woman looks askance at the poor old woman. Her well-dressed daughter looks at an urchin who reaches out her hand. The young girl discretely hands the poor child a coin. The city of London is the backdrop. The distant clock tower resembles Big Ben.

“The Last of the Spirits, The Pointing Finger” (1843)

In Leech’s “The Last of the Spirits, The Pointing Finger” (1843), the Spirit 

of Christmas Present takes Scrooge to a graveyard. Scrooge implores, “Before I draw nearer to that stone to which you point, answer me one question. Are these the shadows of the things that Will be, or they the shadows of things that May be, only?” The Ghost points downward to the grave. Scrooge responds, “Men’s courses will fore-shadow certain ends, to which, if persevered in, they may lead. But if the courses be departed from, the end will change. Say it is thus with what you will show me!” Dickens wrote, “Scrooge crept toward it, trembling as he went, and followed the finger, read upon the stone of neglected grave his own name. EBENEZER SCROOGE 

“Cratchit and the Christmas Bowl” (1843)

Leech’s illustration “Cratchit and the Christmas Bowl” (1843) presents a changed Scrooge. He shares a drink with Bob Cratchit. Dicken’s text reads: “A merry Christmas, Bob! said Scrooge, with an earnestness that could not be mistaken, as he clapped him on the back. A merrier Christmas, Bob, my good fellow, than I have given you for many a year! I’ll raise your salary, and endeavor to assist your struggling family, and we will discuss your affairs this very afternoon, over a Christmas bowl of smoking bishop, Bob! Make up the fires, and buy another coal-shuttle before you dot another i, Bob Cratchit!” 

Have a Dickens of a Christmas

Note: Quotated material is drawn from Charles Dickens’s A Christmas Carol. 

1 Samuel 7, during the end of the time of the judges, Israel experiences revival under the leadership of Samuel. The nation repents of their sin, destroys their idols, and begins to seek the Lord (1 Samuel 7:2–4). Samuel gathered the people at Mizpah where they confessed their sin, and Samuel offered a sacrifice on their behalf (verses 5–9). (1 Samuel 7:13–14). To commemorate the divine victory, “Samuel took a stone and set it up between Mizpah and Shen. He named it Ebenezer, saying, ‘Thus far the LORD has helped us’” (verse 12). Ebenezer means “stone of help.” From then on, every time an Israelite saw the stone erected by Samuel, he would have a tangible reminder of the Lord’s power and protection. The “stone of help” marked the spot where the enemy had been routed and God’s promise to bless His repentant people had been honored. The Lord had helped them, all the way to Ebenezer.

Beverly Hall Smith was a professor of art history for 40 years. Since retiring to Chestertown with her husband Kurt in 2014, she has taught art history classes at WC-ALL and the Institute of Adult Learning, Centreville. An artist, she sometimes exhibits work at River Arts. She also paints sets for the Garfield Theater in Chestertown.