- Goblet
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Kuchler and Himmel’s goblet is an early example of spun silver. Spinning, a manufacturing technique whereby simple vessels or components could be formed on a lathe, was introduced by the second quarter of the nineteenth century. This process was first used by manufacturers of Britannia, a pewter-related alloy, and later adapted to the production of silver. A sheet disk was placed against a wooden pattern in the shape to be replicated. The chuck was secured on the lathe; as it revolved, pressure was applied, and the silver blank conformed to the desired shape.
Technical notes: The goblet is spun in two parts, which are joined at the upper stem and wafer.
Related examples: Mackie, Bacot, and Mackie 1980, p. 33, no. 34; Mackie, Bacot, and Mackie 1982, p. 303.
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[James H. Craig, Craig and Tarlton, Inc., Raleigh, North Carolina]; given to Miss Ima Hogg, 1970; given to MFAH, 1970.
Exhibition History"Containers and Vessels" The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston October 21, 1989–January 1990 Subsequent tour
Inscriptions, Signatures and Marks
Cataloguing data may change with further research.
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