Goffering iron rod from Saratoga National Historical Park. Photo by Norm Eggert for NMSC.

A goffering iron, which is also known as a tally iron, is a device used for pressing pleats, ruffles, and ridges into fabric.  They have been used since the sixteenth century on everything from Elizabethan ruffs to Victorian ruffles.  Though the type of clothing changed, there seemed always to be a need for irons that not only smoothed fabric, but also gave it shape.

The design of the goffering iron – utilitarian and simple – did not change much from the 16^th through the 20^th century.  When an object lacks datable diagnostic qualities, artifacts from the same provenience can help to date by association.  Because most of the artifacts found with this tool at the Schuyler House date to the 19^th century, it is likely that the goffering iron does as well.  After looking through examples of Victorian dresses, it is easy to see the ruffles that were created by the use of goffering irons.

This 1867 evening dress shows six layers of ruffled fabric at the bottom. These ruffles were created with goffering iron courtesy of http://www.victoriana.com.

Aside from ironing ruffles into dresses, goffering irons could also be used to frill fabric on collars and other clothing edges.  One can only imagine how much work, time, and accidental burns it took to make six rows of ruffles at the bottom of the dress pictured above.  Because of this, new inventions came out in the late 19th century that made the process easier and faster.

Goffering was primarily done after the article of clothing was laundered.  In the French print below from 1876, women around a table of freshly laundered clothing are adding back the frills and ruffles that came out in the wash.  The woman in yellow is actually holding what appears to be a goffering iron rod.  For more information about how we use paintings and prints to study material culture, check out our blog post titled “Fine Art: An Archeologist’s Best Friend.”

“Ironing room in a laundry” from 1876. Notice the woman in the yellow dress holding a goffering rod. Picture from http://www.profimedia.si/picture/ironing-room-in-a-laundry/0090807693/.

After researching this blog post I started thinking about clothing care for my own wardrobe, and being thankful that hand washing and goffering irons are now obsolete.  What types of cleaning implements do we use today that people in the future may see as old-fashioned?  What technological advances are you most grateful for?

References

• Barnes, Frank T.  Hooks, Rings & Other Things: An Illustrated Index of New England Iron, 1660-1860.  Hanover, MA: The Christopher Publishing House, 1988.
• The Free Dictionary Website, definition of “goffering iron” http://www.thefreedictionary.com/goffering+iron
• Old and Interesting Website: “Ironing frills – from Elizabethan ruffs to Victorian ruffles”  http://www.oldandinteresting.com/fluting-goffering-irons.aspx
• Plummer, Don.  Colonial Wrought Iron:  the Sorber Collection.  Ocean Pines, MD:  Skipjack Press, 1999.
• Profimedia Website, “Ironing room in a laundry” http://www.profimedia.si/picture/ironing-room-in-a-laundry/0090807693/.
• Victoriana Website, “1867 evening dress” image http://www.victoriana.com

In 17^th- and 18^th-century America, letters were typically sent by stagecoach, a horse-drawn coach that stopped at an inn at each stage of a journey.  Mail was collected at the inns, and could be sent overseas on merchant ships for a fee.  In 1789 Congress created the United States Postal Service as part of the federal government.  By the end of the 18^th century, America had 400 post offices and 12,000 miles of postal routes (Gan: 11).  Despite this growth, sending mail via the postal service was expensive, and not a viable option for many Americans living outside of the established routes.  Before the development of the railroads, It could take weeks for a mailed letter to reach its recipient.  By the 1830s, trains carried mail, and could deliver a letter from coast to coast in about seven days (Gan: 14).

How Our Grandfathers Traveled: Old Stage Coach. From The Boys’ Book of Locomotives, 1907. Image Source: http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Cambridge_stage-coach_(Howden,_Boys’_Book_of_Locomotives,_1907).jpg

The 1840s saw the invention of the telegraph, which sent encoded messages along a system of wires.  Not long after, machines were developed that could turn telegraph codes into printed letters.  These letters were printed on tape, adhered to paper, and delivered as telegrams.  Despite the speed and relative convenience of the telegram, they were expensive, and lacked privacy, as one had to rely on an operator to print and deliver one’s message (Mountfield: 32, Jarnow: 11-12).  The invention of the telephone in 1876 revolutionized the world of interpersonal communication.  To this day we rely on our phones to quickly pass along our news, whether it is good or bad, important or trivial.

So what did Americans do before the telephone, or telegram?  Although we of the 21^st century have surely become accustomed to a very different idea of urgency when it comes to communication, there must have been pressing news bulletins and crucial personal messages in the 18^th century.  In those critical times, how did people get in touch with one another?

These artifacts, excavated from the grounds of the Schuyler House (part of Saratoga National Historical Park) suggest one possible option.  These artifacts consist of thin sheets of rolled vellum, about 2 ½ inches wide.  One is secured with a thin bone ring.  After some brainstorming here in the lab, we arrived at the idea that these vellum sheets may be messages once transported by carrier pigeons.

Rolled vellum strips from Schuyler House excavation, Saratoga National Historical Park. Photo by Norm Eggert for NMSC.

The History of the Carrier Pigeon

You may be aware that carrier pigeons were used as message carriers during both World Wars.  Perhaps you have heard the story of the World War I pigeon hero Cher Ami, who saved the U.S. 77^th Division when they were trapped behind enemy lines in the Argonne Forest.  Carrier pigeon Cher Ami was dispatched to other American troops who were unknowingly firing upon their trapped comrades.  Despite being wounded by German fire, Cher Ami successfully delivered his message and saved the American troops.  During World War II, “G.I. Joe” (another carrier pigeon) saved the lives of over 1000 British soldiers.  The British attacked and won back the Italian city of Colvi Vecchia from the Germans, but were unable to call off the planned American air raid by radio.  G.I. Joe successfully delivered the message to call off the raid (Blechman: 32-35).

GI Joe, on display at Fort Monmouth. U.S. Department of Defense. Image source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:GI_Joe_Pigeon.png

Although well known for their 20^th-century war heroics, carrier pigeons have been used to relay information since at least the time of the ancient Egyptians, who spread the word of new pharaohs and flood waters via pigeon.  By the 8^th century B.C., pigeons were used regularly by the Greeks to carry messages.  Caesar dispatched carrier pigeons during the siege of Rome, and in 1815, news of Napoleon’s defeat at Waterloo spread via carrier pigeon.

Why the pigeon?  As explained by author Andrew Blechman in his enjoyable book, Pigeons, carrier pigeons, also called homing pigeons, routinely travel over five hundred miles per day at speeds over 60 mph, and are capable of flying for several hours at speeds as high as 110 mph  (Blechman: 4-5, 8).  Blechman goes on to write that “with hollow bones containing reservoirs of oxygen, a tapered fuselage, giant breast muscles that account for one-third of its body mass, and an ability to function indefinitely without sleep, the rock dove is a feathered rocket built for speed and endurance…the rock dove can reach peak velocity in seconds and maintain it for hours on end” (Blechman: 8).  In addition to their speed and endurance, pigeons are docile, easy to handle, and always return to the place where they were raised.

Carrier Pigeons at the Schuyler House?

The rolled sheets of vellum that we encountered in the boxes of Schuyler House artifacts were not attached to bird bones.  So, what led us to the possible carrier pigeon interpretation?  Initially, it was a hunch.  The little rolled scrolls just looked like the right size.  Based on the above history, it would not be surprising to learn that people in Saratoga, New York were using carrier pigeons in the 18^th and 19^th centuries.  The size may be appropriate, and the history may support this theory, but that is not enough for even a tentative id.  The question remains:  do the elements of these mystery artifacts from Saratoga parallel the materials commonly used in messaging by pigeon? As we researched carrier pigeons and the messages they transported, an idea that had seemed far-fetched at first began to look more and more plausible.

By the time of the Second World War, carrier pigeons were transporting their messages inside of small capsules with screw-on caps that were attached to the birds’ legs.  In the latter part of the 19^th century, people used quills or metal canisters to protect their messages during flight.  Earlier methods involved simply rolling the message, securing it to the pigeon, and sending it on its way (see microscopy website reference at end of article).  But securing it how?

The 1849 story The Carrier Pigeon tells the tale of a loyal pigeon that saved its original owners from being murdered by a band of thieves.  In this story, a young girl named Emma takes in a dove (pigeon) as a pet and later gives the bird as a gift to her neighbor.  When the neighbor discovers that a group of criminals intend to murder her friend’s family, she and her mother send a note of warning with the pigeon.  A passage in the story explains exactly how this was done:  “’Let us fasten a note on the dove’s neck, and it will soon be in Falkenberg’…Emma ran and brought down the dove, while her mother was writing the note.  They tied it firmly to the red collar that Emma had placed on the dove’s neck” (Schmid: 47).

The Carrier Pigeon is a charming 19^th-century moral tale with a pervasive theme of goodness, innocence, and purity triumphing over evil.  (For those of you waiting in suspense, the pigeon successfully delivers the message, and the family is saved!)  Particularly interesting to us in this story were the logistical details regarding the message.  As this story attests, at least in the 19^th century, a message might be tied to a collar around the pigeon’s neck.  It could also be tied to the pigeon’s foot, as suggested by this 1873 engraving.

Engraving of carrier pigeons, 1873, Harpers New Monthly Magazine. Image source: http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Pigeon_Messengers_(Harper’s_Engraving).png

How exactly would the bone ring from Saratoga have been used to attach a message to a pigeon?  It didn’t seem feasible that such a tiny – and inflexible – ring could slip over the pigeon’s foot.  If we could determine the use of the bone ring as a carrier accessory, our theory would make more sense.

In 1866, the Reverend Charles Bullock wrote about carrier pigeons in Our Own Fireside.  According to this book, “the old plan was ‘to write either words or cipher, or some very abbreviated form of communication, on a strip of the thinnest vellum, or other material, and then to wind it firmly but neatly round the scaled part of the pigeon’s leg, fastening it with fine sewing silk.’”  Bullock also notes that in addition to the leg, a message could be “fastened to the center feather of a pigeon’s tail, which remains stationary though the bird is in flight; so that the message is not likely to slip from its place” (Bullock: 229).

An 1891 edition of Fanciers Journal:  Devoted to Dogs, Poultry, Pigeons, and Pet Stock confirmed the use of vellum and the tail feathers when preparing and securing a carrier message.  When discussing the origin and characteristics of the English carrier pigeon, the author writes of a “written message on paper, vellum or similar materials being curled and fastened round the tail feathers were thus carried by the aerial messenger to their destination”  (Fanciers Journal: 187).

These 19^th-century sources confirmed the use of vellum as message material, and also provided a framework for understanding the use of the bone ring securing one of the vellum scrolls from Saratoga.  We did not see how the ring could have been attached to a bird’s leg, but it is easy to imagine how it could have been slipped snugly onto a tail feather.

Securing a message to a carrier pigeon. Image source: http://newhyorkhistoryblog.org/2012/08/07/part-two-the-homing-pigeon-in-ny-history/

The tiny vellum scrolls from the Schuyler House are too brittle for us to unroll.  At this point we cannot see any evidence of writing on their surfaces.  We believe, however, that the theory that these artifacts are carrier pigeon messages is a strong one.  Now, we would like to hear from you!  Have you ever seen artifacts like these before?  Have you ever read mention of a carrier pigeon in 18^th- or 19^th-century primary sources?  Have you ever seen an 18^th-century newspaper advertisement touting carrier pigeon supplies like bone rings?  Do you have any other ideas as to what these artifacts may be?

Researching this blog post was an informative task for me.  I had heard of carrier pigeons, but didn’t know much about them or their history.  I come away from this project with a newfound respect for what many refer to as “rats with wings.”   In consideration of the many lives saved by wartime pigeons, and the countless messages relayed by these seemingly tireless birds, I say, Hats off to the pigeon!

“Pigeon-post,” 1843, by Miklos Barabas. Hungarian National Gallery. Image source: Web Gallery of Art. http://www.wga.hu/index1.html

References:

Blechman, Andrew D.  Pigeons.  New York:  Grove Press, 2006.

Bullock, Charles.  Our Own Fireside.  London:  William Macintosh, 1866.

Fancier’s Journal:  Devoted to Dogs, Poultry, Pigeons, and Pet Stock.  Volume 7, 1891.

Gan, Geraldine.  Communication.  Philadelphia:  Chelsea House Publishers, 1997.

Jarnow, Jesse.  Telegraph and Telephone Networks.  New York:  Rosen Publishing Group, 2004.

Mountfield, Anna.  Looking Back at Sending Messages.  Needham, MA:  Schoolhouse Press, 1998.

Schmid, Christoph von.  The Carrier Pigeon.  New York:  Edward Dunigan, 1849.  Accessed online via University of Toronto Robarts Library Internet Archive.  http://archive.org/details/carrierpigeon00schmuoft

Websites:

New York History:  Historical News and Views from the Empire State.  http://newyorkhistoryblog.org/2012/08/07/part-two-the-homing-pigeon-in-ny-history/

A Message Brought to Paris by Pigeon Post in 1870-71.  By Ashley Lawrence, UK   http://www.microscopy-uk.org.uk/mag/indexmag.html?http://www.microscopy-uk.org.uk/mag/artoct10/al-pigeonpost.html

Image Source: Norm Eggert for NMSC

This tiny treasure is a rectangular-shaped intaglio that measures a mere 1 x 1.5 centimeter.  An intaglio is a design engraved or cut into an object-the opposite of a relief.  It is made of a material known as “paste”.  Paste is a glass-based substance used to imitate gemstones.  This material was used extensively from the 1700s to the early 1900s and was a desired material in itself, not just as a cheap replacement for diamonds and gemstones. In this case, the dark purple color is meant to emulate amethyst.  In the center is a pelican on its nest with wings outstretched feeding three young birds.  Upper-case lettering around the bird reads: “LIVE & DIE FOR THOSE WE LOVE”.

This artifact was discovered during the 1958 archeological excavations at the site of the Schuyler House located in Saratoga National Historical Park (SARA).  The original house was home to American General Phillip Schuyler and was burned by the retreating British during the American Revolution, but was quickly rebuilt in November, 1777.  This restored country house is located approximately 8 miles north of the battlefield.  The Schuyler House was visited by many historic figures over the ages, including George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, Marquis de Lafayette and President Franklin Roosevelt.  The intaglio was found by the Schuyler House kitchen, between the foundation of the original kitchen chimney and an earlier brick foundation.

Sealing the Deal

The intaglio from Saratoga is a component of a larger object known as a “seal”.  Personal or government seals were used to ensure that correspondence arrived unopened and/or to validate the authenticity of a document.  Sealing wax was melted over the folds of the letter or document and the seal pressed into it would leave the impression of the design.  The seal-making device is known as the seal matrix or die and the imprint it creates is known as the seal impression.  The intaglio could be fitted into many forms, such as a hand-held desk seal, signet ring or attached to a watch fob.   Seals were essential until about 1840 when the postage stamp and gummed envelopes were invented (Collon 1997:143).  Many types of seals have been used around the world and appear to have been used in even the earliest civilizations. Since their invention, they have been used to mark objects such as jars, baskets, boxes, and sacks, or documents, such as letters, ration lists, contracts, treaties, and scrolls (Collon 1997:9).

During the 18^th century, both men and women developed a keen interest in watches and their prominent display.  Men had coats that showed more of the waistcoat and breeches and the gentleman’s pocket watch became a very important element of their appearance. The watch would attach to a chain, worn just below the waist, and suspended from a small pocket in the trousers known as a “fob”.   Eventually the term “fob” was applied to the watch as well as to the style of chain and associated trinkets suspended from the chain. The watch chain or ribbon, which would be on constant display, often displayed watch keys, seals, or other types of trinkets.

The main form of attachment of watches for women during the 18^th century was a complex waist-hung accessory secured by a decorative waist plaque with a number of chains.  Each chain held a variety of toiletry, needlework, writing or small cutlery accessories (Cummins 2010: 21).  We now refer to this waist chain as a “chatelaine” however, the term chatelaine did not come to use until about 1828 when it was dubbed by the French. By the 19^th century women began to wear watches on longer and lighter chains or wore a small watch attached to a brooch.

For both men and women, watches were worn to keep time, but they also became symbols of education and refinement (White 2005:133).  Seals often had one of the following: the owner’s initials, the family coat of arms, or more symbolic images and serious or playful mottos.  The pendant “fob-seal” not only began largely to replace the signet ring for sealing purposes, but became an indispensable article of jewelry in its own right.  Watches and their accessories were available in a wide range of materials and styles and were indicators of class (Collon 1997:149).

Captain Samuel H. Howes wears a seal fob in his 1828 portrait. Image source: Historic New England.

A silver chatelaine displaying a fob-seal.  Image Source: http://thegypsyfish.blogspot.com

Although the outer casing of the Saratoga intaglio was not found during the excavation, its smaller size and rectangular shape suggest that our piece was most likely a fob seal that would have been worn in this manner.  A complete watch fob seal was discovered archeologically at Minute Man National Historical Park (MIMA).  The MIMA seal has a brass casing, but other watch fob seals were made with precious metal such as gold or sterling silver.  It could also have been plated with a precious metal over a base-metal such as brass. The MIMA seal was an “isolated find” meaning that it was not found with other objects.  The twisted wire indicates how it may have been attached to the fob, and the casing and stone are in near perfect condition.  From these clues we can interpret that it was accidently dropped by its owner.  I’m sure the owner was simply crushed to discover it had been lost.

Fob seal from Minute Man National Historical Park. Photo by NMSC

The Saratoga intaglio had become separated from its housing so we are left to wonder what the rest of the seal might have looked like and whether the stone fell out accidently.  If the casing was a precious metal, it is possible that the intaglio was purposefully separated from its casing so the owner could replace it with another design.  The Minute Man seal features a family crest which would have been timeless as opposed to the image and motto featured on the Saratoga example.  Unfortunately we simply don’t know how or why the SARA intaglio was removed from the rest of the fob seal; however, the subjects depicted on the intaglio can provide a clue as to what the owner may have wished to convey by adopting the symbol of the pelican. Carolyn White has put forth that through objects of personal adornment “we are able to learn how the owner wished to be viewed by others and how their use of adornment acted as a ‘medium of communication’ to the rest of the world” (White 2005).

Seal impression. Photo by Saratoga National Historical Park

The Symbolism of the Pelican

Pelicans have featured extensively in heraldry, generally using the Christian symbolism of the pelican as a caring and self-sacrificing parent. The pelican was used extensively during medieval period as a symbol of Christ’s sacrifice.  In times of distress the pelican was supposed to feed its young with her own blood and therefore the pelican became a symbol of self-sacrifice and charitable nature. When feeding her young (“in her piety”), the pelican symbolizes the duties of a parent or parental love.

Initially park archeologists assumed that the seal had belonged to a British soldier during the occupation of the Schuyler Estate in September-October 1777.  However, it could have also belonged to a civilian visiting the Schuyler Estate any time from 1770-1850.  It is never easy to connect an artifact with a single individual, especially if it does not bear initials or a family coat of arms.  Initially, we had thought that the sentiment and symbol of the pelican (feed “her” young) suggested that the owner was a female, but the sentiment of the self-sacrificing parent does not need to be taken literally.  For example, in the painting titled “The Pelican Portrait”, of Queen Elizabeth I, ca. 1573, a pelican is featured prominently in the center of the painting.  In this case the pelican symbolizes Elizabeth’s role as a mother to her people, rather than a parent.

Queen Elizabeth I: The Pelican Portrait’, by Nicholas Hilliard (c. 1573), in which Elizabeth I wears the medieval symbol of the pelican on her chest.

Image Source: http://www.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk/walker/collections/13c-16c/er1.aspx

 Making a “Good Impression”

Artifacts of personal adornment are a very public display of personal identity.  Household furnishings such as furniture or ceramics can communicate quite a bit, but only if one is invited into the home.  An artifact worn on one’s person would be on display at all times.  Such items were valuable to their owners and are not often found archeologically as they were highly cherished and therefore passed down in the family.  Their rarity, symbolic meaning, and high value when in use suggest that they held special significance to the owner (White 2005:7).  A fob seal would communicate much as an item of adornment and attached to a document would both identify the owner and communicate a person’s very essence.  For these reasons, we have been delighted to rediscover the Saratoga intaglio and learn about the history, function, and significance of the watch fob seal.

This topic has inspired a lively discussion in our lab about what motto or symbol each of us would choose.  In our modern times, Facebook cover photos serve a similar function with respect to communicating ones identity and public image.   If you have one, ask yourself why you selected the cover photo currently on your page.  What do you think it communicates to those who visit your profile page?  Is it simply because it is pleasing to look at?  Does it highlight a loved one, a favorite hobby, or a recent trip? You may be surprised by what you think you identify with and what you actually have applied in such an instance.

References:

Adams, Noël; Cherry, John; Robinson, James, eds. (2007). Good Impressions: Image and Authority in Medieval Seals. British Museum

Collon (ed.), Dominique (1997). 7000 Years of Seals. London: British Museum Press.

Cummins, Genevieve (2010).  How the Watch was Worn: A Fashion for 500 Years. Antique Collector’s Club.

Eckstein, Eve. (1987). Gentlemen’s Dress Accessories. Dyfed: C.I. Thomas & Sons.

Jenkinson, Hilary (1968). Guide to Seals in the Public Record Office. Public Record Handbooks 1 (2nd ed.). London: Her Majesty’s Stationery Office.

Malcolm, David Samuel Lewis (1970). Antique Paste Jewellery (Faber Collectors Library).

Morris, David (2012). Matrix: A Collection of British Seals.

Wallace, John, (1936) “Accessories to Masculine Fashion” Discovering Antiques 19

White, Carolyn L. (2005). American Artifacts of Personal Adornment 1680-1820: A guide to Identification and Interpretation.  New York: Alta Mira Press.

Lucky for us, there is a way to step back in time and see historic objects in context, and that is through art.  Like diaries and probate inventories, contemporary paintings and drawings are primary sources in that they “can illustrate past events as they happened and people as they were at a particular time.”  (Library and Archives Canada webpage)

Consider Renoir’s Luncheon of the Boating Party, painted in 1881 (Phillips Collection). This painting abounds with visual information about material culture in 1881.  The clothing, the furniture, the tableware, and the red striped awning together create a factual depiction of material life among this group of people at this date.  This painting could be useful for us in the lab for dating glass bottles and drinking vessels, and determining what certain vessels were used for on a late 19^th-century table.

Renoir’s Luncheon of the Boating Party, 1881. Phillips Collection. Image source: Web Gallery of Art, http://www.wga.hu.

The following scenarios are just a few examples of NMSC archeology lab mysteries that have been solved by examining artwork.  Be sure to click on the images for an up-close look!

Buckles and buttons from the archeology collection at MIMA.  Photo by NMSC staff.

Stanley South’s button typology, found on page 90 of Ivor Noel Hume’s A Guide to Artifacts of Colonial America.

When researching buttons and buckles from the archeology collection at Minute Man National Historical Park, we found portraiture to be an invaluable tool.  The MIMA collection contains several button and buckle fragments of different sizes, orientation, metal type, and decorative motif.  We used standardized typologies created by Stanley South and others to classify and describe these artifacts (see South’s typology at left).

As helpful as typologies are, seeing similar items worn in 18^th-century portraits lent credence to our classifications, and allowed us to see exactly how the artifacts were used.  The portrait of Elijah Boardman seen below was painted in 1789 by Ralph Earl (Metropolitan Museum of Art).  This painting is pure eye candy for the material culture enthusiast like myself.  Visible are knee and shoe buckles like those present in the MIMA collection, as well as buttons, an inkwell, door hardware, furniture tacks, furniture and textiles.  Can you spot them all, or more?  We thought initially that the item hanging from Mr. Boardman’s waistcoat was a watch fob.  Upon closer inspection, we wonder if it could be folded spectacles.  What do you think?

Portrait of Elijah Boardman, by Ralph Earl, ca. 1789. Metropolitan Museum of Art. Image source: Web Gallery of Art, http://www.wga.hu

While processing a collection of artifacts excavated at the Appomattox Plantation House in City Point, Virginia (a unit of Petersburg National Battlefield), we came across some curiously large glass bottle bases.  (See previous blog post, Pick Your Poison:  Oversized Wine? Chemical? Pharmaceutical? Bottles From City Point, Virginia)  Some of the bases were round, others oval.  Although we see mostly round bottle bases in the lab, an oval shape would not be surprising, as it could indicate a fairly common oval bladder or chestnut-type bottle.  What was surprising to us was the size of these bases:  an average of 17 centimeters in diameter, as opposed to the average diameter of about 10 cm that we typically encounter.

Large freeblown bottle base from Petersburg National Battlefield. Photo by NMSC staff.

Researching these oversized bottles led us to bottle names like jeroboam, used to hold the equivalent of 4 burgundy bottles of wine; double magnum, used to hold the equivalent of 4 onion wine bottles of wine, fruit, or preserves; demijohn, popular among wine and spirit merchants for transporting up to five gallons of their wares; and carboy, used to store up to 20 gallons of chemicals or pharmaceutical solutions.

The wonderful book Antique Glass Bottles by Willy Van den Bossche provides beautiful photographs of each of these types of oversized bottles.  What was especially meaningful to us, however, was being able to see carboys “in action” in this 1824 painting of a pharmacy scene (find them on the top rear shelf).  So this is where they were used, and how they were stored… this was the life of a carboy!

1824 pharmacy scene with carboys visible on top rear shelf. Painting by E. Bristowe, ca. 1824. Wellcome Institute. Image source: Glass and British Pharmacy, page 7.

A browse through NMSC’s archeology study collection will introduce you to these lovely glass pieces.  Many readers of this blog will know what they are.  For those that don’t, the still life shown here can provide you with the answer (take a look at the goblet on the left).

Left: Raspberry prunts. Image source: Norm Eggert for NMSC. Right: Still-life showing prunts on goblet. Ca. 1637-1639, Gerneente Musea, Delft. Image source: Web Gallery of Art, http://www.wga.hu.

These glass objects are raspberry prunts, which, in the words of Olive Jones, are “blobs of glass applied to an object, which may be tooled or impressed with various motifs, most commonly leaf and raspberry” (p. 52).  It is a treat to find raspberry prunts in an archeological collection; even more so to find them and then to be able to see them in a painting in their original context on a glass vessel.

As you can see, paintings have proved to be a helpful tool in the lab here at NMSC.  Our understanding of buttons, buckles, bottles, and prunts (to name a few!) would not be the same without the context provided by contemporary works of art.  In the study of archeology and material culture, it is important that we are able to identify historic artifacts, but equally important that we are able to use these artifacts to better understand the people who used them years ago.  Archeologists study social behavior as is evidenced through objects that human beings have left behind.  By placing these objects in historical context, paintings help us to see the behavior – the humanity - behind the “stuff.”  

Paintings  can also help us to understand the various, and sometimes surprising, ways in which objects were used.  Alternate interpretations provided by painted scenes breathe new life into objects that seem straightforward.  Today, we are constantly repurposing our physical possessions.  On several occasions I have used the end of a spoon as a screwdriver, or a kitchen chair as a stepstool.  My two young sons turn my couch into a trampoline daily and have been known to play basketball with pieces of fruit.  As we do in the 21^st century, people in the past also repurposed objects to suit their needs or fancies.

Clay smoking pipes are abundant in the archeological record.  When we encounter them in collections here in the lab, we catalog them as “tobacco pipes,” since they were used for smoking tobacco.

Clay tobacco pipes from MIMA archeology collection. Photo by NMSC staff.

These two images remind us that the history behind an object is not always clear-cut.  Yes, clay pipes were used for smoking tobacco…unless you were a child, and used your father’s pipe to blow bubbles.  Seen through the perspective of this painting, a smoking device becomes a toy.  With the help of tools like contemporary paintings, we are reminded that every object has a history all its own, of which we are lucky enough at times to catch a glimpse.

Left: Child’s mug with transfer-printed design. Image source: Transferware Collectors Club Database, http://www.transcollectorsclub.org/. Right: The Children of Commodore and Mrs. John Daniel Daniels. Robert Street or Francis Martin Drexel, ca. 1826. Maryland Historical Society. Image source: At Home, page 215.

The idea of repurposing – of multiple uses for a particular object – could add interesting new possibilities to interpretive frameworks.  Think how much more compelling a tobacco pipe could be to a museum visitor if he or she is encouraged to think about its possible use as a toy!

One thing that I have yet to catalog at work is a cloak pin.  We are always seeing new and different artifacts, however, and it is not out of the question.  While I would classify a cloak pin as a “personal object” for cataloging purposes, the wonderful portrait seen below indicates that they were not always used to fasten one’s cloak.  As suggested by the Hartford cabinetmaking firm Kneeland and Adams in the late 18^th century, cloak pins were an excellent way to hang a looking glass! (See At Home page 256 for reference)

Portrait of Mrs. Reuben Humphreys. Richard Brunton, ca. 1800. Connecticut Historical Society. Image source: At Home, page 256.

It may be difficult to identify repurposing in artifacts found in the archeological record.  These artifacts have typically been altered simply as a result of being in the ground, and possibly by ground disturbances or even by the process of excavation itself.  It I ever do catalog a cloak pin, however, I will remember this painting.  Wear marks indicating possible use as a hanging device may be worth a mention in the catalog record.

Paintings and drawings can be invaluable tools for archeologists and others tasked with identifying historic objects, and fragments thereof.  They also remind us that, as is often the case, things may not be always as they seem.  While it is prudent to stay away from conjecture while cataloging, the idea of repurposing as suggested through paintings reminds us to consider wear patterns a little more carefully, and allows us a deeper and more colorful understanding of the artifacts that pass through our hands.

References:

Garrett, Elisabeth Donaghy.  At Home:  The American Family 1750-1870.  New York:  Harry N. Abrams, Inc. Publishers, 1990.

Hume, Ivor Noel.  A Guide to Artifacts of Colonial America.  Philadelphia:  University of PA Press, 1969.

Jones, Olive, Catherine Sullivan et al.  The Parks Canada Glass Glossary.  Canadian Parks Service, 1985.

Library and Archives Canada webpage.  http://www.collectionscanada.gc.ca/education/008-3010-e.html.

Transferware Collectors Club Database.  http://www.transcollectorsclub.org/

Van den Bossche, Willy.  Antique Glass Bottles.  Woodbridge Suffolk:  Antique Collectors Club, 2001.

Web Gallery of Art. http://www.wga.hu/

The Wellcome Institute of the History of Medicine.  Glass and British Pharmacy 1600-1900.  London:  Wellcome Institute of the History of Medicine, 1972.

Transfer-printed plate from Saratoga National Historical Park. Image: Norm Eggert for NMSC.

The tradition of gift-giving around the holidays may have evolved from ancient festivals that celebrated the winter solstice.  Gifts were often exchanged during the pagan festival of Kalends, which marked the new year.  Gifts continued to be exchanged at the new year until the Victorian era, when the celebration of Christmas became more prolific.   Many of our modern Christmas traditions were born – or at least elaborated – during the Victorian era.  Victorians sent Christmas cards, ate Christmas candy, and decked their homes with lavish decorations.  Initially, small gifts were hung from the Christmas tree.  As time passed and gifts became larger and more numerous, they were placed under the tree.

Victoriain Christmas scene. Image source: wikipedia. http://wikis.lib.ncsu.edu/index.php/Image:Victorian_christmas.jpg

Earlier in the 19^th century, gifts were modest:  small handmade trinkets, candy, fruit, or nuts.  As mass production in factories progressed, more families could afford toys, games, and dolls.  Children also often received useful items, which probably included children’s dishes like this one from Saratoga National Historical Park.  Children’s dishes were given as reward pieces for well behaved boys and girls and also as practice pieces intended to teach children about proper table settings and manners.  They were decorated with moral sayings, children’s names, letters of the alphabet, and scenes from nursery rhymes.

Detail of transfer-printed plate from Saratoga National Historical Park. Image source: Norm Eggert for NMSC.

The child’s plate from Saratoga National Historical Park has a cat motif in the center and an alphabet border.  An endearing piece in itself, the possibility that this plate was given to an excited child as a holiday gift makes it even more special.

Sources:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/victorianchristmas/history.shtml

http://www.historic-uk.com/HistoryUK/HistoryofEngland/A-Victorian-Christmas/

NMSC Archeology Lab Blog article:  Old Mother Slipper Slopper:  Pratt Ware at African Burial Ground National Monument.  http://nmscarcheologylab.wordpress.com/2012/02/09/old-mother-slipper-slopper-pratt-ware-at-african-burial-ground-national-monument/

Schama, Simon.  Whose Tree Is It Anyway?  New York Times, December 24, 1991.   Accessed online at:  http://www.nytimes.com/1991/12/24/opinion/whose-tree-is-it-anyway.html?pagewanted=all&src=pm

]]> http://nmscarcheologylab.wordpress.com/2012/12/20/all-i-want-for-christmas-a-childrens-plate-from-saratoga-national-historical-park/feed/ 0 jessicacostello cat plate Victorian_christmas cat plate big http://nmscarcheologylab.wordpress.com/2012/12/13/sounds-of-the-season/ http://nmscarcheologylab.wordpress.com/2012/12/13/sounds-of-the-season/#comments Thu, 13 Dec 2012 19:49:06 +0000 Jenn M. http://nmscarcheologylab.wordpress.com/?p=1543 Continue reading →]]> Usually when we move boxes of archeological collections, we don’t want to hear any noise coming from inside the box. Sound usually means artifacts have been poorly packaged and are bumping into one another, or worse yet, some squeaky creature has taken up residence. In this case, however, the sound coming from the box summoned up not images of broken ceramics or diseased rodents, but of snow, horses, and holiday fun: jingle bells found at the Schuyler House in Saratoga!

Norm Eggert for Northeast Museum Services Center.

Properly termed “crotal bells”, what we frequently call jingle bells or sleigh bells have been used for hundreds of years, with some early British examples dating from the 13^th century. Originally, crotal bells were made by casting sheet metal pieces with four “petals”. A small pellet was placed inside and the four petals pushed together to contain it. By the end of the 13^th century, bells were cast in two pieces and soldered together at the midline, giving the crotal bells their distinctive ridge. This midline ridge was retained even though crotal bells began to be cast in one piece in the late 15^th or early 16^th century, and are still often seen on modern examples.

16^th-17^th century bells from Faccombe Netherton, England.

Courtesy British Museum, Online Collections Database

Crotal bells were most often used as a safety mechanism, to warn pedestrians and other riders that a horse or carriage was approaching. It was not until the mid-19^th century that they became almost exclusively associated with sleighs and winter recreation. The popular song “Jingle Bells” was written by James Lord Pierpont in 1857, cementing the modern association of crotal bells with Christmas.

Most bells used in America probably would have been manufactured in England up until the early 1800s, though Ivor Noel Hume suggests that colonial metalsmiths were probably casting small batches as well. William Barton of East Hampton, Connecticut is most often credited with the beginning of American sleigh bell manufacturing, and the town’s multiple bell-makers dominated the market up until the early 1900s, when the invention of the automobile and its horn rendered the bells unnecessary.

The bells we found jingling in a box were discovered by archeologist John  Cotter in 1959, at the Schuyler House at Saratoga National Historical Park. The Schuyler House was built by General Philip Schuyler in 1766, burned down by the British in 1777, and rebuilt shortly thereafter. The house that still stands was used by the General, his son John Bradstreet Schuyler and his family, and his grandson (also Philip) until he was forced to sell during the economic crash of 1837.

The bells from the Schuyler House are very plain, bearing no maker’s marks or decoration, so they are not much help in dating themselves or the site. From other artifacts found nearby, such as transitional whitewares, and from information about the site itself, we can guess that these bells probably date from the mid-19^th century. Perhaps they were lost by Phillip II’s family as they departed Saratoga for good, or perhaps they fell from the harness of someone visiting the Strover family, who lived in the house for over 100 years. Either way, it is a rare find that allows archeologists to hear the sounds of the past, once so common to the people whose lives we study. We often see what they saw, touch what they touched, we can even taste what they tasted, but the sounds of everyday life are often lost to us.

What sounds have you heard that helped you feel connected to the past? What other archeological sites do you know of where crotal bells have been recovered?

Bibliography

American Bell Association, http://www.americanbell.org/

Blunt, Rod. “Crotal Bells”, http://www.ukdfd.co.uk/pages/crotal-bells.html

Brears, Peter N. B. Horse Brasses. Country Life Books, England. 1981.

British Museum, Collection Database, http://www.britishmuseum.org/research/search_the_collection_database.aspx

Classic Bells, http://classicbells.com/index.htm

Hume, Ivor Noel. A Guide To Artifacts of Colonial America. University of Pennsylvania Press, Philadelphia. 1969.

Keegan, Terry, et al. Horse Bells. National Horse Brass Society, Surrey, England. 2nd ed. 1988.

Mystery glass object from Saratoga National Historical Park. NMSC Photo.

For those of you who saw our previous post about the glass mystery object from Saratoga National Historical Park (see Ask A Curator:  Mystery Glass Object) , we’d like to share this photograph as a follow-up.  In our opinion, the fragment in question looks similar the top center portion of the mold-blown inkstand shown below. 

Inkstand, 1820-1845, Winterthur Museum. Image source: Glass in Early America, by Arlene Palmer, page 293.

Source:  Palmer, Arlene.  Glass in Early America.  New York:  W.W. Norton, 1993.

The gravestones were of particular interest to me because many years ago I had cataloged the gravestones in two of the colonial burying grounds in Concord, MA. I was very familiar with the cemeteries and the history, significance, and efforts taken to document and preserve them. When I began my career with the NPS, I came across two large gravestones in Minute Man National Historical Park’s museum collection and immediately wondered why these stones were in storage at the park and not in a burying ground. I wondered if they were stones that had been recorded in the late 1800s and were missing by the time I cataloged the standing stones and fragments in 1999.Two gravestones in the Minute Man National Historical Park’s museum collection (photo by the author)

The gravestones were discovered in 1966 during archeological excavations at the Wayside in Concord, MA. Both stones are made of slate and are typical of the neoclassical style with an urn and willow design. Both stones have clear crisp carving and the graded base of each stone is intact. The stones were discovered covering a well on the grounds of the Wayside between the house and the barn. The field director, Leland Abel, noted that “the first trench resulted in the discovery of two tombstones laying facedown, oriented north to south and side by side.” Abel hypothesized that the stones were rejected due to spelling errors. He stated that “the smaller stone is for a small boy, David Buttrick, died October 22, 1833. Buttrick is spelled without the last “c”, though the stone carver attempted to add it later. The other stone is for Jonas Melven, who died April 24, 1834. A mistake in the lettering here was ground out and corrected, leaving a bad scar on the stone. I would guess that the dates on the stones do not necessarily mean that the well was sealed forever at that time. They are easy to lift off and could have served as a cover for many years while the well was in use.”  (Abel, 1966 Field Notes: Snow 1969:7-8)

New England gravestones are notorious for sinking, leaning, or falling over due to an unstable landscape or from the frost heaves of the winter months. The headstones for both David H. Buttrick and Mr. Jonas Melven possess graded bases, so it is highly unlikely that these tall stones were naturally displaced from their original locations. Leland Abel’s assumption that these stones were rejected due to spelling errors may not be the correct interpretation either.

Many of the standing gravestones located in the burying grounds of Concord contain spelling errors. Misspellings were common in colonial New England, not only on gravestones but also on written documents. Spelling was not standardized and many of the stone carvers did not always check with families for specific spelling accuracy. When errors were noticed stone carvers did in fact attempt to add in letters and many of the standing gravestones exhibit these additions. So it seems unlikely that a full size gravestone would be rejected due to spelling errors. If the stones were willingly removed, and not stolen, then what was the reason for their removal?

When a gravestone is removed from the burying ground in which it was originally placed, it ceases to mark a grave. Its original location however may be inferred through genealogical ties or context clues based upon the cultural landscape of the local burying grounds. The age and design of these two slate headstones were key clues for beginning the research into which cemetery they may have come from. Although slate gravestones with urn and willow motif headstones dominate the two oldest cemeteries of Concord, I knew from my previous cataloging efforts that the two stones in question most likely did not come from the Old Hill or the South Burying Grounds. The age of the stones suggested that they might be from the New Hill Burying Ground which opened in 1823. The “New Hill” is now integrated with Sleepy Hollow Cemetery and is known as the oldest section of the cemetery. So I started my research by reviewing the burial plot maps and walking through the cemetery to have a look for myself.

Headstone for David Buttrick October 22, 1833

According to the map for New Hill Burying Ground, plot number 38 is for the Buttrick family. There are currently stones for a few individuals who are directly related to David H. Buttrick (d.1833). There are stones for his paternal grandparents (Lydia d. 1818 and David Buttrick d. 1810) and a brother who died in 1889. I later discovered that the parents of David H. Buttrick purchased a family plot at Sleepy Hollow Cemetery on Sleepy Hollow Road. Both of David’s parents as well as other siblings were given contemporary marble gravestones at the time of their death. I was pleasantly surprised to see that David H. Buttrick also has a stone in this plot. It reads:

Front: David
Back: David H.
Son of David and Rebecca
Died October 22, 1833
Et. 8 month 13 days

Buttrick family plot in Sleepy Hollow Cemetery (photo by the author)

Marble gravestone at Sleepy Hollow Cemetery for David H. Buttrick, d. October 22, 1833 (photo by the author)

It is unknown whether the slate headstone was missing or deliberately removed at the time the new marble headstone was erected in the Buttrick family plot at Sleepy Hollow Cemetery. Because David died at the young age of 8 months and 13 days, it is no wonder that his parents wanted him to be close to them in burial. Although the old slate stone was removed, the grave may or may not have been exhumed and relocated, therefore the marble headstone may actually be a memorial stone rather than a gravestone. Unfortunately we may never know for certain.

Headstone for Mr. Jonas Melven, April 24, 1834

According to the map for New Hill Burying Ground, plot number 141 is for the Melvin, Abner, and Pollard families. Several gravestones are contained within this plot. Of particular relevance is the adjoining marble headstone for Jonas Melvin, 1833 and Rhoda A. Melvin, 1886. This marble stone reads:

Front: Father-Mother
Absent but not Forgotten

Back:

In memory of                In memory of
Rhoda A. Melvin.         Jonas Melvin.
wife of                              died
Jonas Melven,                Apr. 24, 1834
died Nov 13 1886          Aged 33 yrs.
Aged 78 yrs.

This headstone was most likely erected for Jonas and Rhoda Melvin by their only son, Jonas Melvin Jr. who was born on December 29, 1833 and was only four months old when his father died. The old slate stone that commemorated his father only-and contained the incorrect spelling of the last name Melven instead of Melvin, would have been removed and replaced with the new fashionable marble stone at the time of Rhoda’s death in 1886. Commemorating the parents together was probably important to the son because the father died so much earlier than the mother. After nearly forty five years apart they were reunited again in burial.

 Marble gravestone for Jonas and Rhoda Melvin in the New Hill section of Sleepy Hollow Cemetery (photo by the author)

As historic artifacts, the stones present even more questions than they are able to answer.  The most obvious questions are: Who removed the stones? & Who willingly accepted the stones to cover the well at the Wayside?

In 1873 George Tolman, a genealogist and researcher, transcribed the inscriptions in the South and Old Hill burying grounds of Concord, Massachusetts. Tolman states that at the time of his endeavor, the summer of 1873, many stones were becoming weathered by the elements and some stones “had entirely disappeared, either by accident, as having fallen and sunk into the earth or through the wantonness of individuals who had carried them away to serve as well-covers or for other similar uses. One stone at least in the Hill burying ground had been removed from its proper place and made to close the mouth of a tomb, where it still remains covered with earth, and not in position to be read.” (Tolman 1873: Introductory Notes)

In 1902, George Tolman gave a lecture to the Concord Antiquarian Society and stated that: “Even whole unmutuliated stones have been so carried away. One was turned up only a few years ago at “The Wayside,” where it was doing duty as the covers to a cess-pool…of course no one knows where it belongs. As far as poor Mrs. Dorothy Putnam, whose name it bears, is concerned, or as far as her bereaved relatives apparently know or care, she might as well have gone without a gravetstone in the first instance. She died only about 70 years ago. Even those who have had official care of burial grounds have not scrupled to destroy or to remove or to misuse the monuments of the dead: for gravestones have been taken from their places and used to block the doorways of some old tombs….and I very well remember when a former Sexton and funeral undertaker carried away two fine large gravestones to cover his well.” (Tolman 1902:5)

It is key that in both 1873 and again in 1902, Tolman observed that stones were being removed and reused for secondary uses, citing specifically the removal of stones from Old Hill and the discovery of at least one other gravestone at the Wayside. Exactly when the removal and reuse took place is still unknown. If we take the earliest stone date of 1833 and Tolman’s 1873 mention of gravestones being taken away to cover wells- we have a 40-year window. During that time the Wayside was home to well over a dozen families. Both the Alcott and the Hawthorne families are amongst the most well known occupants. These families both made major changes to the household and grounds and left abundant letters and diary entries, but sadly there is not a specific mention of the covering of the well.

With the discovery of new marble stones in place, the initial conclusions drawn by the archeologist and the genealogist must be revisited. Leland Abel’s interpretation of the stones being rejected due to spelling errors seems unlikely because the price of a stone was substantial enough that discarding it would be impractical. There are simply too many standing stones which contain spelling errors to consider this an immediate explanation. George Tolman’s conclusion that the stones were unnecessarily carried away may also be too critical. If Tolman did not see the newer marble stones, he may very well have assumed that undamaged stones were removed for no reason. As tempting as it is to paint a picture of a dodgy Sexton selling gravestones on the side-there may very well be another explanation.

When a family upgraded or simply replaced a gravestone they may have left the disposition of the old stone up to cemetery management. Old gravestones often show up serving as secondary functions as well covers, patio floors, incorporated into foundations and endless other uses. Some may have fallen over on their own and typically stones that are damaged or are fragmented become likely candidates for reuse. Whole gravestones are less common, especially if the graded base is intact and makes it possible for resetting. Each stone requires research into the circumstances that brought the stone to its new location. George Tolman does bring up an important point about historic preservation. Because an old stone no longer marks a grave, it does not negate all value or significance of the older stone. The original stone is still an historic artifact that possesses original mortuary art and reflects period taste in material culture.

The two gravestones at Minute Man NHP tell the story of two families and the tradition of marking graves in Concord. The headstones for David H. Buttrick and Mr. Jonas Melven reveal many clues as to the disappearance of older, original gravestones from the historic burying grounds of Concord, MA. These stones also reveal that Concord’s families did not hesitate to immediately mark the graves and that as time passed on these families willingly updated the graves with more contemporary and elaborate headstones. It is a touching tale and not one that was immediately obvious.

References Cited
Berkland, Ellen P.
1997 “Post Mortem Manipulations: Secondary Usages for a Class of Artifacts-Gravestones.” Report on file. Center for Archaeological Studies, Boston University, Boston.

Paresi, Alicia R., et. al.
1999 Gravemarker Inventory of South Burying Ground, Concord, MA. Unpublished manuscript. On file at Concord Public Works.

Paresi, Alicia R., et al.
1999 Gravemarker Inventory of Old Hill Burying Ground, Concord, MA. Unpublished manuscript. On file at Concord Public Works.

Ronsheim, Robert
1968 The Wayside: Historic Structure Report: Historical Data Section. Minute Man National Historical Park. U.S. Department of the Interior: National Park Service, Division of History, Office of Archeology and Historic Preservation.

Snow, Cordelia Thomas
1969 Excavations at the Wayside Concord, Massachusetts. Minute Man National Historical Park. U.S. Department of the Interior: National Park Service.

Tolman, George
1902 “Graves and Worms and Epitaphs” manuscript of a speech delivered to the Concord Antiquarian Society, Patriot Press, Concord, Massachusetts.

1873-1883
The Inscriptions from the Old Burying Grounds in Concord, Massachusetts. Unpublished holograph. On file at Concord Public Library

Toogwood, Anna Coxe
1969 The Wayside: Historic Grounds Report. Minute Man National Historical Park. U.S. Department of the Interior: National Park Service, Eastern Service Center, Washington, D.C.

Town of Concord
N.D. Concord, Massachusetts Births, Marriages, and Deaths 1635-1850, Beacon Press Boston, Massachusetts.

Redware flowerpot from the Narbonne House archeological collection, Salem Maritime National Historic Site. Image source: Norm Eggert for Northeast Museum Services Center.

Flowerpot sherds in the archeological record are fairly easy to come by.  Information on the history of flowerpots and how to date them is not.  In 1959, ceramics author Lura Woodside Watkins wrote of flowerpots, “their variety is astonishing and would make a study in itself” (Watkins p. 10).  Almost half a decade later, University of Massachusetts graduate student Hazel Lathrop wrote that flowerpots remained “commonly found but seldom studied” (Lathrop, 2000).  William Pittman and Robert Hunter wrote in 2002 that flowerpots “are among the least documented ceramic forms” (Pittman and Hunter p. 210).  Researchers of practical flowerpots are challenged by the fact that these utilitarian vessels were often undecorated (or minimally so), were rarely marked, and changed little in form and shape throughout time.  With these obstacles in mind, what can be said of this flowerpot from the Narbonne House in Salem?

The rings visible on the inside of the pot indicate that it was hand-thrown, dating it to before 1861, when pots began being produced by William Linton’s pottery molding machine.  The pot has a tapered shape, a rolled rim, a single drainage hole in its base, and does not have a saucer.  The lack of a saucer indicates that the pot was not intended for ornamental indoor use, but rather for use outside in the garden.  (Consider the difference between the two 18th-century flowerpots shown below.) 

Left: 18th-century Wedgwood flowerpot for indoor use. Image source: https://secure.skinnerinc.com/. Right: 18th-century flowerpot for planting use. Image source: “A Cache of 18th-Century Flowerpots in Williamsburg” by Pittman and Hunter, page 212.

The combed design was created by tooling.  As Watkins describes, “a comb held against a finished but still damp vessel while it was revolved slowly on the wheel left a band of parallel lines, straight or wavy, according to the potter’s intention” (Watkins, 1959).  In addition to combing, this pot also has evidence of green glaze or slip.

The History of the Flowerpot

The Victorian era is often credited as the era of the houseplant.  Lathrop writes that “the sight of a potted plant as part of room decor at the start of the 19th century was rare, yet by the end of the century parlors were overrun with greenery” (Lathrop p. iv).  Mrs. William Cooper of Cooperstown, New York (shown in the watercolor below) was seemingly at the front of this trend, displaying numerous plants in the hall of her home in 1816.  As industrialization and urbanization created a dichotomy of work versus private space, 19th-century Americans sought to make the home a peaceful refuge.  Bringing nature indoors was one part of this effort.  Also, as homes were built with large plate glass windows and more efficient heating systems, plants were better able to survive indoors.   

Mrs. William Cooper. Cooperstown, NY. By George Freeman. The New York State Historical Association. Image source: “At Home: The American Family 1750-1870″ by Elisabeth Donaghy Garrett, page 210.

Before pots were used to display plants inside the home, they were used to contain and transport plants outside of the home.  The Egyptians were the first to use flowerpots to move plants from one environment to another.  In the 1700s, pots allowed for the transportation of seedlings from Tahiti to the West Indies, and geraniums were brought to North America from Africa. 

17th- and 18th-century Americans who had the means created formal gardens on their properties.  In 1995, eighteen utilitarian flowerpots were excavated from one colonial cellar in Williamsburg, Virginia, where archeology has revealed flowerpots on nearly every house lot.  Wealthy 18th-century Americans also built orangeries for growing citrus fruits, and as the 19th century dawned, greenhouses became popular for cultivating exotic plants and flowers.  Integral to all of these genteel enterprises was the basic ceramic flowerpot. 

18th-century orangerie at the Wye House, Talbot County, Maryland. Image source: janetblyberg.blogspot.com

According to Salem Maritime NHS’s park historian Emily Murphy, “because of Salem’s maritime trade, the breeding and cultivation of exotic plants was extremely popular among many segments of Salem society, not just the elite.”  Many residents took an avid interest in gardening, going so far as to publish articles on their endeavors.  In 1854, John Fisk Allen published an article entitled Victoria Regina, or the Great Water Lily of America, in which he details the discovery of this flower around the world and its cultivation in England and the United States.  Allen’s writing clearly illustrates his fondness for gardening and his fascination with this particular flower.  Of the plant’s cultivation in Salem, he wrote, “The first flower-bud was seen on the third day of July [1853]…On the 15th, a second bud was seen approaching the surface.  The 21st, a third bud was visible…at 4 P.M. of this day, the petals, a pure white, began to unfold, and from 5 to 6 they rapidly opened, showing the flower in its first form…” (John Fisk Allen 1854).

Whether the occupants of the Narbonne House were plant enthusiasts like Mr. Allen, or casual gardeners seeking to enjoy some flowers at their home, the flowerpot sherds found on the grounds of the house indicate that they were participating in this popular pastime. 

What Were They Planting?

19th-century gardening books and journals provided specific guidelines as to what size pot to use for specific plants.  As outlined in Rita A. DeForest’s master’s thesis on planting pots at Gore Place in Waltham, Massachusetts, some pots can be identified as to specific function based upon their size.  DeForest discusses thumb pots, which were about 2 1/2 inches in diameter and used to start seedlings and for cuttings.  Strawberries were grown in two-to three-inch pots.  Four-inch pots were used for slipper flowers and six-inch pots for hyacinths, lilies, Jonquils, and snow drops.  Six- to seven-inch pots were used to plant daffodils and tulips, and large 12-inch pots were used for repotting growing plants or for starting small trees.  The diameter of this flowerpot from the Narbonne House is about 9 1/2 inches.  Possibly used for the in-between stages of a growing plant, exactly what this pot contained – ornamental flowers? fruits or vegetables? herbs? - is a mystery. 

When and Where Was It Made?

Many American potteries were producing redware flowerpots in the 18th century.  This production increased greatly in the 19th century as many Americans embraced gardening and horticulture as pastimes.  Given this trend and the wheel-thrown quality of the Salem pot, a date in the first half of the 19th century is likely.  In her master’s thesis entitled “The Culture of Flowerpots,” Hazel Lathrop wrote of the popularity in the early 19th century of green-glazed flowerpots.  She cites the 1827 “Encyclopedia of Gardening,” which characterized the “glazed pot” as “generally glazed green” (Lathrop p. 84).  According to Lathrop’s research, green-glazed flowerpot sherds were excavated from sites in Kingston, MA, Plymouth, MA, Quincy, MA and Lowell, MA, all from early 19th-century contexts.  These examples support a similar date range for the green-glazed pot from Salem.

19th-century French flowerpot with green glaze. Image source: http://www.bashford.co.nz/

Excavation of the ca. 1806 greenhouse at Gore Place in Waltham, Massachusetts yielded flowerpot fragments of different sizes and decorative motifs, including some with a combed design similar to that on the Salem pot.  These were likely produced at the A.H. Hews Company of Weston and North Cambridge.  This pottery, established in 1765, was producing flowerpots by 1810, and made them a specialty by the 1840s.  Another flowerpot with similar decoration can be seen on a pot displayed in the College of the Atlantic’s exhibit “A Place to Take Root.”  This pot is a reproduction based upon early 19th-century flowerpot sherds excavated at Mount Vernon. 

Left: Early 19th-century Flowerpot with combed design from Gore Place, Waltham, Massachusetts. Image source: “A Good Sized Pot,” master’s thesis by Rita A. DeForest, photo by Melody Henkel. Right: Pot based on 19th-century flowerpot from Mount Vernon. From exhibit “A Place to Take Root.” Image source: Botanic Garden of Smith College website, http://www.smith.edu/

A similar, combed design is also visible on this covered earthenware dish in the collection at the Peabody Essex Museum.  According to a museum publication, this dish was most likely manufactured in Essex County, Massachusetts in the mid-18th century.  There were many New England potters producing redware in the 18th century, and according to Watkins, flowerpots were a standard product.  It is certainly possible that the pottery that produced this covered dish was also producing flowerpots. 

Covered dish, Essex County, Massachusetts, ca. 1750. Image source: “Ceramics and Glass at the Essex Institute” by Mudge, Nylander, Montgomery, and Barter, page 50.

Discerning between 18th-century redware and 19th-century redware is not easy.  This flowerpot is of the utilitarian type used for outdoor use in a garden, although the glaze and combed design add some elements of fanciness.  It lacks the ruffled rim and bulbous shape that came later in the 19th century.  The wavy combed motif can be seen on other 18th- and 19th-cenury vessels.   The green glaze suggests a date of early 19th century, which is supported by the cultural trend toward gardening that was characteristic of the era.  The question of maker in this case is a bit more difficult.  A.H. Hews is a possibility, but many other Massachusetts potters also produced redware flowerpots.   

What do you know about flowerpots?  Can you help us date this piece more precisely?  Do you have any tips for identifying potters of 18th and 19th century redware in Massachusetts?  We would like to hear from you!

References:

“A Place to Take Root,” exhibit curated by Susan Tamulevich and the College of the Atlantic, 2005.  Related websites:  http://aplacetotakeroot.com/, http://www.criscoladesign.com/pdfs/hopanels.pdf,  http://www.smith.edu/garden/exhibits/flowerpots/potpage1.html

Allen, John Fisk.  Victoria Regina, or the Great Water Lily of America.  Boston, MA:  Dutton and Wentworth, 1854.  Accessed online:  http://www.victoria-adventure.org/victoria_images/allen_sharp/victoria_regia.html

DeForest, Rita A.  A Good Sized Pot:  Early 19th Century Planting Pots from Gore Place, Waltham, Massachusetts.  Master’s thesis, University of Massachusetts Boston, 2010.  Obtained at http://scholarworks.umb.edu

Garrett, Elisabeth Donaghy.  At Home: The American Family 1750-1870.  New York:  Harry N. Abrams, 1990.

Ketchum, William C., Jr.  American Redware.  New York, NY:  Henry Holt and Company, 1991.

Lathrop, Hazel H.  The Culture of Flowerpots.  Master’s thesis, University of Massachusetsts Boston, 2000.

McConnell, Kevin.  Redware:  America’s Folk Art Pottery.  West Chester, PA:  Schiffer Publishing, 1988.

Mudge, Jean M., Jane C. Nylander, Susan J. Montgomery, and Tanya B. Barter.  Ceramics and Glass at the Essex Institute.  Salem, MA:  Essex Institute, 1985.

Pittman, William and Robert Hunter.  A Cache of Eighteenth-Century Flowerpots in Williamsburg.  Ceramics in America, Robert Hunter, ed. Hanover and London:  Chipstone Foundation, 2002.

The Narbonne House.  Pickled Fish and Salted Provisions Volume II, Number 10.  October 2000. 

Turnbaugh, Sarah Peabody.  17th and 18th Century Lead-Glazed Redwares in the Massachusetts Bay Colony.  Historical Archaeology 17(1): 3-17.

Watkins, Lura Woodside.  Early New England Pottery.  Sturbridge, MA:  Old Sturbridge Village Booklet Series, 1959.  Obtained at www.osv.org

Wyss, Bob.  In Praise of the Flowerpot. The Christian Science Monitor, August 18, 2004.