William Thomson (active New York, 1809 - 1845)
Tea Mug, about 1828
Silver, 9.5 x 8.3 cm (3 3/4 x 3 1/4 in.)
This silver tea mug is positioned with the handle to our right. The mug has a double scroll handle and a foot with a repeating pattern of vertical half ovals. Both the inside and outside surfaces of the mug have areas of tarnish and discoloration. “Presented by the Agricultural Society of N. York to Mrs. Stewart 1828” is etched in the center of the body. “1828” is circled.
Short Gallery
Commentary
The Agricultural Society of New York presented Isabella Tod Stewart this prize in honor of her horticultural accomplishments in 1828. Isabella Stewart Gardner adored her grandmother, a highly independent woman who successfully managed the family’s Long Island, New York, farm after her husband’s untimely death. Gardner later placed this cup in her museum alongside other family portraits and mementoes in the Short Gallery.