THE DISCARDED FAN.

New Zealand Herald, Volume L, Issue 15269, 5 April 1913, Page 6 (Supplement)

THE DISCARDED FAN.

ITSRETORN TO FASHION DUE TO .':;■'"'.;" STEP DANCING. , An effort is being made, says a writer in "The Standard," to resucitato the fan, which of recent years has fallen into disfavour, although at one time to show oneself ignorant of the proper use of that "coquettish toy'* was to prodaun one's social: inconsequence. < . Although tho fan was in general use in Europe by tho-end of the fourteenth cenand the tripdern Spanish woman is said to; bo the only woman who really understands the art of fan manipulation to perfection, it was the fifteenth century French woman who really started the cult of tho fan, which continued until the Revolution. In her hands it became a medium "for the expression of emotions; the blushing maiden used it as a screen for her telltale features. In experienced hands the fan spoke.in a language all its own. For daintiness of decoration the fans of the time of Louis XIV. stand unsurpassed, and a sarcastio French writer declared that "they'-aro really a.scampish lot, huge for intrigues arid flirtationaj unnecessary for piety and emotion." Englishwomen followed the example; of their French sisters i in this matter, aifd English gentlemen of J :' the seventeenth century carried fans like j any woman, though itis regrettable to add j , that the handles, sometimes half a. yard] long, were used as instruments for correcting unruly daughters. Upon the fans of the early eighteenth century the politic cal and social events and the fashions and ! follies of the day were mercilessly caricaj tared, and calendar fans, fortune-telling fans, fana with riddles and charades became the craze of the hbnr. Women even took their fans to church, but usually covI ered them with portraits of Bible heroes or celebrated preachers in order to bring J them into harmony with their surronnd- ; bigs. Indeed, the demand for fans became !so enormous that during tho eighteenth and part of the nineteenth centuries legis- ; lation was passed to limit the importation into England of foreign made fans, and the Fanmakers* Company, acting under a royal charter, controlled and regulated tho London fan trado. Interesting History. The histoiy of the evolution of the fan is interesting, Itis origin is steeped in antiquity and tradition, but according ;to a child's guide'•'■'to knowlcdgei printed in Chinese, tne fan was Invented by. an Emperor in the year B.C. 2609.; This was a simple affair of stiffened paper. A Japanese widow who became, a nun is said to have mtroduced the folding variety by improvising one from'a sheet of paper to fan the head of a sick abbot whom she was engaged in nursing, and the rivet which holds the sticks is said to commemorate the valour of a Japanese hero who subdued the eastern portion of the world by the simple expedient of running it through with his sword. But whatever their origin, fans rose from merely domestic implements to being emblems of royalty, religion, and authority in Egypt, India, Assyria, Mexico, and elsewhere. After tho French Revolution the use of fans fell into decay. The Fanmakers' Company haa from time to time promoted fan exhibitions in recent years, the most important being that held ! at the Japan-British Exhibition in 1910, j when tho Queen, Queen Alexandra,, and' several Princesses contributed, the most' important British fans shown being " Tho Red Fan,' and "Tho-Blue Fan," painted by Charles Condor, and designs by Mr. •Irank ißrangwyn, R.A. The present re- ' yival ,;of the- fan is said,; to bo 5 doe to the i return of step daricing and the fact that the minuet will, it is.said, bo shoitly seen i in London bdlrooras. But whatever the; reason. ;rio one will regret the reappear-"'! anco of the decorative trifle of which Mme> j de. Stad wrote.. ''.I will, wager that in all'. the geSr of the loveliest and best adorned women of fmllantry there is not a single ornament with which they can produce so great an effect as from their fans." ■■■■■,- <—miiiiiiwimnimiinMM tmmmmm