The Fathers and Saviors of Our Country: A Presidential Sale

Opened, 22 x 10 in., formed by eleven silver-sparkled and incised decorative cast aluminum rods, each with an oval medallion and embellished with federal eagles. The oval medallions contain small albumen photos of European queens (lacking three) and their names (lacking nine). Two oval medallions are embossed with the arms of Cuba and France. The sticks are further embellished with medallions featuring American eagles, which terminate in a star at the top. A large tassel hangs from the apex of the fan. The fan itself is adorned with fabric 3" in width with scenes from the Civil War and the assassination.

The fan, titled "To The Martyr Of His Country Abraham Lincoln" depicts, in sequential order: the first panel depicts the battle between the ironclads Monitor and Merrimac; the second is Booth, Mrs. Surratt, Payne and John Surratt around a table rehearsing their evil plans; the next panel shows Booth shooting the president at Ford's, Rathbone and Clara Harris witnessing the event; the central panel is a scene from the stage performance of Our American Cousin with Laura Keene and two other actors; the next panel depicts Booth's escape on horseback; the next is Booth being shot down while hiding in the barn Garrett's farm; the final tableaux is the burning of Richmond in April 1865. These scenes are bordered by small demons. The reverse features an ornate decorative border, a portrait of Lincoln surrounded by angels and cherubs, and two idealized memorial columns, flanked by miniature sheet music with notes and lyrics in Spanish, titled "Cancion A Abraham Lincoln." The eagles on the recto hold banners inscribed “The patent plated fan” (the Cuban maker had bought the rights from an American firm).  

Housed in a presentation red leather box titled “EXPOSITION UNIVERSELLE DE PARIS 1867”. On the inside is a felt receptacle for the partially closed fan and the words: “EVENTAIL BLINDE [armored fan] ROYAL”.  

RARE: Only four examples of this fan type are currently known; this example is one of three recorded specimens executed in aluminum, a material considered a precious metal at the time and reserved for luxury and commemorative objects. One recorded example survives with wooden sticks rather than metal. Another, produced for Central America and associated with women’s self-defense, is an extreme variant incorporating a hidden, retractable knife blade and a small hinged compartment for poison. A third example, made for the United States market, substitutes portraits of Union generals on the leaf and likewise differs materially in having wooden sticks instead of aluminum.

EXHIBITION:
The fan is listed in Exposición universal de 1867, Catálogo general de la sección de España (Paris: 1867), under the Overseas submissions from Cuba (p.408): “Abanicos blindados, con reproducciones fotográficas de las principales fases de la vida del Presidente Lincoln y de los grandes hombres Americanos sus contemporáneos."