Martelé Centerpiece
Designer
William Christmas Codman
(English, 1839 - 1921)
Manufacturer
Gorham Manufacturing Company
(American, founded 1831)
CultureAmerican
Date1904
MediumSterling silver
DimensionsOverall: 22 1/2 x 22 x 35 in. (57.2 x 55.9 x 88.9 cm)
InscribedMain support (78.128a, struck on bottom): Martelé (name of the line); Lion (silver); Eagle over an anchor (symbol of Rhode Island); G (for Gorham); 950-1000 fine (grade of silver); FFK (model). Four dishes fitting into arms (78.128b-e, struck on bottom of each): 950-1000 fine (grade pf silver); Roman capital A and rubbed out number 3005 (number added by mistake); FFK (model). Large central dish (78.128f, struck on bottom): Marked the same as the four dishes from arms. Flower holder fitting into central dish (78.128g. silver gilt with no space for marking): Unmarked. ;
Credit LineGift of Walter P. Chrysler, Jr.
Object number78.128
Not on view
DescriptionThis centerpiece is finely chased with art nouveau designs, and the handles of its main bowl are formed of cast and applied figures of mermaids. Placed in the central support is the cast figure of a winged woman and four whiplash arms, which support the four smaller bowls and have at their bases the face of a woman with long flowing hair. Four dishes extend out from the central support at its base.Label TextWilliam Christmas Codman, designer English, 1839–1921 Gorham Manufacturing Company Providence, Rhode Island Martelé Centerpiece, 1904 Sterling silver Gift of Walter P. Chrysler, Jr. 78.128 Exhibition HistoryTREASURES FOR THE TABLE: SILVER FROM THE CHRYSLER MUSEUM. SILVER FROM THE CHRYSLER MUSEUM, The Chrysler Museum, Norfolk, VA, Decorative Arts Gallery, September 16, 1993-February 11, 1994 Published ReferencesCharles H. Carpenter, Jr., GORHAM SILVER, 1831-1981, (Dodd, Mead & Co.: New York, 1982), 246, fig. 263. David Revere McFadden and Mark A. Clark, TREASURES FOR THE TABLE: SILVER FROM THE CHRYSLER MUSEUM, (Hudson Hills Press: New York, 1989), 48, NO. 6 & 50. Jeff Harrison, _Collecting with Vision: Treasures From the Chrysler Museum of Art_ (London: D. Giles Ltd., 2007), 156, fig. 199. ISBN: 978-0-940744-72-1
