- Soup Tureen with Cover on Stand
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A grand tureen on stand characterizes the late neoclassical style popular during the early 19th century and would have made a striking display on a sideboard or dining table. The tureen’s form derived from the Warwick Vase, an ancient Roman marble artifact, whose discovery in Tivoli, Italy, in 1769–70, inspired many decorative arts of the period. Marked by New York silver and luxury goods merchant Baldwin Gardiner, this tureen features chased and repoussé work of broad flutes, acanthus foliage, flowers, and palmettes. An elaborate flower-bud finial graces the top.
Dutch-born merchant John Gerard Coster, first owner of this tureen, had a home on Broadway in New York City on a site that John Jacob Astor wanted for the construction of his famous Astor House Hotel. Coster held out, but finally sold his home about 1830, and built a new house at another location on Broadway designed by architects A. J. Davis and Ithiel Town. This tureen was probably among the furnishings of his new house.
ProvenanceJohn Gerard Coster (1762–1846), New York, then by descent in the family; consigned to [Christie's, New York, sale 7492, June 17, 1992, lot 45]; purchased by Iris Schwartz, New Jersey; consigned to [Sotheby's, New York, sale N09606, "The Iris Schwartz Collection of American Silver," January 20, 2017, lot 3168]; purchased by MFAH, 2017.
Exhibition History"Art and the Empire City, New York, 1825–1861," Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, September 19, 2000–January 7, 2001.
"Theta Charity Antiques Show," George R. Brown Convention Center, Houston, November 14–19, 2018.
Inscriptions, Signatures and Marks
Underside of lid: Scratched by hand: GWC / No 2 ___ 34.10
Underside of stand: Scratched by hand: GWC
Underside of stand: GARDINER / NEW YORK [with 3 marks]
Cataloguing data may change with further research.
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