Dessert fork

Status

Not on view

Label Text

This diminutive dessert fork was once used by the Washingtons and their guests to sample the sweetmeats, candied fruits, and puddings that constituted the final course at a formal dinner. Conspicuously engraved with the Washington crest, it was among the "2 Setts best Silver handle Knives & Forks best London Blades" sent to George Washington by his London agent in 1757. Washington's investment in specialized services of flatware demonstrated luxury at a time when the possession of a fork of any material was a sign of aspiring gentility, and enabled him to confidently entertain members of the colonial Virginia elite.

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Date1757

Possible maker Dru Drury I (English, 1688 - c.1766)

Possible maker Dru Drury II (English, 1725 - 1804)

Geography Made - England

Medium/TechniqueSilver, steel

DimensionsOverall (H x W x D): 6 1/2 in. x 7/8 in. x 7/8 in. (16.51 cm x 2.22 cm x 2.24 cm)

Credit LineGift of Mrs. William Henry Brown, 1891

Object numberW-495/B

DescriptionPistol handled fork with three steel tines and silver handle; three steel tines rise from a baluster form shaft with flared collar that is inserted into the handle; silver handle with ribbed sides terminating in a volute covered with an acanthus leaf; butt of the handle is engraved with the Washington crest, a raven rising from a ducal coronet.
Published ReferencesSarah Coffin, "Historical Overview," in Feeding Desire: Design and Tools of the Table, 1500-2005 (New York: Cooper-Hewitt, National Design Museum, Smithsonian Institution, 2005), 42.

Carol Borchert Cadou, The George Washington Collection: Fine and Decorative Arts at Mount Vernon (New York: Hudson Hills Press, 2006), 40-41.

Martha Gandy Fales, "The Silver," Magazine Antiques 135/2 (February 1989): 518, 520.

Kathryn Buhler, Mount Vernon Silver (Mount Vernon, VA: Mount Vernon Ladies Association, 1957), 14-15.

Thomas Birch's Sons Auctioneers, The Final Sale of the Relics of General Washington Owned by Lawrence Washington, Esq., Bushrod C. Washington, Esq., Thos. B. Washington, Esq., and J.R.C. Lewis, Esq., Embracing the Most Important Collection Ever Brought Together, of Letters, Deeds, Leases, Legal Documents, Receipts, Bills, Account Bookds, and Memoranda, Belonging to and Written by General Washington…April 21st, 22d, 23d, 1891, Sales Catalogue No. 663 (Philadelphia: Thomas Birch's Sons Auctioneer, 1891), Lot # 290.

MarkingsStamped near the head of the handle on the obverse: an obscured mark, probably of the lion passant. Stamped near the head of the handle on the reverse: an almost entirely obscured mark.

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