Wallpaper

Maker & role
Unknown, Maker
 Production date
Early 20th Century
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Object detail

Collection
Caroline Simpson Library & Research Collection
Measurements
0 - Whole, L: 51 x W: 51cm (L: 510 x W: 510mm); Pattern repeat, L: 18 x W: 18cm (L: 180 x W: 180mm)
Signature & marks
Stamped on reverse in two places: "L10970"
Credit line
Acquisition, 1990
Caroline Simpson Library & Research Collection, Museums of History New South Wales
Caption
Wallpaper sample, early 20th century
Description
The size of this sample and the number printed on the reverse indicate that together with four other similarly marked samples found at the same time, it originally formed part of a wallpaper sample book. The thick brown paper heavily embossed with a shiny surface was a cheap imitation of Japanese Leather wall coverings of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Japanese Leather wallpaper was in fact, made of a thick embossed paper, covered with a layer of tin foil, and treated with several coats of lacquer to give it a sheen that resembled the embossed leathers hung on the walls during the Renaissance period. From the 1860s, leather papers were manufactured in Japan and exported to western countries which were becoming increasingly influenced by Japanese arts and crafts. However, many of the designs used European motifs. Because of their high cost, genuine leathers were the preserve of the wealthy, so imitations like this sample would have been used by the less affluent. Japanese Leathers were a favoured decoration in entrance halls, and in 'masculine' public spaces like dining rooms where they would give off a lustrous golden sheen under late 19th century gaslights.
Accession number
L90/55-2

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