Large 14" Stevengraph Silk Woven Bookmark Home Sweet Home Paterson NJ Music 1900 For Sale

Jacquard-woven pure silk bookmark in the Stevengraph tradition, produced in Paterson, New Jersey, circa 1890-1905. The design works its way top to bottom through the full two-verse text and music of "Home! Sweet Home!" by John Howard Payne and Sir Henry Bishop. Original red silk tassel intact.

The reverse carries "COPYRIGHTED." woven at the pointed tip and no further maker credit; the original paper backing card, which would have identified the retailer, is not present. This design is documented in examples sold by both Allen Chesters and John Best & Co., possibly others.

• Type: Jacquard-woven pure silk bookmark (Stevengraph style)
• Origin: Paterson, New Jersey, USA
• Maker: Unsigned on silk; "COPYRIGHTED." woven at pointed tip; backing card absent. Design consistent with documented examples by Allen Chesters and John Best & Co., Paterson NJ
• Date: Circa 1890-1905
• Subject: "Home! Sweet Home!" — words by John Howard Payne, music by Sir Henry Bishop; full two-verse text with interleaved musical notation
• Construction: All four edges fully finished; hemmed selvedge throughout, including top. No fold-over
• Dimensions: 65 mm W x approx. 356 mm L overall including tassel (approx. 2 9/16" x 14")

• Fiber sound throughout; no shredding, fraying, or structural loss anywhere on the ribbon body.
• All four selvedge edges complete and intact; top and bottom hems tight.
• Colors vibrant: red, blue, and gold lettering and ornament well-saturated; cottage scene and figure vignette remain crisp and legible.
• Medium overall toning consistent with age; a few faint light soil marks, nothing distracting.
• Small area of pulled threads in the ivory ground at the sky zone, just right of the bird grouping near the top of the cottage scene. (handful of warp threads displaced horizontally, not torn or broken)
• No dampstains.
• Original red silk tassel present; light shedding and slight brittleness consistent with age, not crumbling. You could use this as a working bookmark, though to preserve, we recommend display only.
• Stored in archival tissue for approximately 15 years; not pressed flat, some horizontal fold lines present.
• Unmounted, no glue residue, white backer in images included, but not affixed.

Ships with front and rear acid-free tissue and backers in an oversize box to protect the tassel during transit. Typically ships within one business day. Combined shipping discount for multiple ribbon purchases; please message for quote. Rates to Alaska and Hawaii differ from continental US. International shipping available through 's Global Shipping Program.

"Home! Sweet Home!" was written by the American playwright John Howard Payne in 1823 for his opera "Clari, or The Maid of Milan," with music by Sir Henry Bishop. Payne composed the lyrics while living as a restless expat in Paris, a fun irony the man who gave the world its most beloved tribute to domestic contentment had no settled home of his own.

The song became one of the most widely sung pieces of the 19th century on both sides of the Atlantic, and the "exile from home" verse, illustrated here by the seated figure vignette, was understood by contemporary audiences as autobiographical.