Initial Attraction A monogram is a connection. It links a ruler to his people, a brand to its customer, a bride to a groom, one generation of a family to another, an individual to her future. Monograms connect us to another time and place, to loved ones past and present, and to what we find essential in our own lives. Royals created the passion for the monogram, and throughout history people have embraced monograms as a way to elevate their everyday lives, but the impressive history of the monogram dates back to ancient Greece and Rome. The earliest known evidence of monograms is found in 6th century B.C. Roman coins, which were marked with the ruler’s initials to authenticate and legitimize them. The most enduring monograms, known as the sacred monograms, are the Chi-Rho, formed from the first two Greek letters of ΧΡΙΣΤΟΣ, meaning Christ, and the intertwined IHS, an abbreviation of the Latin phrase Iesus Hominum Salvator or Jesus, Savior of Mankind. The king most often credited for establishing the monogram is Charlemagne (768-814). Charlemagne’s military conquests were publicly marked with his monogram, a symbol that was understood to communicate power and dominance across the differing languages and alphabets of the time. From the days of Charlemagne through the late 1600s, a monogram was a symbol of the powerful. Royalty and military leaders used their initials to form a personal brand to remind others of their position and influence in society. Monograms were used to authenticate official documents, mark government buildings, and to identify objects belonging to the ruler in power. During the Middle Ages, the development of the monogram also had a parallel path as it became used in artistic, commercial, and religious arenas. Artists, including painters, engravers and ceramicists, utilized, the royal way of marking, and took advantage of technological advancements and a universal alphabet to sign their works. Albrecht Duhrer, a German engraver, printmaker, and painter, used his “AD” to sign his works, and is one of the most well known examples from this time. Eighteenth century Wedgwood & Bentley intaglios are also early examples of artist’s monograms. The monograms of printers during the Middle Ages helped to identify and date early printed works, such as books. Commercially, “merchant’s marks” were often used, consisting of the storeowner’s initials and a relevant symbol. These merchant’s marks are often found on the underside of porcelain, where you see not only the identity of the manufacturer but also the monogram of the company that sold it. In the 18th and 19th centuries, economic growth and the aesthetic trends of the Victorian Era, combined with the development of America, created new groups of prosperous people who had the means and social aspirations to adorn their personal and household possessions with monograms. During this period, the practice of monogramming was associated with wealth in addition to power. Monogramming was also synonymous with creativity, though to a lesser extent, since many artists and craftsmen signed their work with their initials. (an excerpt from the book, The Art of the Monogram by Cynthia Brumback)
Posted on: Sun, 16 Mar 2014 11:00:01 +0000
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