William Forbes
Tumbler

MakerAmerican, baptized 1799, active New York 1826–1863
RetailerNewark, New Jersey 1836–1845, and New Orleans 1842–1853
CultureAmerican
Titles
  • Tumbler
Datec. 1842–1853
Made inNew York , New York, United States
Retailed inNew Orleans, Louisiana, United States
MediumSilver
Dimensions3 5/8 × 3 1/8 in. diameter (9.2 × 7.9 cm)
Credit LineThe Bayou Bend Collection, gift of the Wunsch Americana Foundation
Object numberB.74.12
Current Location
Bayou Bend Collection and Gardens
Metals Study Room
Exposé

Explore Further

Department
Bayou Bend
Object Type
Description

A cylindrical shape proved the most efficient and economical in the fabrication of a tumbler. Occasionally craftsmen altered the form, as exemplified by the Bayou Bend example. This serpentine contour, the most elegant of the variant forms, was introduced during the second half of the eighteenth century. It was adapted to a variety of media, including a teapot Paul Revere made as early as 1786

Technical notes: The body is a seamed construction. 

Book excerpt: David B. Warren, Michael K. Brown, Elizabeth Ann Coleman, and Emily Ballew Neff.  American Decorative Arts and Paintings in the Bayou Bend Collection. Houston: Princeton Univ. Press, 1998.


ProvenanceCommander William B. Cushing (1842–1874), Washington, D.C.; S. Baitor Hinckley, Jr.; Mr. and Mrs. Charles F. Montgomery, by 1968; purchased by [Ginsburg & Levy, New York]; purchased by Wunsch Americana Foundation; given to MFAH, 1974.
Exhibition History

Inscriptions, Signatures and Marks
Engraved on side: S. Baitor Hinckley Jr. / The Future Midshipman. / From Lieut. Wm[m superscript] B. Cushing. / Jan. 19th 1864
H. E. Baldwin & CO[O superscript and underlined] [in a curved banner above a star]; NEW. ORLEANS [in a rectangle]; W.F. [below, in a rectangle]; a beaver in an oval at either end of the arc

Cataloguing data may change with further research.

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