Gorham Manufacturing Company
Asparagus Tongs

Public Domain

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Maker Gorham Manufacturing CompanyProvidence, Rhode Island, founded 1831

CultureAmerican

Titles

Asparagus Tongs
from the "Isis" pattern

Datec. 1870

Made inProvidence, Rhode Island, United States

MediumSilver and silver gilding

Dimensions12 1/4 × 1 5/8 × 1 3/4 in. (31.1 × 4.1 × 4.4 cm)

Credit LineThe Bayou Bend Collection, gift of Dr. William P. Hood, Jr.

Object numberB.2003.16

Current Location

Bayou Bend Collection and Gardens

Metals Study Room

On view

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Department

Bayou Bend

Object Type

METALWORK

DescriptionEgyptian motifs first appeared in American architecture and decorative arts during the early years of the 1800s. By the late 1860s, the Egyptian taste once again grew in popularity, prompted in part by the international attention paid to the Khedive Ishail Pasha's modern nation (1863–1879). Its ambitious program of reforms and innovations included the completion of the Suez Canal in 1869. Certainly, it is no coincidence that during this period Egyptian designs proliferated at Gorham, which introduced no fewer than four patterns in 1870.
ProvenanceDr. William P. Hood, Jr., Dothan, Alabama; given to MFAH, 2003.
Exhibition History"Egyptomania," The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, March18– August 5, 2012.
Inscriptions, Signatures and Marks

Monogrammed on lower blade:

Stamped on inside of handle: STERLING
Marked on inside of handle, Gorham stamp: lion, anchor and old English G.

Cataloguing data may change with further research.

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