Silversmiths have been making presentation pieces from the earliest days
of our country, but the Smithsonian Institution has only a few
18th-century pieces in its collection.
The earliest of these is an inlaid silver snuffbox (fig. 2) made by
William Cario, who worked in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, about 1763. The
oval box--evidently a gift to the silversmith's second wife, Lydia
Croxford, whom he married in 1768--has inscribed on its base "The
property of Lydia Cario" and "1769." The cover has an undersurface of
horn, and the silver on the outer surface is inlaid with mother-of-pearl
and tortoise shell in a filigree pattern.
Many of the earliest pieces of presentation silver were made for use in
churches, and they were given by groups as well as by individuals.
Representative of this type is a silver alms plate[1] with the following
inscription on the rim:
The Gift of the Hon^ble THOMAS HANCOCK ESQ^R to the CHURCH in
Brattle Street Boston 1764.
The plate is shallow with a slightly domed center. Engraved on the flat
rim, in addition to the inscription, is a crest at the top and the
cherub's head at the bottom. The piece is marked by John Coburn, who
lived in Boston from 1725 to 1803. Five trays matching this one are in
the Boston Museum of Fine Arts.[2]
[Illustration: Figure 3.--MARK OF SAMUEL MINOTT and monogram of Elias
Hasket Derby on silver tankard. Bequest of Arthur Michaels. In Division
of Cultural History. (Acc. 162866, cat. 383545; Smithsonian photos
44828-D, 44828-F.)]
A silver tankard made by Samuel Minott, who worked in Boston from about
1765 to 1803, can be accurately placed by the account of ownership
thoughtfully inscribed on its base by one of its later owners. The
legend reads:
Richard Derby to E. S. Hasket Derby 1763
John Derby
George Derby 1831
Roger Derby 1874
The tankard has a tapered, ringed body, an S-shaped handle with a plain
boss at the end, a scroll thumb-piece, a flat molded drop ornament on
the handle, and a domed cover with an acorn finial. On the body beneath
the Derby coat of arms, is monogrammed "E H D" for Elias Hasket Derby
(fig. 3). Elias Hasket Derby achieved wealth and fame as a Salem
merchant prince engaged in the China trade.
Similar in design to these 18th-century pieces is a standing cup[3] or
chalice with the inscription:
Presented by the Sisters of the New South Church for its communion
service--January 1, 1815.
This cup, with a concave body and a baluster stem with a square foot, is
marked "Moulton" and is in the style of Ebenezer Moulton who worked in
Boston between 1768 and 1824.