Gorham Manufacturing Company
Flask

CultureAmerican
Titles
  • Flask
Date1888
PlaceProvidence, Rhode Island, United States
MediumSilver
Dimensions7 1/8 × 1 9/16 × 5 3/16 in. (18.1 × 4 × 13.2 cm)
Credit LineMuseum purchase funded by Dr. and Mrs. John R. Kelsey, Jr.
Object number83.45
Current Location
The Audrey Jones Beck Building
108 Hevrdejs Gallery
On view

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Object Type
DescriptionAfter the Civil War, Alexander Robey Shepherd became governor of the District of Columbia. He enacted public-works projects that breathed new life into the war-weary city but that also incurred large deficits, forcing him out of office and eventually out of the country. Shepherd moved his family to Batopilas, Chihuahua, Mexico, where he purchased a silver mine. Soon wealthy beyond his dreams, Shepherd returned to D.C. and commissioned the Gorham Silver Company to create 15 sterling-silver flasks (using Batopilas silver) as promotional gifts for various Mexican and American officials. With its saguaro cactus decoration and scenes of an idyllic adobe village, this unusual flask served as a form of advertising for the Mexican silver market.

Provenance[Sotheby & Co., London]; purchased by MFAH, 1983.

Cataloguing data may change with further research.

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Spoon
no date
Sterling silver
B.82.30
Bowl
Gorham Manufacturing Company
1885
Sterling silver
2004.1295
Pair of Sauceboats
Peter Archambo I
1724
Silver
2014.287.1,.2
Serving Spoon
Gorham Manufacturing Company
c. 1875
Silver and partial gilding
B.2017.6
Four-piece Black Coffee Set
Gorham Manufacturing Company
1904
Martelé standard silver, gilt, and ivory
2004.1289.1-.4
Dessert Knife
Gorham Manufacturing Company
c. 1860–1868
Silver
B.95.9.1
Pickle Fork
Gorham Manufacturing Company
c. 1860–1875
Silver
B.2004.12
Pair of Serving Spoons
Gorham Manufacturing Company
designed 1901
Sterling silver and gilt
97.211.1,.2
Soup Tureen
Gorham Manufacturing Company
c. 1858
Silver
B.95.1
Pair of Teaspoons
Gorham Manufacturing Company
c. 1862–1870
Silver
B.2004.46.1,.2
Tablespoon
Gorham Manufacturing Company
c. 1860–1895
Silver
B.2018.36
Set of six Butter Pats in original fitted case
Gorham Manufacturing Company
1878
Sterling silver and gilt
2004.1299.1-.6