Tankard Maker: Paul Revere (American, 1735–1818)

1762

American Decorative Arts

On view, 1st floor, American Decorative Arts before 1900

This is one of the finest-known tankards made by Paul Revere, the Boston silversmith and acclaimed patriot. The flame-shaped finial, scrolled thumbpiece, and applied midband are all attributes of mid-eighteenth-century tankards made in the Boston area, but this example is elevated by its excellent proportions, superb engraving, and added details like the cast satyr's mask on the terminal of the handle. The front of the tankard is engraved with an elaborate crest featuring an asymmetrical cartouche, a stag's head, and swags of fabric. The top of the handle is engraved with the initials T. G. and M. G., for Thomas and Martha Greene, who were married in 1744. An entry in Revere's daybook on September 8, 1762, records the making of this tankard, which used £10-worth of silver.

Medium

Silver

Dimensions

8 5/8 × 7 1/4 × 5 1/8 in. (21.9 × 18.4 × 13 cm)
lip: 3 13/16 in. (9.7 cm)
base: 5 1/8 in. (13 cm)

Credit Line

Mabel Brady Garvan Collection

Accession Number

1930.1196

Geography

Made in Boston, Massachusetts

Culture

American

Period

18th century

Classification

Containers

Disclaimer

Note: This electronic record was created from historic documentation that does not necessarily reflect the Yale University Art Gallery’s complete or current knowledge about the object. Review and updating of records is ongoing.

Provenance
Originally owned by Thomas Greene and his second wife, Martha Coit Hubbard; Crichton Bros., New York; Francis P. Garvan, New York, to 1930; Yale University Art Gallery, New Haven, Conn.
Bibliography
  • Patricia E. Kane, Colonial Massachusetts Silversmiths and Jewelers (New Haven, Conn.: Yale University Art Gallery, 1998), 837
  • Handbook of the Collections, exh. cat. (New Haven, Conn.: Yale University Art Gallery, 1992), 107, ill
  • Barbara M. Ward and Gerald W. R. Ward, eds., Silver in American Life: Selections from the Mabel Brady Garvan and Other Collections at Yale University, exh. cat. (New Haven, Conn.: Yale University Art Gallery, 1979), 72–73, 76, no. 38, ill
  • Charles F. Montgomery and Patricia E. Kane, eds., American Art: 1750–1800 Towards Independence, exh. cat. (Boston: New York Graphic Society, 1976), 201, fig. 157
  • Graham Hood, American Silver: A History of Style, 1650–1900 (New York: Praeger, 1971), 135, 140–41, fig. 140, 141
  • Kathryn C. Buhler and Graham Hood, American Silver in the Yale University Art Gallery, 2 vols. (New Haven, Conn.: Yale University Art Gallery, 1970), vol. 1, pp. 185–86, no. 240, ill
  • Francis de N. Schroeder, "Makers of Tradition 8: The Goldsmith Who Lost a Horse," Interiors (February 1950), 95, ill
  • Stephen G. C. Ensko, American Silversmiths and Their Marks, 1 (New York: Ensko, Inc., 1948), pl. 3
  • John Marshall Phillips, Masterpieces of New England Silver, 1650–1800: An Exhibition Held June 18 through September 10, 1939, Gallery of Fine Arts, Yale University (Boston: Harvard University Press, 1939), 73, no. 168
Object copyright
No Copyright - United States
Additional information

Object/Work type

tankard, utilitarian objects

Marks

"•REVERE" in rectangle (at lip to left of handle); "PR" in small rectangle (on bottom)

Inscriptions

Greene arms and crest, in shell and foliate cartouche, engraved on front; "TG / to / MG" on handle; "30 OZ 14" scratched on bottom

Technical metadata and APIs

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