Tyg for John W. Sterling Yale University Art Gallery

1918

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

This tyg, or three-handled cup, was a gift from James Stillman to John W. Sterling, celebrating fifty years of friendship. The two men met early in their respective careers, Sterling as a prominent lawyer and Stillman as a banker and railroad investor. They were among the elite of New York’s financial world at the turn of the twentieth century, a stature confirmed by the selection of a solid gold cup as a fitting token of friendship. The sinuous lines of the handles and the interlocking monograms are conservative interpretations of the then-fashionable Art Nouveau style.

Medium: Gold
Dimensions: 8 3/8 × 7 3/16 in. (21.3 × 18.2 cm)
other: 4 15/16 in. (12.5 cm)
Credit Line: Gift of Christopher J. Elliman, B.A. 1975, in memory of Avery Rockefeller, Class of 1926
Accession Number: 1986.112.1
Geography: Manufactured in Providence, Rhode Island
Culture: American
Period: 20th 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

Commissioned by James A. Stillman (1850–1918), New York for John W. Sterling (1844–1918), New York, 1918; inherited by Stillman’s grandson Avery Rockefeller (1908–1986), New York then Overhills, N.C., 1918; given to his grandson Christopher J. Elliman (born 1953), Greenwich, Conn., then New York, on the occasion of his graduation from Yale University, 1976; given to the Yale University Art Gallery, New Haven, Conn., 1986

Bibliography

"Acquisitions 1985–1987," Yale University Art Gallery Bulletin 40, no. 2 (Spring 1988), 88

Object copyright

No Copyright - United States

Additional information

Marks

" [Lion on anchor] / XDZR" opposite "THEODORE B. STARR, INC./ NEW YORK" all incuse, struck on underside

Inscriptions

"1868-1918", "JS" and "JWS" engraved on exterior between handles

Technical metadata and APIs

IIIF: Open in Mirador

View IIIF manifest

The International Image Interoperability Framework, or IIIF, is an open standard for delivering high-quality, attributed digital objects online at scale. Visit iiif.io to learn more
Linked Art: API response for this object

Linked Art is a Community working together to create a shared Model based on Linked Open Data to describe Art.