Day 280 - Paul Revere sugar bowl and cream pot

January 6, 2022

 Display cases containing silver candlesticks, beakers, punch bowls, porringers, tankards, spoons,  coffee and tea pots, and many other objects from the Colonial period line the side walls of gallery 750, while in the center is another display case largely devoted to works made by Paul Revere. The gallery gleams! Introductory signage notes that colonists prized their silver, whether made here or imported, and that silver was a signifier of status. I have to admit that  while I like many of the items very much, I'm mostly intrigued  by what the objects indicate about colonial society. (I might note, though, that even if I were more attuned to the aesthetic qualities of the objects, I'd still be put off by the Met's failure to define the obscure technical terms like "gadrooning"  and "strapwork" that the signs use to describe the objects' decorative features. A relatively minor complaint, I know, but really, the museum could do better.)

One thing that's clear from the objects, their creators, and their owners is just how Dutch 17th century and early 18th century New York was. Case in point: a two-handled bowl used for celebrations that was made around 1700-1710 by Cornelius Kierstade and features a design of tulips. The inscription on a silver baptismal basic is actually in Dutch.  I also note the presence of a Jewish silversmith, Myer Myers, in 18th century New York.

I recognize objects made for members of several Massachusetts families prominent enough to have had towns named after them- the Belchers, the Holyokes, the Wares. (Jonathan Belcher, it turns out, was a colonial governor.) But what is especially interesting is that many of these families had coats of arms. Were these imported from England, I wonder, or did colonists who wanted to advertise their elite status just make up their own designs?

I've always admired the simplicity and elegance of Paul Revere's work, and these qualities are evident in today's object, a sugar bowl and cream pot  made around 1795. The bowl, about 10 inches high, and its matching cream pot, about 7 inches high,  have identical faceted sides and a delicate vegetal design. I read that by the time Revere came to the fore, Americans had come to prefer the sobriety and restraint of Neoclassical design to the more fanciful Rococo design elements seen in earlier works, and Revere embraced this new style. No wonder I like his work so much.