Alexander Wilson Drake
Encyclopedia
Alexander Wilson Drake (1843–1916) was an American
artist, collector and critic, born near Westfield
, NJ
. He studied wood engraving
under John W. Orr of New York city, as well as oil and water-color painting. He was in the wood engraving business on his own account in New York city from 1865 to 1870. From 1870 to 1881 he was director of the art department of Scribner's Magazine
, and thereafter he held a similar position on the Century
and St. Nicholas
. In this capacity he did much to aid the development of the new school of wood engraving in America. He organized the Bartholdi loan association which raised the money to build the pedestal for the Statue of Liberty
in New York harbor. He was also identified with other important art movements in the United States. He was one of the nine men who founded the Grolier Club
in New York City
, and was elected a member of the Century association, the Players Club, the Architectural league, the Municipal art league of New York, and the Caxton club of Chicago, Ill.
.. They are interspersed with his engravings as well as photographic prints of his residence and art collection, and produced as a memorial by The Century Company
. His tribute poem written for Ignacy Jan Paderewski
was included. A print run of 500 hand-numbered copies was produced in 1916 and distributed to family and friends. The work also included tributes from notable people of the Age, including a biographical account written by William Fayal Clarke of Century Magazine. "To a public that knew little of his charming personality and influential labors in the interest of art Mr. Drake was known chiefly as a collector. In that field he was distinctly a creator, for he awakened the perception that objects of common use often enshrine the basic lineaments of beauty.". Pallbearers at his funeral included Walter Leighton Clark
, Charles Dana Gibson
& Robert Underwood Johnson
, among others.
.
.
Dr. George Frederick Kunz
wrote: “The extensive and remarkable collection of the late Alexander Wilson Drake, which was disposed of by the American Art Galleries of New York, March 10th to 17th, 1913, comprised a fine collection of finger rings, illustrating a large variety of forms and periods. There were in all nearly 800 examples, set and unset. There were betrothal rings, memorials rings, gimmal rings, puzzle rings, rings of Roman, French, German, Italian, Spanish, Russian, Irish Scandinavian, English and American workmanship, and many Oriental rings, Sassanian, Indian, Japanese, Chinese, Hebrew, Gypsy and Moorish, one of the later being a gold circlet with the twelve signs of the zodiac engraved in high relief around it. The personality of the collector added greatly to the charm of this collection for all who had known him. As art editor of Century Magazine, and in a thousand other ways, no one had labored more enthusiastically and successfully in the cause of art encouragement and art education, and his death constituted a real loss for the progress of art in America…”
At this time of the auction in 1913, Dr. Kunz was still writing his famous book, Rings for the Finger, which came out a few years later in 1917, and perhaps he was also using the Drake Collection then being sold to estimate the value and interest of ancient rings among the public. One example is Lot #1795 “Massive Gold Parthian Finger Ring. Of the third or fourth century A. D. Found in the ruins of Ctesiphon
. Heavy six-sided shield with pierced, interlaced and chiseled ornamentation. Figure of a man with upraised arms supporting shield at either side. Entire hoop ornamented. One of the finest specimens in the collection.” Opposite it is the price in 1916 dollars: $170.00!
In the George Frederick Kunz Collection of the US Geological Survey Library, is some correspondence and notes about the Drake Collection. Attached to the copy of the auction catalog are newspaper accounts of the funeral of Alexander W. Drake, of which Dr. Kunz was one of the pallbearers. Also included is a “mourning letter” with black borders around the stationary, written by Mrs. Drake, thanking Dr. Kunz for his many years of friendship with Alexander W. Drake, who had been Kunz' editor at the Century Magazine and other publications. He also mentions in his book, Rings for the Finger, that Mrs. Edith T. Drake had given him a copy made in silver of the famous 1525 wedding ring of Martin Luther
to Katharina von Bora
, and the ring is also used as an illustration in his book.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
artist, collector and critic, born near Westfield
Westfield, New Jersey
Westfield is a town in Union County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the town population was 30,316. The old village area, now the downtown district, was settled in 1720 as part of the Elizabethtown Tract....
, NJ
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...
. He studied wood engraving
Wood engraving
Wood engraving is a technique in printmaking where the "matrix" worked by the artist is a block of wood. It is a variety of woodcut and so a relief printing technique, where ink is applied to the face of the block and printed by using relatively low pressure. A normal engraving, like an etching,...
under John W. Orr of New York city, as well as oil and water-color painting. He was in the wood engraving business on his own account in New York city from 1865 to 1870. From 1870 to 1881 he was director of the art department of Scribner's Magazine
Scribner's Magazine
Scribner's Magazine was an American periodical published by the publishing house of Charles Scribner's Sons from January 1887 to May 1939. Scribner's Magazine was the second magazine out of the "Scribner's" firm, after the publication of Scribner's Monthly...
, and thereafter he held a similar position on the Century
The Century Magazine
The Century Magazine was first published in the United States in 1881 by The Century Company of New York City as a successor to Scribner's Monthly Magazine...
and St. Nicholas
St. Nicholas Magazine
St. Nicholas Magazine was a popular children's magazine, founded by Scribner's in 1873. The first editor was Mary Mapes Dodge, who continued her association with the magazine until her death in 1905. Dodge published work by the country's best writers, including Louisa May Alcott, Francis Hodgson...
. In this capacity he did much to aid the development of the new school of wood engraving in America. He organized the Bartholdi loan association which raised the money to build the pedestal for the Statue of Liberty
Statue of Liberty
The Statue of Liberty is a colossal neoclassical sculpture on Liberty Island in New York Harbor, designed by Frédéric Bartholdi and dedicated on October 28, 1886...
in New York harbor. He was also identified with other important art movements in the United States. He was one of the nine men who founded the Grolier Club
Grolier Club
The Grolier Club is a private club and society of bibliophiles in New York City. Founded in January 1884, it is the oldest existing bibliophilic club in North America. The club is named after Jean Grolier de Servières, Viscount d'Aguisy, Treasurer General of France, whose library was famous; his...
in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, and was elected a member of the Century association, the Players Club, the Architectural league, the Municipal art league of New York, and the Caxton club of Chicago, Ill.
Three Midnight Stories
In addition to his engraving, he was known as both a writer and an art collector. Several short stories and poems were brought together in 1916 in what are called the Three Midnight StoriesThree Midnight Stories
Three Midnight Stories is an English-language collection of three of Alexander Wilson Drake's short stories along with several poems brought together and interspersed with many of his engravings, as well as photographic prints of his residence and art collection.This printing, the first and only...
.. They are interspersed with his engravings as well as photographic prints of his residence and art collection, and produced as a memorial by The Century Company
The Century Company
The Century Company was an American publishing company, founded in 1881.It was originally a subsidiary of Charles Scribner's Sons, but was bought and renamed. The magazine it had published up to that time, Scribners Monthly, was renamed The Century Illustrated Monthly Magazine.The Century Company...
. His tribute poem written for Ignacy Jan Paderewski
Ignacy Jan Paderewski
Ignacy Jan Paderewski GBE was a Polish pianist, composer, diplomat, politician, and the second Prime Minister of the Republic of Poland.-Biography:...
was included. A print run of 500 hand-numbered copies was produced in 1916 and distributed to family and friends. The work also included tributes from notable people of the Age, including a biographical account written by William Fayal Clarke of Century Magazine. "To a public that knew little of his charming personality and influential labors in the interest of art Mr. Drake was known chiefly as a collector. In that field he was distinctly a creator, for he awakened the perception that objects of common use often enshrine the basic lineaments of beauty.". Pallbearers at his funeral included Walter Leighton Clark
Walter Leighton Clark
Walter Leighton Clark was an American businessman, inventor, and artist based in Stockbridge, Massachusetts and New York City. Among other achievements, in 1923 he founded with John Singer Sargent the Grand Central Art Galleries, located within New York City's Grand Central Terminal, to offer...
, Charles Dana Gibson
Charles Dana Gibson
Charles Dana Gibson was an American graphic artist, best known for his creation of the Gibson Girl, an iconic representation of the beautiful and independent American woman at the turn of the 20th century....
& Robert Underwood Johnson
Robert Underwood Johnson
Robert Underwood Johnson was a U.S. writer and diplomat. His wife was Katharine Johnson.-Biography:A native of Washington, D.C., Johnson joined the staff of The Century Magazine in 1873...
, among others.
Drake Art Collection
A hint of his collection skills is given in a printed catalog of the Alexander Wilson Drake Collection, which was sold at public auction in 1913. The collection included “…Antique samplers and needlework, fragments of old printed chintz, bandboxes, wallpaper, glass bottles, pottery, china, pewter, engraved pledge glasses, antique silver cups and ladles, an extraordinary collection of old finger rings, silver, enameled and pearl snuff boxes, patch boxes and vinaigrettes, old paintings and prints.”Dr. George Frederick Kunz
George Frederick Kunz
George Frederick Kunz was an American mineralogist and mineral collector.- Overview :Kunz was born in New York City, USA, and began an interest in minerals at a very young age. By his teens, he had amassed a collection of over four thousand items, which he sold for four hundred dollars to the...
wrote: “The extensive and remarkable collection of the late Alexander Wilson Drake, which was disposed of by the American Art Galleries of New York, March 10th to 17th, 1913, comprised a fine collection of finger rings, illustrating a large variety of forms and periods. There were in all nearly 800 examples, set and unset. There were betrothal rings, memorials rings, gimmal rings, puzzle rings, rings of Roman, French, German, Italian, Spanish, Russian, Irish Scandinavian, English and American workmanship, and many Oriental rings, Sassanian, Indian, Japanese, Chinese, Hebrew, Gypsy and Moorish, one of the later being a gold circlet with the twelve signs of the zodiac engraved in high relief around it. The personality of the collector added greatly to the charm of this collection for all who had known him. As art editor of Century Magazine, and in a thousand other ways, no one had labored more enthusiastically and successfully in the cause of art encouragement and art education, and his death constituted a real loss for the progress of art in America…”
At this time of the auction in 1913, Dr. Kunz was still writing his famous book, Rings for the Finger, which came out a few years later in 1917, and perhaps he was also using the Drake Collection then being sold to estimate the value and interest of ancient rings among the public. One example is Lot #1795 “Massive Gold Parthian Finger Ring. Of the third or fourth century A. D. Found in the ruins of Ctesiphon
Ctesiphon
Ctesiphon, the imperial capital of the Parthian Arsacids and of the Persian Sassanids, was one of the great cities of ancient Mesopotamia.The ruins of the city are located on the east bank of the Tigris, across the river from the Hellenistic city of Seleucia...
. Heavy six-sided shield with pierced, interlaced and chiseled ornamentation. Figure of a man with upraised arms supporting shield at either side. Entire hoop ornamented. One of the finest specimens in the collection.” Opposite it is the price in 1916 dollars: $170.00!
In the George Frederick Kunz Collection of the US Geological Survey Library, is some correspondence and notes about the Drake Collection. Attached to the copy of the auction catalog are newspaper accounts of the funeral of Alexander W. Drake, of which Dr. Kunz was one of the pallbearers. Also included is a “mourning letter” with black borders around the stationary, written by Mrs. Drake, thanking Dr. Kunz for his many years of friendship with Alexander W. Drake, who had been Kunz' editor at the Century Magazine and other publications. He also mentions in his book, Rings for the Finger, that Mrs. Edith T. Drake had given him a copy made in silver of the famous 1525 wedding ring of Martin Luther
Martin Luther
Martin Luther was a German priest, professor of theology and iconic figure of the Protestant Reformation. He strongly disputed the claim that freedom from God's punishment for sin could be purchased with money. He confronted indulgence salesman Johann Tetzel with his Ninety-Five Theses in 1517...
to Katharina von Bora
Katharina von Bora
Katharina von Bora, referred to as "die Lutherin", was the wife of Martin Luther, Germanleader of the Protestant Reformation. Beyond what is found in the writings of Luther and some of his contemporaries, little is known about her...
, and the ring is also used as an illustration in his book.