Metalsmiths who settled in colonial America and trained successive generations of craftsmen left a legacy of metalwork important to all aspects of life. Winterthur’s impressive collection of American-made and imported metalwork encompasses more than 21,000 objects of gold, silver, silverplate, iron, pewter, copper, and alloys of copper such as brass, bronze, and paktong. Collection strengths include domestic and ecclesiastical pewter collected chiefly by museum founder Henry Francis du Pont and the museum’s first director, Charles Montgomery. Other important groups include wrought iron hardware as well as ornamental and useful implements; lighting and lamps, many incorporating François Pierre Ami Argand’s design; Kentucky rifles; and colonial American silver.
The silver collection includes about 9,000 examples of maker’s marks on flat silver such as spoons and sugar tongs. Donated by Mr. and Mrs. Stanley B. Ineson, Mr. and Mrs. Alfred E. Bissell, and Richard Tousey, these items provide crucial information for research. Areas of focus for new acquisitions and research are all types of metalwork marked by a craftsman and objects with a known history of ownership in the United States.
Books about Winterthur Metalwork
Belden, Louise Conway. Marks of American Silversmiths in the Ineson-Bissell Collection.Winterthur, Del.: Henry Francis du Pont Winterthur Museum, 1980.
Fales, Martha Gandy. American Silver in the Henry Francis du Pont Winterthur Museum. Winterthur, Del.: Henry Francis du Pont Winterthur Museum, 1958.
Fennimore, Donald L. and Patricia A. Halfpenny. The Campbell Collection of Soup Tureens at Winterthur. Winterthur, Del.: Henry Francis du Pont Winterthur Museum, 2000.
Fennimore, Donald L. Flights of Fancy: American Silver Bird-Decorated Spoons. Winterthur, Del.: Henry Francis du Pont Winterthur Museum, 2000.
Fennimore, Donald L. Metalwork in Early America: Copper and Its Alloys from the Winterthur Collection. Winterthur, Del.: Henry Francis du Pont Winterthur Museum, 1996.
Fennimore, Donald L. Iron at Winterthur. Winterthur, Del.: Henry Francis du Pont Winterthur Museum, 2004.
Quimby, Ian M. G. American Silver at Winterthur. Winterthur, Del.: Henry Francis du Pont Winterthur Museum, 1995.
Top Image: Tankards (set of six). Made by Paul Revere, Jr., Boston, Massachusetts; 1772. Silver. Average height: 8 3/8” (21 cm). 1957.859.1-.6