Outstanding work by one of Scotland’s first professional woman artists.

These open licensed reproductions of Phoebe Anna Traquair’s medallions are one of a series of iconic items selected by our Centre for Research Collections staff as the most beautiful, important and unique treasures in the University’s collections.

Traquair, Phoebe Anna. Medallions for the Song School of St. Mary’s Episcopal Cathedral, Edinburgh. 1897. Traquair (1852-1936) is best known for her murals which decorate three buildings in Edinburgh, including the Song School attached to St. Mary’s Episcopal Cathedral, of which this volume contains illuminations. These reproductions of the song school medallions are painted in ink and watercolour on vellum, and can be compared to illuminated medieval manuscripts in their use of colour, gold-leaf and fine detail. They embody the spirit of the Arts and Crafts movement, which sought to use traditional craft skills to produce modern work of the highest quality. The volume was bound in green calf by Thomas James Cobden-Sanderson at the Doves Bindery.

See more of these iconic items: The University of Edinburgh’s Iconic Items

The digitisation of this book was created by The University of Edinburgh Library staff and is available under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 licence.

 

Header Image: Portion of a page from Song School St. Mary, 1897, f.2r, The University of Edinburgh Library, CC BY 3.0