How to clean up a century old piece. Removing later additions and bring back to original.
Charle "of Malta" Parnis
Compare these three head shots:
1. From Lift Trucks contributor.
2. Long sheet found in Dusty Rhodes’ studio.
3. Charlie “of Malta” Parnis, early 1900s. Collection of Hanky Panky, Amsterdam Tattoo Museum. From Pierced Hearts and True Love: A Century of Drawings for Tattoos, The Drawing Center.
Lab staff sent packing along with our scientific laboratory of expensive machinery. We now trust in knowledge the passed down through generations, the good eyes and common sense of our friends in the tattoo world. Great analysis that has shed light on a previously unexplored subject regarding tattoo flash painted over 100 years ago. Difficult task indeed.
Clear out your desks.
Schools out forever for these Lift Trucks employees and their shoddy research.
Fill high the dumpster!
We now trust the eyes of our friends. Many thanks again to Messrs. Skuse & Shudehill.
We now must have any help with information regarding the mystery of Charlie,of Malta,Parnis.
First question: Did he live ever in Malta, or was he an Englishman with Malta as his calling card, much like "Brooklyn" Joe Leiber? A man who reportedly never set shoe leather down once in the good borough.
Yes Yes, And Furthermore...
Here's something we know. This sheet was done by Dusty Rhodes aka Professor Manley.
It's signed.
The dude's full name was Manley Raymond "Dusty" Rhodes (1890-1962.) Our professional research team at LTP confirms: The hand that wrought this had nothing at all to do with the big framed panel that hung in his studio.
Compare the knives and faces.
But as a wise collector once said: Let's just sit back and dig these tattoo masters. They are the true and real artists of the last Century.
Snakes and High Heels
From exhaustive electroscopic comparison analysis at our very own International Institute for Tattoo Art Research, a division of Lift Trucks Project, our studies have led us to the following determination. The large tattoo flash board from Dusty Rhodes studio is most certainly the handwork of Joseph Hartley.
One element of our research over the course of a couple of hours and in between other stuff, was to focus upon the written words. Lettering is, in itself, as telling and unique as a signature. No two people will pen a letter exactly the same way.
Selection from a book documenting Joseph Hartley work, by the esteemed expert, Mr. Hanky Panky.
A close up of the sheet found in Dusty Rhodes shop.
As we compare the individual letters in the word "NAME", note the outward curve on the right stroke of the “A" and the distinctive convex and concave lines on the "N". The way the center angle of the "M” does not descend as far as the other parts of the letter. Our research shows that in Hartley’s lettering most of the forms have the tops dramatically curving as if they’re leaning back and windswept.
Hanky Panky's book (Left) Dusty's sheet (Right)
Joseph Hartley sheet kindly sent by a Lift Trucks contributor. (Above.)
Board from Dusty's studio
We encourage our readers to look for these points of similarity. Snakes with distinct red/white underbelly's and black and green backs. Unique little dots around hearts. The women have stylized bright eyes, arched eyebrows, rosebud lips and heavy jaw lines... The final tells being the ladies tiny size 2 shoes and the fact that Hartely was well known to have supplied the Rhodes brothers in the 1930's with supplies from his Tattoo business in Bristol, England.
Just as sure as a clean fingerprint on a newly cracked safe, we believe this conclusively connects the art to the artist.
We also think this sheet is his ultimate masterpiece.
This of course, has nothing to do with the fact that we own the item.
Dusty Rhodes
The old tea china gently rattled as he walked down hand hewn wood stairs, fire cold dead now but for smoky remains. As he latched the door and walked the cobbled streets to work early morning sunlight streamed over mermaid shaped clouds. Shades of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, Prof. Manley slowly became Dusty the Tattooist. Consumed with his near to waking dreams from the night before of Indian chiefs and red mesas, the most un-Brit women clad scantily whirling around with exotic snakes, fans and feathers, the ground littered with heads of evil marauders impaled with a Scotsman's Sgian Dubh knife. The fantasies ran another beautiful day in Grimsby, which, once fueled by fishing and maritime, was now headed into steep decline.
The town was not yet fully awake as Dusty lit his first cigarette outside the neat as a pin shop. A retired sea captain allowed a greeting as he stumped by. Neptune, God & Country and the Girl at port-side home were all a-waiting to be memorialized in tattoos. Children peering in the tattooists window were scooted down the road by overburdened mums.
Manley "Dusty Rhodes" (1860-1962) was listed as a tattooist in Chatham, England 1911 although he spent most of his career in Grimsby. The designs above found in Dusty's shop, are most certainly by Joseph Hartley who sold flash samples and materials from his famous Bristol tattoo shop. This anonymous sheet below was found on the back of the Ladies Cheeks Tinted sign seen in window.
