Jonathan Otis
Pair of Sleeve Buttons

MakerAmerican, 1723–1791
CultureAmerican
Titles
  • Pair of Sleeve Buttons
Datec. 1744–1775
Possible placeMiddletown, Connecticut, United States
Possible placeNewport, Rhode Island, United States
MediumGold
DimensionsEach: 1/2 × 1 × 1/8 in. (1.3 × 2.5 × 0.3 cm)
Credit LineThe Bayou Bend Collection, museum purchase funded by the Sarah Campbell Blaffer Foundation
Object numberB.88.23.1,.2
Current Location
Bayou Bend Collection and Gardens
Metals Study Room
Exposé

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Department
Bayou Bend
DescriptionSilversmith Jonathan Otis worked in Newport, Rhode Island, and Middletown, Connecticut. Craftsmen made sleeve buttons in a variety of materials, including silver, enamel, and gold. Octagonal buttons like this pair were popular during the middle years of the 1700s.
ProvenanceFred Roberts; [Argentum Antiques, San Francisco]; purchased by MFAH, 1988.
Exhibition HistoryMuseum purchase from a dealer exhibiting at The Theta Charity Antique Show in Houston

Inscriptions, Signatures and Marks
[no inscriptions]
Mark of Jonathan Otis [Flynt and Fales 1968, p. 292, center mark]

Cataloguing data may change with further research.

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Guard (Kachina)
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Button (one of a pair)
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19th century
Brass
B.75.64.1
Button (one of a pair)
H. V. Allien & Co.
19th century
Brass
B.75.64.2
Recto
William H. Horstmann & Sons
19th century
Brass
B.76.192
Sleeve Ruffle
18th century
Linen
40.14
Sleeve Ruffle
mid-18th century
Linen
40.13
Silk Coat with Sleeves
18th or early 19th century
Silk and cotton
33.51