Recollection: A Silver Spoon from Duke Visconti

The Holiday Season is over. It is time to put all the decorations, cards and presents away. Along the years I have received many presents from family and friends. I have also been given some from other persons. When I came to the USA I received a lovely china cup from the president of the first company where I worked in San Francisco. Years later, after having worked at several part-time positions while my daughters were little, I had my first full-time job at a small company in Atlanta. The majority owner and president was an Italian, Duke Visconti di Modrone. His company owned a dozen “plantations” (meaning large crop farms) in Georgia and Florida. Because I spoke Italian and French I was hired as Office Manager for the small staff. At the time I only knew the name “Visconti” from the well-known Italian director Luchino Visconti. Below is the poster from one of his movies.

“The Leopard” (Il Gattopardo) 1963 movie of Luchino Visconti di Modrone, Count of Lonate Pozzolo (1906-1976)

In the office I had seen a large illustrated book showing all the houses of the Viscontis, starting with one in the 1200s. I had not realized that the Viscontis were aristocrats of great lineage – they were an important Italian noble dynasty of the Middle Ages. Their history is long – the first well known Visconti was elected Pope Gregory the X (1271-1276.) Another descendant, Anna Visconti, was the mother of Pope Gregory the XIV (1590-91.) A cousin of this pope was a forefather of my employer, Duke Visconti di Modrone of Milan. From 1277 to 1500 the Visconti and Sforza families ruled the city of Milan in Italy. The biggest parts of the Gothic and Renaissance masterpieces were created during their rule.

Palace of the Marquesses Castelli, in Milan, Italy. This engraving shows Palazzo Visconti di Modrone in Milan, published around 1745.

This palace in Milan now houses the museum of modern art and the Duomo museum. The above information I had to find on my own as Duke Visconti was very self-effacing, kind and friendly. All the furniture in our office had been imported from Milan. My desk was made of dark wood and stainless steel in a very avant-garde style. The office was in a high rise building in the Buckhead area of Atlanta. I spoke Italian and French with the duke and other European aristocrats who visited him. It was a fun and enjoyable position. One Christmas he gave the ladies in our office (about 6 of us) a lovely marble photo frame. Another Christmas he gave me an antique silver spoon. We had a delicious catered Christmas luncheon with gourmet food – this was also the Duke’s birthday since he was born on December 25, 1927.

The silver spoon from Duke Uberto Visconti di Modrone, Marchese of Vimodrone with a later picture of him.

Later on I was surprised to be offered a position in a large corporation very close to my home. It was with a heavy heart that I gave up my work at the Duke’s company, but the Atlanta traffic was starting to be pretty heavy and it was more convenient to be closer to my home. His gift started me looking for other little silver spoons at flea markets and antique stores and I found several.

Click on picture to enlarge

Over the years, what started as a Christmas gift became a small collection. I have even added some sugar spoons to my collection as shown below




and just last week-end at the Atlanta Scott flea market, I found a jelly spoon, as shown below.




These spoons are an elegant addition to a cup of tea or with a book from the same era.

Click on collage to enlarge, then click on each picture to biggify

Looking for a history on these teaspoons I came upon a blog called “The Five O’Clock teaspoon” where the introduction says “Distinguished from the average teaspoon by its diminutive size, the five o'clock teaspoon was a requisite accoutrement for the afternoon tea ritual that became popular in Britain and America in the second half of the 19th century.”

The Cup of Tea, by Mary Cassatt, American 1844-1926

It is always satisfying to drink a cup of tea in the garden

Afternoon Tea, by Richard Miller, American 1875-1943

or indoor when the weather is not so kind.

Afternoon Tea, by Richard T Moynan, Irish, 1856-1906

I’ll never forget the silver spoon given to me by Duke Visconti and I cherish it. Sadly I found out that the Duke passed away on December 29, 2001. His family donated several millions of dollars to St Joseph Hospital in Atlanta in his and his late wife's memory, the Duchess Antonella. The Visconti Center for Robotics houses multiple, minimally-invasive robotic technologies for cardiac, urology, thoracic, gynecologic and general surgery procedures. It is considered the most comprehensive program of robotic technologies in the Southeast, if not in the whole country.
In my next post I’ll show pictures of another lovely Christmas present I received many years ago.

Tea, by Mary Cassatt, American 1844-1926


o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Note: Several months after publishing the above post I received an email from Duke Visconti’s daughter, Chiara. I was very surprised and so thankful that she would take the time to send me a note. Below is the email –

Hello,
My husband came across your blog randomly yesterday and forwarded it to me.
I was very touched to hear the part about my father Uberto, and it makes me so proud to read years after his death lovely stories such as your own.
I just wanted to drop a line to say thank you, for keeping his memory alive in such a touching and sweet way, I greatly appreciated it.
He was a wonderful man and is very much missed.
Fond Regards,
Chiara

Merry Christmas … (again) and a Happy New Year

For most people, at least those who celebrate Christmas here, the holiday is over, but it is not over for a large number of people – the Eastern Orthodox Christians. They celebrate Christmas on the 6th and 7th of January.

Click on collage to enlarge, then click again on each picture

When one lives in a large city, where diversity is the rule, most holidays are known. In my county, Cobb County in Georgia USA, it is easy to forget that not all people are alike, that there are people who follow different faiths – or have no faith. It is taken for granted that everyone worship more or less in the same manner. Where are those Eastern Orthodox Christians? Here in the US and also in Russia, Ethiopia, Eritrea, Egypt, Ukraine, Greece, Serbia, Romania, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Albania, Belarus, Macedonia, the Czech Republic, Armenia and Armenians in the Diaspora and a large percentage of people in other countries like Poland, Kazakhstan and many others – between 225 to 300 million people. For them Christmas is not over yet, so let’s wish them a Merry Christmas.

My father was an Armenian Eastern Orthodox. He was born and raised in Istanbul Turkey in this faith. When he immigrated to France and married my mother he kept his faith and went to the Armenian Church in Paris, the Cathedral Saint Jean Baptiste, rue Jean Goujon. But he did not force his views on my mother who was brought up in a secular home. My father would bring us Armenian delicacies bought in an Armenia gourmet specialty shop in Paris, like “sujukh” and “basturma.” If you would like to look at some more delectable Armenian cuisine please take a look at my Armenian friend’s blog “Notes from Hairenik” and his post “A Moveable Feast” here.
My post, here, is to the memory of my father (Je n’ai pas oublié – I have not forgotten.)

Don't forget to click to enlarge

So why do they celebrate this holiday in January? It is a long story but in short they follow the Julian calendar which is days behind our modern Gregorian calendar. Christmas was actually celebrated by all Christians on the 6th of January from the 1st till the 4th century. However Pope Julius I, a Roman Catholic, deliberately chose December 25th to absorb and Christianize the Yule celebration and override Saturnalia, a pagan feast dedicated to the birth of the Sun - both of these were celebrated on December 25. Emperor Constantine agreed and decreed that the 25th of December was now the official Christmas date so as to bring religious unity to the Holy Roman Empire. The Eastern Orthodox Christians elected not to follow the Roman Catholic Church decision and kept the traditional date till now.

While I was reading up on all this I found out that Ireland also celebrates what they call “Little Christmas” (called Nollaig Bheag in Irish) on January 6th. They celebrate it as the historical date for Christmas. Another area still holding on to their Old Christmas traditions, are the people of the Outer Banks region of North Carolina in the US. When the Catholic European countries adopted the Gregorian calendar in 1582, Protestant Europe took 200 years to agree. In 1752 the people in the colony of North Carolina did not hear about this for quite a while, then resisted the new date, but now still celebrate both dates. They call the 6th of January “Old Christmas.” Some people, who are aware of all this history and respectful of other Christian beliefs, keep their decorations up until the 7th of January in tribute to the original date and to the Eastern Orthodox Christians.

Vintage Russian Christmas postcard

In France on the 6th of January they eat a cake called “Galette des Rois” (it is called “King’s cake” in New Orleans.) The tradition is that inside each galette is a fève (literally means “bean”) which nowadays is a tiny trinket. Whoever gets the fève is the King (if a man) then he places the fève in the glass of his chosen Queen (or vice versa.)

French Galette des Rois

Actually this is also an ancient Roman custom. Saturnalia was ruled by a mock king, chosen by a bean ballot. This mock king called “The Bean King,” usually a servant or slave, became the master and social rank was turned upside down. Eventually this celebration was linked to the Twelfth Night and Epiphany by the Church. So many other traditions come from these Romans times. I Googled “pagans origins of Christmas” and received 187,000 answers, with the query “origin of Christmas” I received 11 million answers and with “history of Christmas” 367 million answers!

The Bean King by Jacob Jordaens, Belgian, 1593-1678

I also found out that some conservative Christians groups, like the Jehovah’s Witnesses, don’t celebrate Christmas. They feel that Christmas is a pagan practice-cross over. Then others feel that religion is not evident enough in Christmas. It is a fascinating subject with different viewpoints. I am not sure how it will progress in the future but I saw a very thought provoking lecture by Eric Kaufmann, a writer and teacher of sociology. His forthcoming book is called “Shall the Religious Inherit the Earth?” His answer is “yes” because of changing demography, here and in other countries, religious fundamentalism is on the increase. A 2 minutes video of Eric Kaufmann from his talk in Australia can be seen here.

But this is not a religious post, this is to wish a Merry Christmas to people who celebrate it on the 6th or 7th of January. I'll continue reading on the subject and by next Christmas I’ll have a more historical post on it. So I’m starting to read …

Poet’s Window by Piotr Konchalovsky, Russian, 1876-1956

I’ll end by also wishing everyone much happiness for the New Year (une Bonne et Heureuse Année.)

I join Mr. Nô and the Enfantastiques to wish y’all a HAPPY NEW YEAR 2011 full of hope, enthusiasm, solidarity and joy.




French children choir directed by Jean Nô




Here are some of the verses they sing in French that I translated

Bonne et Heureuse Année (Good and Happy New Year)

Quatre saisons pour aimer la vie (four seasons to love life….) …

l’heure de résolution vient de sonner (the hour for resolution has come..)

et sourtout n’oublions pas de donner… (and above all let’s not forget to give)

et le meilleur qu’on puisse imaginer …(and the best one can imagine)

pour que se réalisent en triomphant tout simplement nos rêves d’enfants (that all our children's dreams come true.)

Atlanta’s Historic Snow

The snow flurries began in our county, Cobb County, in the morning of 25th December 2010. Within an hour it was snowing hard in Georgia and the ground was covered. Atlanta and the metro area had not experienced a White Christmas since 25 December 1882. This is not a typo, the year was 1882 – 128 years ago. There had been a very light snow in 1993 but it did not stick. When US President Chester Arthur watched the snow that Christmas 1882 he did not know that it would not snow again in Atlanta on Christmas day even in the next century. (It snows in Atlanta sometimes, but usually in January or February.) Chester Arthur (1829-1886) was the 21st President of the USA. He had been the vice-president of President James A. Garfield; when Garfield was assassinated, Chester Arthur succeeded him. President Arthur’s term was between September 19th 1881 and March 4th 1885. Arthur was tall and elegant. Below is his official White House portrait.

Official portrait of President Chester Arthur who was president during Atlanta’s last Christmas snow (before last Sat.)

Several things happened in the year 1882 - the bacterium responsible for tuberculosis was discovered by Robert Koch, outlaw Jesse James was shot and killed, Tchaikovsky’s 1812 Overture premiered in Moscow, the first US Labor Day parade was held in New York City, Franklin D. Roosevelt, Virginia Woolf and James Joyce were born and Charles Darwin died. On 23 December 1882 German-born American cartoonist Thomas Nast published his print “Christmas Flirtation” in Harpers’ Weekly Magazine and on 25 December 1882 it snowed in Atlanta, Georgia.

Christmas Flirtation, print by Thomas Nast, Dec. 23, 1882

Thomas Nast is credited with creating the first image of our modern Santa. One of his most famous drawings is the one below published in Harpers’ Weekly in 1881.

“A Merry Christmas” 1881 by Thomas Nast (1840-1902)

I did not witness the White Christmas in Atlanta last Saturday, but had one close to Nashville, Tennessee. It had also snowed slightly in 1993 there but the last snowfall on that day in Nashville was in 1969. I woke up early on the 25th and looked outside – this is what I saw

We had seen Papa Noël (Santa) at our little grandsons’ school on their last day of class. He was quite jolly.




Nice presents were received by all. This year I was spoiled with several books, CDs and good dark chocolate (covered orange sticks are my favorite.) I was also very grateful to receive some pretty greeting cards, eight of them.

Click on collage to enlarge, then click on picture to biggify

My husband was given several books as well – three of them were on men biographies – which I hope he will let me borrow.

On Sunday we had brunch at Mère Bulles, a restaurant housed in a former southern mansion named then Maryland Manor. Michèle Bouvier was born in Deauville, France, in 1840 and immigrated to the US. She opened a restaurant and she loved Champagne so much that she was nicknamed “Mother Bubbles” which translates as Mère Bulles in French. There were not many drivers on the road on that snowy Sunday morning.




It was warm and inviting inside Mère Bulles’ restaurant. The five buffet tables were outstanding with an array of delectable items, such as the crème brulée French toast with the raspberry glaze, the build your own egg Benedict, the made to order gourmet omelettes and waffles, the chocolate fountain for the fresh strawberries and so much more.



When we returned to the house it was no longer snowing. I was able to snap some pictures of the large decorated houses in the neighborhood.




In the afternoon we had fun playing in the backyard with the grandsons and the dogs.




After spending several days in Tennessee it was time to go back home to Georgia. When we left, it was below freezing with a lot of snow still on the ground so we decided to avoid the mountains around Chattanooga and drive south toward Birmingham, Alabama.




The roads were clear and the landscape pretty. There was more snow in Alabama than in southern Tennessee. We were pleased to see that snow had not yet melted in Georgia.




Turning a bend in the road into Georgia we could see the sun ahead and more color in the trees.

It was dark when we arrived home but the next morning I went out to catch some snow pictures in our yard. The tracks left from a jumping rabbit were still there.




I wished I had been home to see this White Christmas – the first one in 128 years. Will we have to wait another 128 years for the next one? Speaking of numbers – by reading this, you are reading my 100th post!




This finishes this year satisfactorily for me. I hope that the year 2010 has given you satisfaction also and hope that 2011 will be even better in every way. May all my friends in blogland be very happy in the coming year. Here are a couple of vintage postcards to wish you a great 2011!





Now I better start reading all these books…

A Place of Her Own by James Christensen, American, born in 1942

Bulloch Hall in the Festive Season

On a very cold but sunny day we decided to visit Bulloch Hall in Roswell, Georgia. It is about 15 miles from our home. We had driven by it many times but had never stopped. Bulloch Hall is an antebellum grand house that was the Bulloch Family’s estate, circa 1839. Martha “Mittie” Bulloch (1835-1884) grew up in the home - she was the mother of President Theodore Roosevelt and the paternal grandmother of Eleanor Roosevelt.

Martha “Mittie” Bulloch (1835-1884)

Later in the upcoming year we will return to Bulloch Hall and I’ll post a history on the family and the house. This time we visited the house to see it with all its holiday decorations. Unfortunately I forgot to take my Nikon – I just had my Sony camera, so some of the pictures are not too crisp.

Click on picture to enlarge

I have always liked the Christmas lights, decors, wreaths and all the trimmings. Growing up in Paris, my mother would take me to see the beautiful windows of the large department stores, Le Printemps and Les Galeries Lafayette. We would walk inside first so I could give my letter to Papa Noël (Santa.) He used to sit in a huge armchair in the middle of the central stairways. I had to walk up the stairs to reach him and was petrified to miss a step. There were no photographers then. My friend Peter of the blog Peter’s Paris has graciously let me use a couple of the photos he recently took in Paris of the stores.

Grands Magasins, Paris (courtesy of Peter's Paris)

Wooden platforms were installed under the large windows, with steps, to enable little children to see well. Every window had a different scene – mainly automated toys and stuffed animals. Here is another picture from Peter’s blog – I would think that these little men are dancing to lively music.

Animated store window in Paris (courtesy Peter's Paris)

Here in Atlanta, now that all the department stores have moved to malls, there are no longer large windows to walk by and admire. The two big department stores, Macy’s and Rich’s, have moved away from downtown. When our daughters were little, we used to take them to Rich’s downtown and they would ride Priscilla, the “Pink Pig” on top of the roof, then we would go to the Magnolia Tea Room and have a piece of succulent apple pie.

Rich’s Pink Pig in downtown Atlanta in the 70s (postcard copyright Whitefield)

But that was then, now to Roswell we go to look at the pretty Christmas decor.

It was very warm inside. We entered the large hall

then turned right entering the parlor and going toward the chimney where, it seemed, a nice fire was burning.



On the side a little table was set with “savories” ready for our tea.

click on collage to enlarge, then click on each picture to biggify

Walking into the next room we saw many snowmen.





As this huge snowman was standing close to the fire I wondered why he was not melting…



Snowmen were everywhere - on a sideboard, reflected in a mirror, on a table, on the floor …



and under a painting.



On our way to the kitchen downstairs we walked by a “deer” having a snack.



The kitchen looked inviting.

We were the only visitors and I would have liked to get my hands in the flour and cut the dough to shape gingerbread cookies…




then to move the bread and pie in the oven aside so they could have room to bake…



Or, maybe we could stop a while and read the book, open on the stand…



“Down the chimney St Nicholas came with a bound…”




“He spoke not a word, but went straight to his work…”



Is the chimney large enough for St Nicholas?...



Let’s close the door to the kitchen and explore the upstairs rooms…



First we walk by a wall in the hall sheltering a small village…




Upstairs, the children are well tucked in their bed and the bears are having tea…




The parents’ bedroom is also brightly lit. Going downstairs I see an inviting armchair where it would be nice to relax and read a tale of Noël.




Here is another charming room with lovely Christmas trees – but wait, is that a gentleman caller waiting on the settee?



Perhaps he would like to partake of some caroling accompanied by the pianoforte?




I don’t think so, he is not moving from the settee. As we walk by a tall window I look up and what do I see? Could this be some Osage oranges on that bare tree outside – there in the top middle pane?



Let’s walk in the garden and find this Osage orange tree (which was the subject of my post here) Yes indeed, there is an old tree, must be as old as the house, with 3 fruits left on it.




Now it is time to end our visit of Bulloch Hall and keep its delightful Christmas decorations in our memory.




I’d like to take y’all to our family gathering for Noël where we will be a diverse group of Catholic, Non-believer, Agnostic, Free Thinker, Muslim and Buddhist (plus three dogs.) But since we cannot take you with us I am sending you the postcards below with my warmest wishes for a merry and happy time during these festive days.

Vintage postcard illustrated by Jenny Nystrom, Swedish 1854-1959