Papier-mâché

Papier-mâché, hard, mouldable substance produced from compressed or pulped paper by various processes. First known in the East, the skill of making papier-mâché was probably introduced to Europe in the 16th century, and from the mid-18th century the medium was used in France and England for architectural ornaments, coach panels, and small items such as snuffboxes. Most examples of papier-mâché were finished with japanning, a process of opaque varnishing in colours that gave a deep lustre to the surface and could be further decorated with paint, metallic pigments, or inlays of glass or shell.

Henry Clay’s 1772 patent for improved papier-mâché enabled a harder and more heat-resistant material to be produced commercially and this stimulated the development of the industry during the first half of the 19th century. Huge numbers of decorated trays, boxes, tea caddies, desk ornaments, and larger items of furniture were made by a proliferating number of manufacturers based in Birmingham and Wolverhampton. The most famous was Jennens & Bettridge who, at the Great Exhibition of 1851, showed furniture such as beds, chairs, tables, and even a piano alongside the small objects that were the usual staples of the trade. Whereas Clay’s wares were often brightly coloured, with gilded surface decoration in stylized patterns, most of the 19th century products were japanned in black and decorated with naturalistic painting, elaborate gilding, and iridescent pearl shell inlays.

By the 1860s the fashion for decorated papier-mâché was waning, to be superseded by the more cheaply produced japanned tin wares. However, small objects decorated with simple patterns, architectural ornaments, and panels for steamship cabins, carriages, and similar purposes continued to be produced well into the 20th century. More recently, papier-mâché has re-emerged as a decorative craft.