Caroline Furness Jayne facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Caroline Furness Jayne
Portrait by William Merritt Chase
Born	July 3, 1873
Died	June 23, 1909
Occupation	Ethnologist

Caroline Augusta Furness Jayne (born July 3, 1873 – died June 23, 1909) was an American scientist who studied different cultures, called an ethnologist. She is best known for her book about string figures, like cat's cradle. The book is titled String Figures and How to Make Them: a study of cat's cradle in many lands, published in 1906.

About Her Life

Caroline Jayne was the youngest of four children. She was the only daughter of Horace Howard Furness, a famous expert on Shakespeare, and Helen Kate (Rogers) Furness, an author.

Caroline grew up in Philadelphia. Her family had a city house near Washington Square. They also had a summer home in Wallingford, Pennsylvania. She went to the Agnes Irwin School. On October 10, 1894, she married Horace Jayne. He was a biology professor at the University of Pennsylvania.

Her Work with String Figures

Caroline Jayne learned about string figures from Alfred Haddon. He was an ethnologist from Cambridge. He wrote the introduction to her book. He believed that even small things, like string figures, were important to study in ethnology.

String figures are games played by weaving a single loop of string on the hands. This creates complex patterns. The most famous one is cat's cradle. These games are played by people all over the world.

Caroline Jayne traveled a lot. She was the first person to write a popular book about string figures. Before her book, most studies were found in scientific journals. These journals were often hard to read or in other languages. Her book made the topic fun and easy to understand for everyone.

Her book, String Figures and How to Make Them, came out in 1906. It was published by Charles Scribner's Sons in New York. Later, it was reprinted by Dover Publications in 1962. The book had many pictures. It showed how to make each string figure. It also included 16 portraits of people playing the games. Caroline's brother, William Henry Furness III, who also studied cultures, helped with some of the drawings for the book.

Her Family and Home

Caroline and Horace Jayne had two children. Their daughter was Kate Furness Jayne (born 1895). Their son was Horace H. F. Jayne (born 1898).

The family built a city house in Philadelphia. It was at 19th & Delancey Streets. Her uncle, Frank Furness, who was an architect, designed it. They also built a summer house in Wallingford, Pennsylvania. This house, called "Sub Rosa," was on the same land as her father's summer home. Her uncle Frank Furness designed this house too.

Caroline Jayne passed away when she was 36 years old. After her death, her husband and children lived in "Sub Rosa" all year.

To remember her, her father asked for a special Tiffany window. It was made for the First Unitarian Church of Philadelphia. The window shows a picture of Caroline holding a lily.

Her friend, the poet Florence Earle Coates, wrote a poem about her.

Her son, Horace H. F. Jayne, became important in the art world. He was the first curator of Chinese art at the Philadelphia Museum of Art. Later, he directed the University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology. He also became a vice director at the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

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  "Dr. Furness's House, West Washington Square, just before it was torn down." (1914), Joseph Pennell

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  Horace Jayne, in 1899

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  Horace Jayne House, Philadelphia, PA (1895), Frank Furness, architect

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  "Sub Rosa" (c.1896, demolished), Wallingford, PA, Frank Furness, architect

Images for kids

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  An example of string figures from Jayne's book

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  Caroline Furness Jayne tombstone in Laurel Hill Cemetery