WILLIAM MORRIS (1834-1896) FOR MORRIS & CO. GROUP OF ORIGINAL TEXTILES, CIRCA 1880

comprising three panels of INDIAN DIAPER, introduced before 1875, 52cm x 49cm; 55cm x 40cm; 44cm x 55cm; two panels of SNAKESHEAD, designed 1876, printed cotton, 54cm x 36cm and 54cm x 40cm; a single panel of WANDLE, registered 1884, printed cotton, 76cm x 50cm; and a loose cover of the same pattern, main panel, 67cm x 140cm; a single panel of LEA, designed 1885, printed cotton, 92cm x 63cm; a single panel of STRAWBERRY THIEF, registered 1883, printed cotton, 49cm x 101; two loose covers of EVENLODE, registered 1883, printed cotton; and a selection of Morris & co fabric scraps; two panels of PEONY, designed by Kate Faulkner, 1875, printed cotton, 36cm x 90cm and 31cm x 88cm; and a single panel of GRAVENEY, designed J.H. Dearle, after 1892, printed cotton, 76cm x 56cm Provenance: From the collection of Arthur Halcrow Verstage Note: Arthur Halcrow Verstage (1875-1969) was an architect who spent much of his career in the public sector. He was a student at the Royal Academy School of Architecture in the 1900s and was elected as an Associate of the Royal Institute of British Architects in 1902. By 1903 he was a student and assistant at the Central School of Arts and Crafts (later known as the Central School of Art and Design) in London where William Lethaby was principal and a great influence on him. He then oversaw the design of the new school in Southampton Row from 1905-8. From here he became an architect for London County Council and was involved with many London societies, and as a founding member of the Kelmscott Fellowship, a forerunner to The William Morris Society. His large and varied collection was a reflection of his wide interest in the arts. His archive was purchased by The William Morris Society in 2005. Footnote: Literature: Parry, Linda William Morris Textiles, V&A 2013, p.209, no. 14; p.214-5, no. 24; p.240-1, no. 62; p. 243, no. 64; p. 232-3, no. 52; p. 233, no. 53; p.220, no. 32; p. 254, no. 87