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Object Timeline

-0001

1951

  • We acquired this object.

2004

2013

2014

2024

  • You found it!

Brisé Cockade Fan (USA)

This is a Brisé cockade fan. It is dated ca. 1865 and we acquired it in 1951. Its medium is drilled vulcanized rubber, silk ribbon. It is a part of the Textiles department.

The words "Man’f Company Lambertville Goodyear Patent," stamped in tiny letters on the handle of this fan provide the key to its material. The Lambertville Manufacturing Company was active in the 1860s in the manufacture of vulcanized rubber. Natural rubber, tapped from tropical trees, is a "plastic" polymer material, which can be formed or molded, but in its natural state it is sticky, odiferous, and perishable. It does not hold its shape when exposed to heat, and becomes brittle when exposed to cold. In the vulcanization process, natural rubber is heated with sulfur, making it harder and less susceptible to temperature changes.
Various patents for vulcanized rubber were granted to Charles Goodyear and his brother between 1839 and 1860, transforming rubber from an impractical manufacturing material to a vastly important resource used to manufacture tires. The fan functions beautifully as a promotional souvenir commemorating one of Goodyear’s patents, showcasing its improved properties.

This object was featured in our Object of the Week series in a post titled This is Not a Tire.

This object was donated by Mrs. Henry Woodward Haynes. It is credited Gift of Mrs. Henry Woodward Haynes.

  • Parola Telephone
  • rubber with electronic components.
  • Gift of Becker Inc..
  • 1987-91-4

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Its dimensions are

H x W (open): 34.3 x 24.4 cm (13 1/2 x 9 5/8 in.)

It is inscribed

One guard is stamped: "Man'f Company Lambertville Goodyear patent."

Cite this object as

Brisé Cockade Fan (USA); drilled vulcanized rubber, silk ribbon; H x W (open): 34.3 x 24.4 cm (13 1/2 x 9 5/8 in.); Gift of Mrs. Henry Woodward Haynes; 1951-106-3

This object was previously on display as a part of the exhibitions Making Design and Faster, Cheaper, Newer, More: The Revolutions of 1848.

This image is in the public domain (free of copyright restrictions). You can copy, modify, and distribute this work without contacting the Smithsonian. For more information, visit the Smithsonian’s Terms of Use page.

If you would like to cite this object in a Wikipedia article please use the following template:

<ref name=CH>{{cite web |url=https://collection.cooperhewitt.org/objects/18386629/ |title=Brisé Cockade Fan (USA) |author=Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum |accessdate=20 April 2024 |publisher=Smithsonian Institution}}</ref>