According to a note on a scrap of mourning paper kept with this fan, it was held by Queen Victoria in the final moments of her life. The Queen died at Osborne House in the Isle of Wight on 22 January 1901, at the age of 81. Since the death of Prince Albert in 1861 she had worn black exclusively, allowing embellishments in white, gold or silver only in her later years. Her accessories were likewise either black or white, although many coloured fans continued to be given to her. The lace edging indicates that this is not a mourning fan but an unexceptional dress accessory used by the widowed Queen, probably acquired from one of her outfitters. Neither the guards nor the sticks (both of which are made of ebony) are adorned or personalised in any way. A date towards the end of the century is suggested by the size of the leaf and the length of the sticks, and by the lace trim.

Lace was the most popular material for the manufacture of fan leaves by the 1890s. This fashion had been encouraged by advances in the production of machine-made lace, which was now widely available. However, at the Paris exhibition in 1878 lace fans already outnumbered all other types of fan displayed. In this fan the large black crape leaf is edged with machine lace made in imitation of hand-made Chantilly bobbin lace, incorporating a repeating daffodil motif.

Text adapted from Unfolding Pictures: Fans in the Royal Collection 2005