Before going to New York and seeing all of the great artwork different areas of the world had to offer, I had come across “Victorian Electrotypes” on the Metropolitan Museum of Art website. These “electrotypes” were working, useful mechanisms which at the same time were pieces of art as well. I was excited to see them in person during our trip.
The electrotypes I saw were mostly silver in color and were very detailed in person. The website’s pictures did not do them justice. One in particular stood out from the rest to me. It is “Diana and the Stag”. Diana in greek mythology was the goddess of hunt, birthing, and moon. She is normally shown with a deer which is symbolic of her hunting skill. The Met also had another piece that I saw about her which was massive and showed her wielding a bow and arrow.
“Diana and the Stag” was made in 1610 by Joachim Frieze. This electrotype was made out of silver, gilt, gems, wood and iron workings. This piece was used in drinking games and it would be wound up at the bottom, carry the drink to one of the participants at the table ,and that person would have to drink all of the contents in the statue. The way it opened up for the drink was interesting: the head of the stag would open, itself. Below is a picture of this piece.
