William Forbes
Tumbler

Public Domain

MakerAttributed to William Forbes (American, baptized 1799, active New York 1826–1863)American, baptized 1799, active New York 1826–1863

Retailer Horace E. Baldwin & Co. (Newark, New Jersey 1836–1845, and New Orleans 1842–1853)Newark, New Jersey 1836–1845, and New Orleans 1842–1853

CultureAmerican

Titles

Tumbler

Datec. 1842–1853

Made inNew York , New York, United States

Retailed inNew Orleans, Louisiana, United States

MediumSilver

Dimensions3 5/8 × 3 1/8 in. diameter (9.2 × 7.9 cm)

Credit LineThe Bayou Bend Collection, gift of the Wunsch Americana Foundation

Object numberB.74.12

Current Location

Bayou Bend Collection and Gardens

Metals Study Room

On view

Explore Further

Department

Bayou Bend

Object Type

METALWORK

Description

A cylindrical shape proved the most efficient and economical in the fabrication of a tumbler. Occasionally craftsmen altered the form, as exemplified by the Bayou Bend example. This serpentine contour, the most elegant of the variant forms, was introduced during the second half of the eighteenth century. It was adapted to a variety of media, including a teapot Paul Revere made as early as 1786

Technical notes: The body is a seamed construction.

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.

ProvenanceCommander William B. Cushing (1842–1874), Washington, D.C.; S. Baitor Hinckley, Jr.; Mr. and Mrs. Charles F. Montgomery, by 1968; purchased by [Ginsburg & Levy, New York]; purchased by Wunsch Americana Foundation; given to MFAH, 1974.
Exhibition History

Inscriptions, Signatures and Marks

Engraved on side: S. Baitor Hinckley Jr. / The Future Midshipman. / From Lieut. Wm[m superscript] B. Cushing. / Jan. 19th 1864

H. E. Baldwin & CO[O superscript and underlined] [in a curved banner above a star]; NEW. ORLEANS [in a rectangle]; W.F. [below, in a rectangle]; a beaver in an oval at either end of the arc

Cataloguing data may change with further research.

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