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firm active: 1907-1921 minneapolis, minnesota :: chicago, illinois |
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Edna S. Purcell Residence
also known as Lake Place
Purcell and Elmslie
Minneapolis, Minnesota 1913
Curiosa: Remains of the original dictionary stand
When in original condition, this dictionary stand had a slanted top with finials to hold the large dictionary in place and prevent shifting of the heavy book as the pages were turned. Fred A. Strauel, longtime chief drafter for P&E, donated the piece to the Purcell Papers in the 1970s. He had acquired it from the Cutts family and later altered the top to serve as a plant stand. The stand suffered great damage over time and was restored for an exhibition in 1981. The original finish had long since vanished. There were multiple layers of ruined varnish flaking off the wood, which was severely dry. Most joints were separated by fidget spaces and the wood cracked widely in places. The dry wood soaked up even the lightest of oils, and darkened unevenly with blotching. Eventually, a uniform color was produced by using an oak dye, but there was no way to tell what the original color intention had been, anyway. All surviving documentation of the original state are poor quality b&w images, mostly halftone prints.
The surviving original, which retains a flat top just like Strauel gave it, remains in the Purcell collection. The leaded glass panel in the lower frame of the original is from the Lyman E. Wakefield residence; apparently a duplicate that was unneeded or perhaps declined by the parsimonious client (a banker).
research courtesy mark hammons