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JACQMAR & RICHARD ALLAN
click on pictures to enlarge
This renowned British company was responsible for producing some of the most sought after scarves ever produced during WW2. The scarves were designed by Arnold Lever a truly wonderful and imaginative artist who's designs are now highly collectable which unfortunately for the collector has pushed up prices world-wide, one of his most famous works being LONDON WALL. His work was so diverse that it is not always that easy for an inexperienced collector to recognize his designs especially if the scarf is unsigned which is the case in some instances where the scarf is actually signed Jacqmar only and is minus the AL signature..
Many famous names could be seen wearing Arnold's designs both on scarves and fabrics which served as a moral booster in those dark days of rationing, blackouts and uncertainty. As you can see by the graphics on some of the scarves Arnold managed to introduce a sense of humour into his designs which was surely needed at that time. He also produced numerous designs other than the propaganda scarves. The silk Arnold Lever scarves with non-propaganda graphics that you may come across are post WW2 c1945-50 as propaganda scarves were made from rayon due to the restrictions regarding the use of silk as the war progressed. It is worth noting that Arnold also produced other 'scarf' designs besides those seen on the Jacqmar scarves. Make sure that you you are getting the genuine article by asking for authenticity if the scarf does not bear his signature. If in doubt make further enquiries as I have on occasions seen some scarves passed off as being by AL when in fact they are not. At a later date other artists also produced designs for Jacqmar.
Most ladies of a 'certain age' will tell you that at some time in the past they have owned a Jacqmar scarf. Many floral designs were produced in the post war years along with geo-metrics & abstracts at a later date. Although the floral varieties are very pretty, many were produced and they are not as rare as the earlier propaganda scarves and other Jacqmar scarves with the more interesting graphics. Floral scarves can still be bought at fairs, charity shops & boot sales etc., for a few pounds but even these are now starting to become a little thin on the ground. Snap them up while you can. You may also come across woven-jacquard scarves bearing the Jacqmar name with labels which state Made in France, these are very elegant scarves which don't turn up very often, these too are well worth collecting as are the Jacqmar silk twill scarves which were made in Italy especially if one compares them to some of the flimsy inferior non silk 'scarves' around in the shops these days.
The later modern Jacqmar scarves that were produced from Polyester or other synthetic fabric including the longer narrow variety of scarf with pointed ends create much less demand amongst collectors and therefore will not command as high a price as those made from silk or the much earlier vintage 40s and 50s rayon or silk scarves with exceptional graphics.. It is worth noting that there were no Jacqmar scarves produced during the Art Nouveau Period as Jacqmar was founded at a much later date during the early 1930s, I have seen scarves advertised for sale as 'Art Nouveau', the design on the scarf maybe in the 'Nouveau' style but does not date from the period itself.
ABOVE - JACQMAR - Expect to pay around £15+ for any of the scarves shown above, the floral designs are typical of many Jacqmar scarves produced over a period of time
JACQMAR
- Very 1950s scarf featuring an airport scene, a BEA luggage label, just look at
those airline seats, plenty of legroom around during that era! Different
BEA destinations are printed throughout the design. Rare and very collectable.
Non-silk, hand rolled, £50 +
SKETCH
BOOK - THE HISTORY OF FLYING - A fascinating and difficult to find
silk twill hand rolled edge vintage scarf depicting many different FLYING
machines and names of famous aviators - wonderful graphics, brilliant
details, this particular scarf would be of great interest not only to
scarf collectors but collectors of aviation memorabilia, a super example
of Jacqmar at its best. A must for any collection£40
JACQMAR -
Arnold Lever - unsigned versions - Non-silk - Two rare
and very collectable vintage scarves, fine
examples of the golden years of
Jacqmar production, the Calypso-Musicians scarf is made from a heavy
linen-cotton feel fabric and is signed faintly on one corner, the graphics
are fanastic on this scarf when seen close up .The 40s era L'Hirondelle Par Jacqmar scarf (
Swallows)- is made from a smooth 'silky' feel rayon which gives the
appearance of being silk. This scarf has a repeat pattern through-out and is
shown folded so as to give a clearer picture of the signature. Both
scarves have a hand rolled edge.
JACQMAR
- CLASSICAL ITALIAN
SCENES - gorgeous hand rolled silk scarf depicting scenes from Italy, the
graphics are outstanding as are the soft muted colours, a super collectors item.
JACQMAR
at its best, an AL design, typical of its era, French Poodle dogs galore abound
throughout the graphics, the script is in French, one of the rarer Jacqmar designs very, very
collectable in view of the fact that apart from its age this scarf would also appeal to dog lovers.
This scarf is non-silk, fabric content is rayon.
JACQMAR
- Rules of the game - Super quality rare silk rolled
edge scarf, an AL design but not signed a
such which can be 
confusing for some collectors, brilliant graphics depicting
the card game of Canasta, lots of small script throughout the design, signed
Jacqmar on one corner. £35 plus.
This
signed JACQMAR scarf is printed in lovely soft colours, the village in the
background reminds me of many I have seen in France. Hand rolled edge, this
scarf would look wonderful framed.
JACQMAR
- Signed, stunning silk rolled hand rolled edge scarf depicting famous London
Landmarks, rich colours, a very dramatic scarf. EROS, Westminster Abbey,
St.Pauls and other famous sights are shown. This is one of the more unusual
Jacqmar designs which doesn't turn up very often. £35 plus.
RICHARD
ALLAN - The stained glass design featured on this silk rolled edge scarf are
very reminiscent of Charles Rennie McIntosh. Apart from the floral
varieties Richard Allan turned out some very interesting designs such as this
one, very popular with collectors.
RICHARD
ALLAN - The type of design changes yet again on this lovely silk twill rolled
edge scarf, nice subtle colours. signed Richard Allan on one corner. RA was
exceptional in producing many unusual, colourful, artistic and sometimes
highly extrovert designs in stunning colourways and quite often in
dramatic black and white which is always a firm favourite both
with
collectors and wearers alike, the scarves were always of the highest quality
and are now highly collectable. Not all RA scarves are signed, some only
have the signature on the attached tag.
JACQMAR
- SHAKESPEARE
- A delightful silk rolled edge scarf depicting scenes from A Midsummer Nights
Dream, MACBETH, The Tempest and Romeo and Juliet, the graphics are brilliant on
this scarf and feature the GLOBE THEATRE in the centre of the design. This
particular design was also produced in different colour ways.
HOMMAGE
AUX GRANDS MAITRES - Jacqmar - This is a really super and very rare scarf designed by
A.L. the
graphics of which depict Arnolds interpretation of some of the Grand Masters of
Art such as Degas, VanGogh, Cezanne, Matisse, Braque, Degas, Renoir,
Utrillo, Picasso and Toulouse Lautrec, the scarf is made from Rayon, c1942. As
you can from the graphics Arnold surprises us yet again with completely
different graphics and from the London Wall scarf above.
JACQMAR
- This very rare and very collectable Arnold lever scarf is a great reminder of the cocktail bar
era of the 1940s, forget the minimalist look chrome and stainless steel bars we see today,
this was the era of pure glamour! Different alcoholic drinks are featured in this design such as..Brandy,
Drambuie, Grand Marnier and more, also featuring in the design are many famous
London establishments such as the Ritz, Grosvenor House, Landsdowne.
JACQMAR
- These two gorgeous 'art series' silk hand rolled edge scarves were
part of a series of similar scarves featuring famous works of art. The pink scarf
which I have owned since around 1970 shows
LUIGI X1V ENTRA IN DUNKERQUE PART - XV11
SEC - PARIGI - MUSEO
DEI GOBELINS. The blue-grey
scarf features Peietro
Annigoni - Vecchio
giardino - these scarves are also sought after by
art enthusiasts and often finish up being framed. Framed scarves should never be
kept near a window or in direct sunlight as this in time will not only fade the
scarf but will also damage the silk .Value £40 +
RICHARD
ALLAN - A very rare and collectable super rolled edge silk scarf with graphics
featuring the very famous John Knox House in Edinburgh, Scotland. John
Knox is better known as the REFORMER OF SCOTLAND - he died at Knox House. At a
later date William J Hay lived at Knox House where he produced a series of
postcards one of which bore this particular design.
JACQMAR
- ARNOLD LEVER - unsigned version - Gorgeous vintage silk scarf, hand rolled edge, lovely floral
design which looks like an open book, featuring both English and
German text which reads as "The dragon was slain, and the King set
forth with his Queen and the Princesses to visit their subjects across the
seas".
RICHARD
ALLAN - LONDON - Another super silk rolled edge scarf from the same series
as the John Knox scarf, its worth making note that this one differs in as
much that the scarf itself is not signed RA, the attached tag is signed RA. Super graphics
depicting London Landmarks, these scarves are extremely popular and always
attract much attention when they come up for sale.
JANE SHILTON SILK SCARVES, three fine examples from this popular British company, the pink floral scarf is very pretty, a classic which never dates, the multi coloured silk twill scarf featuring numbers is much more extrovert.
Richard Allan was the son of Allan Allan who took over the running of the Jacqmar London showroom after the death of its founder Joe Lyons (Jack) in the late 1930s. Around the early 1950s Richard Allan bought out the Jacqmar name. Scarves bearing the Richard Allan name were printed at World of Silk - (David Evans & Company) at Crayford, Kent, England. Scarves featuring other famous names such as Liberty, Jacqmar, Christian Dior and others to numerous to mention were also printed at this famous establishment which was founded in 1843. The Richard Allan name was bought out by Jane Shilton in 1989. This is just a brief outline of the history of Jacqmar and Richard Allan scarves, there is of course much more archive material which I have not yet divulged.
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