FIG. 16.—BRONZE KNOCKER OF THE ARMORIAL TYPE.
FIG. 17.—BRASS DROP KNOCKER IN THE FORM OF A DOLPHIN.
FIG. 18.—BRASS WELL BUCKET.
The metal-work of the interior, such as lock plates, hinges, and door knobs, was frequently of brass, and very ornate some of these quaint old fittings are. Perhaps the most interesting are those which were much used on the more portable sideboards, corner cupboards, and chests. It would appear that the extravagance in design reached its height when Chippendale's influence extended to the metal ornaments on the furniture, as well as to the scrollwork and carving of the woodwork. Some of this metal-work gives evidence of Chinese influence, or as it was then called, Chinese taste, shown in the introduction of the mandarin and the fakir, Oriental landscapes, palanquins, and Chinese trees and flowers, even in English metal-work. The collector of such things finds a wealth of brass in even escutcheons and handle plates (see [Chapter XIX]).
There is some very rich brasswork in the frames of the old banner screens, made of beautiful needlework panels, over which so much time must have been spent. A remarkably fine banner holder in the Victoria and Albert Museum is typical of many others. We have only to look round the house and imagine how it looked a century ago to discover that the collectable objects of copper and brass, even when domestic utensils and curios have been removed, included many other objects besides those referred to which may be secured by careful and persistent search among the old shops and builders' odds and ends.
VII
CHURCH
BRASSWORK