The crumb knife, intended for collecting and removing the table crumbs prior to serving the dessert course, was introduced during the mid-nineteenth century. This early example with the seemingly incongruous profile of George Washington as the handle terminal testifies to his en-during legacy as a national icon.

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.