AFA 20th Anniversary

2020 Antiques & Fine Art 119 German immigrant Wilhelm Schimmel settled in the Cumberland Valley of central Pennsylvania, where he made dozens of wood carvings over a span of several decades. Spread-winged eagles were his most common form, but he also carved other types of birds, including roosters, as well as dogs, squirrels, lions, and tigers. This trio of birds comprises a rooster, a hen, and a baby chick atop a basket of flowers. The dog, which appears to be a poodle, has deeply carved cross-hatching similar to the wings on Schimmel’s eagles. Carved trio of birds and a dog, attributed to Wilhelm Schimmel (1817–1890), Cumberland County, Pa., 1865–1880. Pine, paint. H. 5, W. 8¼, D. 2⅛ inches (dog); H. 5⅛, W. 8⅛, D. 3 inches (birds). Dietrich American Foundation (8.5.252 [birds]) and (8.5.253 [dog]). Centerfold of writing sample booklet for Abraham Martin, attributed to Christian Alsdorff (ca. 1760–1838), Earl Township, Lancaster County, Pa., 1794. Watercolor and ink on laid paper. H. 7⅝, W. 13 inches. Rocky Hill Collection. Schoolmaster Christian Alsdorff taught briefly in Chester and Montgomery counties during the early 1790s before moving west to Lancaster County. He then worked in Earl and Hempfield townships, where on April 7, 1794, he made this writing exercise booklet for Abraham Martin. Known in German as a Vorschriften Büchlein , a typical booklet consists of four pages (comprising hymns, biblical verses, and alphabets), and often has an ornate page either at the front or the middle. This example was placed in the middle of the booklet, as indicated by the seam and stitching remnants at the center of the page. The figure of a man wearing a hat and long coattails on the left was inspired by similar motifs in the work of schoolmaster and fraktur artist Johann Adam Eyer (1755–1837), whom Alsdorff likely crossed paths with before he moved to Lancaster County.