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| Figure 35 C. W. Wirths and Brothers, ice skates, Remscheid, Germany, ca. 1833, probably imported into Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Wood, iron, and leather. L. 13 3/16", W. 2 9/16". (Courtesy, Winterthur Museum, bequest of Henry Francis du Pont, acc. 65.1978.1 and .2.) The Smithsonian Institution owns a related pair of skates with acorn-tipped scrolls at the front and also stamped by Wirths and Brothers. Research indicates that the Wirths Company exported 600 pairs of skates to Christian Hesser in Philadelphia on August 12, 1833. Skates of similar design are visible in Dutch and Flemish genre paintings of village life. Early Dutch and Flemish paintings of rural winter scenes with skaters illustrate similar curved-prow skates. |
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