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Elliptical serving bowl
1700–50
Object Place: Probably Mexico
Medium/Technique
Silver
Dimensions
6.1 x 41 x 29.3 cm (2 3/8 x 16 1/8 x 11 9/16 in.)
Credit Line
Gift of Mrs. W. L. Mckee
Accession Number16.22
CollectionsAmericas
ClassificationsSilver hollowware
The elliptical form and deeply scalloped rim of this bowl relate to similar forms made of clay and silver in Spain, Portugal, and various parts of Spanish America from the 1750s to the 1830s. Although the bowl lacks local marks, it does bear a Lisbon symbol used from 1886 to 1938 that may have been added later. The tiny touchmark was used to indicate silverware of artistic or archaeological value. The stamped letters “Pt” and “O” may indicate an owner’s initials.
Several slightly larger and more elaborate versions have been published and identified as Mexican. All share the same two-dimensional quality of the scrolled rim, although their deep, shaped bowls and applied rims accent bold curves. They exemplify the lively Baroque style as practiced in the Spanish-speaking Americas.
This text has been adapted from "Silver of the Americas, 1600-2000," edited by Jeannine Falino and Gerald W.R. Ward, published in 2008 by the MFA. Complete references can be found in that publication.
Several slightly larger and more elaborate versions have been published and identified as Mexican. All share the same two-dimensional quality of the scrolled rim, although their deep, shaped bowls and applied rims accent bold curves. They exemplify the lively Baroque style as practiced in the Spanish-speaking Americas.
This text has been adapted from "Silver of the Americas, 1600-2000," edited by Jeannine Falino and Gerald W.R. Ward, published in 2008 by the MFA. Complete references can be found in that publication.
DescriptionThe raised elliptical vessel has a deep flat bowl with steep sides and a broad flat rim finished with a rolled edge. The boldly scalloped rim has a wide hemispherical curve at the center of each length and a small, nearly circular curve on the shorter sides.
Marks
A very small head of a bearded man, in a shaped cartouche, struck on rim (a Lisbon symbol used from 1886 to 1938 to indicate silver of artistic or archaeological value).
Inscriptions"Pt" and "O" stamped on rim, possibly owners marks.
ProvenanceThe bowl has a curious history of ownership in the early twentieth century that links two notable American silver scholars. The vessel, then called a Portuguese shaving basin, was lent to the Museum in 1914 by Francis Hill Bigelow (1859 – 1933). Bigelow placed it on loan for Englishman E. Alfred Jones (1872 – 1944), who had published his book entitled The Old Silver of American Churches the year before. The purpose of this loan is unclear, and we do not know anything about the donor’s identity or her relationship to Bigelow or Jones.