Eoff & Shepard
Six-piece Tea and Coffee Service

MakerAmerican, active 1852–1861
RetailerAmerican, active 1852–1874
CultureAmerican
Titles
  • Six-piece Tea and Coffee Service
Datec. 1852–1861
Retailed inNew York, New York, United States
Made inNew York, New York, United States
MediumSilver
Dimensions.1: 11 1/4 × 12 1/4 × 4 1/2 in. (28.6 × 31.1 × 11.4 cm)
.2: 12 1/4 × 13 1/4 × 5 in. (31.1 × 33.7 × 12.7 cm)
.3: 13 1/4 × 11 × 7 1/2 in. (33.7 × 27.9 × 19.1 cm)
.4: 7 1/4 × 7 × 3 1/2 in. (18.4 × 17.8 × 8.9 cm)
.5: 10 1/4 × 10 × 4 1/4 in. (26 × 25.4 × 10.8 cm)
.6: 7 1/4 × 6 × 5 1/4 in. (18.4 × 15.2 × 13.3 cm)
Credit LineThe Bayou Bend Collection, gift of Dr. D. Robert and Beverly B. Wiemer
Object numberB.2020.7.1-.6
Current Location
The Audrey Jones Beck Building
108 Hevrdejs Gallery
On view

Explore Further

Department
Bayou Bend
Object Type
DescriptionEach piece of this tea and coffee service is finely engraved with an image related to its function. There is a cow on the creamer, sugar cane on the sugar bowl, and a Chinese sailing ship on the teapot—all generic images. The hot-water kettle, on the other hand, depicts specific scene: a dam across the Connecticut River between Holyoke and South Hadley, Massachusetts. The first dam there was built in 1848 by investors seeking to provide power for textile and paper mills. The New York City firm of Eoff and Shepard made the silver service somewhat later, possibly for a client involved with one of the related industries.

ProvenanceTime-Life & Company; given to Mrs. Nicholas Wallace, Kalamazoo, Michigan; purchased by [Village Green Antiques, Richland, Michigan]; purchased by Dr. Robert D. and Beverly B. Wiemer, Houston, October 15, 1979; given to MFAH, 2020.
Inscriptions, Signatures and Marks
The coffeepot engraved on one side with the monogram “J E B.”
On underside of water kettle, sugar bowl, waste bowl
[in an arc within a rectangle] BALL, BLACK & CO. / [within a rectangle] N. YORK [within a rectangle]
E & S / 3 pseudohallmarks: [profile facing right], [lion passant], [beehive]

On underside of teapot:
[in an arc within a rectangle] BALL, BLACK & CO. / 3 pseudohallmarks: [profile facing right], [lion passant], [beehive] / [within a rectangle] N. YORK / [within a rectangle] E & S

On underside of creamer:
[in an arc within a rectangle] BALL, BLACK & CO. / [within a rectangle] N. YORK / 3 pseudohallmarks: [profile facing right], [lion passant], [beehive] / [within a rectangle] E & S

Coffeepot: Unmarked

On the underside of the spirit lamp:
BLACK STARR & FROST/GORHAM/STERLING

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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