44 
House & Garden 
This unusual knocker is 
made of three metals — 
monel for the base, light 
bronze above it and iron 
for the overlay traceries. 
T. L. Koralewsky, craftsman 
OLD HARDWARE FOR NEW HOUSES 
The Revival of Medieval Designs Affords a Wide Selection —- 
The Role of Hardware With Woodwork 
GERTRUDE CAMPBELL 
knocker being a dragon’s head with tongue 
sticking out; you take hold of the tongue to lift 
the knocker. 
It was in the 15th Century that hinges re¬ 
ceived special attention at the hands of the 
artist-smith. Examples have been found show¬ 
ing designs most elaborate and minute in 
character. 
The Metals Used 
Some of them are curiously composed of two 
or three layers of iron or other metal, each 
plate being cut differently to develop tracery 
and other kinds of work. There are capped 
trefoiled flowers placed directly in the center 
of trefoils, the whole being held in position by 
a nail driven through 
In the same house is found this hinge, an 
unusual modification of an old design done 
in wrought iron 
the center. These 
are used over a back¬ 
ground of either 
gilded leather or 
cloth of some rich 
color, w h i c h has 
been introduced to 
act as a relief for the 
cut work. 
This composite 
style is shown in 
Gothic architecture. 
Backgrounds for this 
type of hardware are 
absolutely necessary, 
as a rich subdued 
coloring brings out 
the tone of the metal 
to better advantage 
— brass or iron is 
particularly effective 
for this purpose. 
They also' have the 
advantage of dura¬ 
bility, a quality that 
is recognized by 
metal workers. But 
no matter what back¬ 
ground is employed, 
the ornaments should 
always be shown in 
relief, and the de¬ 
sign should be even 
T HE revival of hardware for decorative 
purposes in our 20th Century houses is 
merely the swinging back of the pendulum to 
medieval times, for we are rapidly realizing 
its value, and utilizing it for the beautification 
of our homes. 
As interior woodwork is becoming more and 
more popular, the cabinet-maker is endowing 
it with hardware enrichments, each one of 
which conforms to the period details; and yet 
none savor of sameness, for the artist-smith 
realizes, as did our forefathers, that our doors 
should be made to harmonize with their sur¬ 
roundings. Consequently hardware is a neces¬ 
sary factor in decoration, and care should be 
given to the designing of escutcheons and all 
pieces of metal work 
that pertain to win¬ 
dows or doors. For¬ 
tunately for us, there 
are many fine medi¬ 
eval examples still 
extant, rich in quaint 
form and following 
quaint lines, for the 
smiths and engravers 
of those days loving¬ 
ly put time into the 
selection and work¬ 
ing out of good de¬ 
signs. 
tiful forms until sometimes they actually cov¬ 
ered the whole door with elaborate combina¬ 
tions of beautiful and graceful scrolls. 
Today these patterns form the basis for orig¬ 
inal designs, one of which, a rare pattern, is 
designed for an open mechanism lock, used on 
an outside door. This shows a snake for a 
handle, and all the working parts are exposed 
and entwined around a dragon’s head, the key 
following the same serpent and dragon design. 
Often the decoration is composed of different 
tracings, overlaid plates being used in three 
different metals, the bottom being of monel 
metal, covered with light bronze (delta metal) 
and iron. One very interesting example shows 
a Crusader standing in the center, the door 
Early Designs in 
Modern Work 
It was during the 
12th Century that 
forged and curiously 
fashioned hammered 
iron was conspicu¬ 
ous in ornamenta¬ 
tion. The Saxon 
and Norman smiths 
showed no little per¬ 
fection in this branch 
of their calling, dis¬ 
playing the greatest 
skill and ingenuity 
in their designs. 
They often expanded 
the hinges into beau¬ 
An elaboration of the Colonial strap hinge 
is found in this type ■wrought for a New 
England house by T. L. Koralewsky 
