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A sugar bowl with a waisted body on a circular stepped pedestal with S-scroll handles terminati…
Sugar Bowl
A sugar bowl with a waisted body on a circular stepped pedestal with S-scroll handles terminati…
A sugar bowl with a waisted body on a circular stepped pedestal with S-scroll handles terminating in C-scroll stylized griffon’s heads accompanied by a removable domed lid with an acorn finial surrounded by a radiating leaf motif.
Sugar Bowl, John McMullin, c. 1820, silver, Telfair Museum of Art, Savannah, Georgia.

Sugar Bowl

Maker (American, 1765 - 1843)
Datec. 1820
Mediumsilver
Dimensions8 1/4 × 5 1/4 × 7 5/8 inches (21 × 13.3 × 19.4 cm)
MarkingsMaker's mark stamped on the base: IMCMULLIN [in rectangle] / two asteriks / Eagle on a branch
Credit LineGift of Mrs. Barnwell Cubbedge.
Object number1972.20.a-.b
On View
Not on view
CopyrightThe images and text contained on this page are owned by Telfair Museums or used by the Museum with permission from the owners. Unauthorized reproduction, transmission or display of these materials is prohibited with the exception of items deemed “fair use” as defined by U.S. and international copyright laws.Label TextThis sugar bowl demonstrates some of the creative ways in which silversmiths incorporated mythological and natural motifs into seemingly simple table service pieces. The finial on this domed lid is shaped like an acorn, with small leaves around its base suggesting that it remains attached to the “tree.” The scrolling handles end in griffin’s heads. John McMullin (1765-1843) worked in Philadelphia from around 1795 to 1810 as a silversmith and jeweler, and then from 1811 to 1815 in a series of partnerships in the city (1811 to 1813 with James Black as McMullin & Black, 1813 to 1814 with James McMullin, and 1814 to 1815 with William Seal as Seal & McMullin). He then worked on his own again from 1815 to 1841 as a silversmith and jeweler.
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