This combination of medieval quatrefoils and Japanesque cherry blossoms in the frieze points to the Aesthetic Movement as a unique 19th century fusion of East and West. The ceiling pattern depicts the classical Japanese motif of cherry blossoms falling on cracked ice, and is surrounded by a border of heraldic crests and corner blocks of stylized Eastlake flowerpots.
Gilded brocade panels of darting sparrows anchor the ceiling border to the cornice, held in place by gilded ribbons. The desire to surround one's self with things Japanese can hardly be underestimated in American interiors in the late 1870s and 1880s, when an appreciation of Japanese decorative design was considered the basic indicator of refined taste.
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