Nathaniel Austin
Cann

CultureAmerican
Titles
  • Cann
Datec. 1763–1807
Made inBoston, Massachusetts, United States
MediumPewter
Dimensions6 1/8 × 4 3/4 × 6 5/16 in. (15.6 × 12.1 × 16 cm)
Credit LineThe Bayou Bend Collection, gift of Miss Ima Hogg
Object numberB.60.64
Current Location
Bayou Bend Collection and Gardens
Murphy Room
Exposé

Explore Further

Department
Bayou Bend
Object Type
Description

Tapered cans with solid strap handles constitute a variation on this popular drinking vessel that is unique to New England. Certainly the most distinctive interpretations of this motif are those marked by Nathaniel Austin. In addition to their unusual strap handles, Austin’s cans are characterized by raised shell-shaped thumb grips and unique terminals that incorporate the pewterer’s name, N-AUSTIN, into the disk.

Technical notes: The strap handle exhibits distinctive construction techniques. These include the solid handle cast in place against the body, much as a porringer’s handle is produced and attached (see B.58.97).

Related examples: Hood 1965, pp. 14,16, no. 13; Watts 1968, p. 18, no. 6; Fairbanks 1974, p. 7, no. 11; Brandt 1976, pp. 16–17, no. 1; Mont-gomery 1978, pp. 107, 109, no. 6–5.

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.


Provenance[Thomas D. and Constance R. Williams, Litchfield, Connecticut]; purchased by Miss Ima Hogg, 1960; given to MFAH, by 1966.
Inscriptions, Signatures and Marks
[no inscriptions]
On handle terminal: mark of Nathaniel Austin, Charlestown, 1763–1807 [Laughlin 1940, vol. I, pl. XLV, no. 296]

Cataloguing data may change with further research.

If you have questions about this work of art or the MFAH Online Collection please contact us.

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