Spoon for Charles Davis Maker: John B. Jones (American, 1782–1854)

ca. 1830

American Decorative Arts

By appointment, Wurtele Study Center

This spoon’s fiddle-shaped handle is engraved: "A Present from Eliza Dorr to her Grand Son Charles Davis." It was likely a baptism gift that one-ups the adage of being born with a silver spoon in one’s mouth. Elizabeth Smith Dorr and her grandson both lived in Roxbury, Massachusetts (now a neighborhood of Boston). Dorr purchased the spoon from John B. Jones, an enterprising jeweler and merchant who sold a variety of "Gilt and Fancy Goods" at his store on Washington Street in Boston.

Medium

Gold

Dimensions

6 13/16 in. (17.3 cm)

Credit Line

Gift of A. Elizabeth and Eleanor C. Chase

Accession Number

1949.140

Geography

Made in Boston, Massachusetts

Culture

American

Period

19th century

Classification

Flatware

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
Commissioned by Elizabeth Smith Dorr (1783–1842), for her grandson, Charles Davis (1829–1885), Roxbury, Mass., ca. 1830 [note 1]; by inheritance to his daughter Garafelia Davis Chase (1836–1912), Ware, Mass.; by descent or gift to her son Reverend Arthur Chase (1867–1952), Ware, Mass., then New Haven, Conn.; given to his daughters Eleanor Carlton Chase (1901–1999), Ware, N.H., and Alice Elizabeth Chase (1906–1996), New Haven, Conn.; given to to the Yale University Art Gallery, New Haven, Conn., 1949

Note 1: Davis was the eldest son of Dorr's daughter Elizabeth Eliza Smith Dorr (1809-1844) and Charles Davis (1807–1888). The elder Davis was born Cornelius Fellows Davis and legally changed his name to Charles Davis in 1829 following the death of his brother, Charles. According to family tradition, the spoon was a baptismal gift (David Barquist, notes from a conversation with A. Elizabeth Chase, February 26, 1985, curatorial object file).
Bibliography
  • 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, p. 222, no. 306, ill
  • Peter J. Bohan, American Gold, 1700–1860, exh. cat. (New Haven, Conn.: Yale University Art Gallery, 1963), 31, no. 31
Object copyright
No Copyright - United States
Additional information

Object/Work type

spoons

Marks

"J.B. Jones' in rectangle on back of handle

Inscriptions

"A Present from/Eliza Dorr/to her Grand Son/Charles Davis" engraved on front of handle.

Technical metadata and APIs

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