Creative Commons License
Creative Commons License
Table Napkin from Henry Walters’ Yacht "Narada"
(18th and 19th Centuries )
White damask table napkin from Henry Walters' yacht, Narada, with dot-and-floral motif and the word Narada in chain-stitch cursive at a 45-degree angle from the lower corner.
In 1896 Henry Walters purchased a 224-ft. steamyacht from the Philadelphia banking heir Anthony Joseph Drexel, Jr., which he named Narada, after a wandering Vedic sage found in early Hindu texts. Henry, like J. P. Morgan, William Rockefeller, and numerous members of the Vanderbilt family, was a prominent member of the New York Yacht Club. With other club members, he sponsored entries into the America's Cup, and was elected vice-commodore. The Narada was scrapped in the 1930s, but the Walters Art Museum owns this napkin, as well as the yacht's chronometer (WAM 58.266): an extremely accurate timepiece used to help calculate location while at sea.
Inscription
Provenance
Provenance (from the French provenir, 'to come from/forth') is the chronology of the ownership, custody, or location of a historical object. Learn more about provenance at the Walters.
Henry Walters, Baltimore, 1889-1917 and 1919-(?); purchased [with the yacht Narada] by Sarah and Morris Levinson, Newburgh, New York, before 1939; by bequest to Joani Frankel, Phoenix, 1973; given to Walters Art Museum, 2012.
Exhibitions
| 2014-2016 | From Rye to Raphael: The Walters Story. The Walters Art Museum, Baltimore. |
Conservation
| Date | Description | Narrative |
|---|---|---|
| 10/9/2012 | Examination | Examined for acquisition |
| 10/9/2012 | Examination | Table napkin from the Narada |
Geographies
USA (Place of Origin)
Measurements
Hem to hem L: 26 3/4 x W: 26 3/4 in. (67.95 x 67.95 cm)
Credit Line
Gift of Joani Frankel, 2012
Location in Museum
Not on view
Accession Number
In libraries, galleries, museums, and archives, an accession number is a unique identifier assigned to each object in the collection.
In libraries, galleries, museums, and archives, an accession number is a unique identifier assigned to each object in the collection.
A.37