By Allie Avis

The Winterthur Library is a  global center for the study of decorative arts. But what about the art of decorating … yourself? Among the more than 1 million books and manuscripts that pack the Winterthur Library’s shelves, unassuming gray acid-free boxes guard the once-taboo contents of two very special sketchbooks—original designs for tattoos. But these pieces of art, purpose-made to be permanently inked on the skin of sailors and adventurous individuals, are far from the only tattoo-worthy designs in our collection. The library is a veritable treasure trove of ink inspiration.

Let’s begin with the tattoo pattern books. Both dating from the 19th century, these objects are truly remarkable survivals. Also called flash books—a term borrowed from the eye-catching advertisements produced to promote traveling circuses—they were created by artists as a catalogue of sorts, a repository of ready-to-tattoo designs (as opposed to custom designs). Modern tattoo artists still produce flash designs, or flash for short, which can often be seen decorating the walls of their shops. All you need to do is walk in and point to what you want.

The older of the two books lacks both artistic attribution and a definite date, although scholars have speculated it may have been created as early as the 1850s. It does, however, record the artist’s recipe for tattoo ink. Its designs will be immediately familiar to tattoo aficionados as belonging to the American traditional (or old school) style—think Sailor Jerry—that is marked by strong black outlines, a relatively limited color palette, and little shading. This artist’s primary clientele was likely sailors, and it’s possible he even plied his trade aboard a ship at some point. The mixture of strong patriotic motifs was particularly appealing to those in the Navy, and religious and sentimental designs speak to the emotional priorities of the sailors, who would be away from home in potentially dangerous conditions for long periods of time.

The newer book is dated 1897 and is attributed to W. Christiansen, a Danish immigrant. Christiansen’s designs share some stylistic and subject overlap with those in the anonymous pattern book, with the addition of some Danish national devices. A notable difference is that Christiansen helpfully included the prices for his flash. A more visual difference is Christiansen’s apparent predilection for subjects from the theater and circus; a lovely trapeze artist, a clown, a dancer identified as Dagmar Hansen, and other beauties fall between anchors, flags, and various trade tools.

While a design from Christiansen’s flash has made it onto the forearm of your humble author, these two pattern books are only the tip of the iceberg of possibilities for library-inspired tattoos. From grammars of ornament to books of calligraphy to botanical illustrations, if you’ve got a theme in mind, the library has something for you! In fact, we have so many possibilities for bibliographic tattoos that we’re holding an open house on Saturday, April 12, from 10:00 am–12:00 pm to show off dozens of design highlights from our special collections. This event is open to all, including tattoo artists, people looking for new ink, and folks who simply want to spend the morning looking at beautiful books. No reservations are needed, but if you have any questions about this event or about the library’s tattooable design sources, please reach out to Allie Alvis, curator of special collections, at aalvis@winterthur.org.

By Julie Hadsell

“It is a truth universally acknowledged” that Jane Austen is a fan favorite for literature lovers all over the world.[1] Known for her beloved stories centering on themes of love, class, and social expectations set in Regency era England, Austen penned six novels that stand the test of time. In Emma, the last to be published before Austen’s death, our titular character experiences troubles and triumphs as she practices her matchmaking skills and perhaps even ends up with a match herself.

Austen lovers (also known as Janeites) may be interested to learn that the Winterthur Library holds a rare Austen in its collections. Published in Philadelphia in 1816 by Mathew Carey, this edition of Emma was the first Jane Austen work to be published in the United States, with only six known copies still surviving.[2] At the time, an American publisher reprinting a British work without informing the original publisher and author was fully legal, so we can assume Austen never knew about this first U.S. edition.  

What makes this edition so special? Mathew Carey immigrated to the United States from Ireland in 1784, and was a publisher, businessman, political writer, and self-proclaimed lover of novels and romances. In late 1816, he published Emma with a print run of 500 copies, almost a year to the day after the original edition was published in England. The book was credited on the title page to “the author of Pride and Prejudice,” though American readers did not yet have a reprint of Austen’s earlier works.  

Publishing Emma was a significant financial risk for Carey, and unfortunately no documentation exists to explain his decision to reprint the novel. At the time, Austen was an anonymous author never published in the States, and Carey and his printers took several economic shortcuts to save money on their risk. Some of these included condensing the novel into two volumes—it had originally been published in England in three—and using cheap paper and bindings. This, combined with sometimes rushed work assumed to be done by a young and inexperienced apprentice, likely explains why only six copies of the original 500 are known to still exist. In her book Reading Austen in America, Juliette Wells explains, “given the (understandably) low production values of Carey’s reprinted Emma, volumes would likely have disintegrated unless an owner cared enough to invest in having them rebound well.”  

Despite the shortcuts taken in its production, Winterthur’s copy of Emma, bound in calf leather and bearing the signature of E. I. du Pont, is in great condition. This lack of wear or significant markings sets Emma apart from other titles in the du Ponts’ personal libraries, and suggests that Emma was either not frequently read, or not enjoyed. Despite this possible lack of interest on the du Ponts’ part, E. I. du Pont was a contemporary of Mathew Carey and owned many of his publications. 

Interested in viewing Winterthur’s copy of Jane Austen’s Emma? Contact the Winterthur Library at reference@winterthur.org, but don’t delay. Emma will be traveling to the Morgan Library in New York for their exhibition A Lively Mind: Jane Austen at 250 from May through September 2025. 

Interested in learning more about the six surviving copies? Find Reading Austen in America by Juliette Wells at the Winterthur Library during any drop-in visit, Monday–Friday.  

[1] Opening line from Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice: a Novel.

[2] Read more about Mathew Carey and how he published the U.S. reprint of Emma in Juliette Wells,  Reading Austen in America, 2017.