Fans Around the World Minigallery - Museum of Anthropology

Fans around the World

From the very first prehistoric moment when an individual waved a palm leaf to create a pleasant breeze, fans have existed in almost all societies. The first fans were fixed, simple flat surfaces like leaves or feathers attached to a handle of some sort. As long ago as 2000 B.C., feathers and other ornamentation were used in fan construction, and fans became a social accessory, not just a tool used to keep cool. Elaborate fans constructed of gold, precious stones, and ostrich feathers were depicted on the walls of Tutankhamen’s 3300-year-old Egyptian tomb.

During the Renaissance, fans found their place in European culture as luxury items and were typically constructed from rare metals and fine jewels. Artists during the 16th century drew Queen Elizabeth I holding a variety of luxurious diamond-encrusted fans. Although fans as status symbols fell out of favor when they were mass-produced for the lower classes, their popularity surged again in the 1800s. Early 19th-century Europeans considered fans fashionable and vital for any established lady. They were used as a tool that could be wielded for modesty’s sake or put to more flirtatious purposes.

Fan popularity declined again during the 20th century and dwindles still today. Fans persist in Asia and several other parts of the world, but in most societies they are not the cultural staple they once were. With the onset of electric fans and air conditioners, handheld fans are no longer an indispensable cooling device, and production of the traditional handheld fan has decreased. In America, broad pieces of cardboard plastered in advertisements or plastic folding fans at carnivals are the most frequently encountered examples of this ancient art.

Items from the collection in this exhibit come from a wide range of locales, including Asia, North America, South America, Africa, and Oceania. The range of styles, materials, and decoration evident in this gallery illustrates the variety and plasticity of fans throughout cultures and time.

References

Alexander, Helene. Fans. New York: Drama, 1994.

Armstrong, Nancy. A Collector’s History of Fans. London: Crown, 1974.

Steele, Valerie. The Fan: Fashion and Femininity Unfolded. New York: Rizzoli, 2002.

All photos and text by Chelsea Bilyeu
summer 2007