Martha Washington States China plate
Label Text
On April 24, 1796, Dutch merchant Andreas Everardus van Braam Houckgeest (1739-1801) arrived in Philadelphia from Canton with "A Box of China for Lady Washington." Van Braam designed the porcelain's decoration, which symbolizes his belief in the unity of the colonies that formed the United States and his scorn for their former ruler, King George III. The initials "MW" shine at the center of the design.
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Date1795
Designer
Andreas Everardus van Braam Houckgeest
(1739-1801)
Medium/TechniquePorcelain (hard-paste), enamel, gilt
DimensionsOverall: 1 in. × 9 1/4 in. × 9 1/4 in. (2.54 cm × 23.5 cm × 23.5 cm)
Credit LineAcquired through the generosity of Mrs. F. W. Lander, by exchange; the A. Alfred Taubman Acquisition Endowment Fund; Gift: Jess and Grace Pavey Fund; and an anonymous donor, 2016
Object numberW-5422
DescriptionShallow, round plate decorated in “States” pattern. The center of the well features the interlocking black initials “MW” surrounded by a green laurel wreath at the center of a gilded sunburst. Below the sunburst is a ribbon, touched red at the tips, with the motto “DECUS ET TUTAMEN AB ILLO" written in black. A blue snake, biting its tail, with gilded scales and its top outlined in black, encircles the top of the rim exterior. Below it is a chain of fifteen wide green links outlined in black joined by smaller gilded links, outlined in red; each of the green links contains the name of a state: “VIRGINIA.”, “KENTUCKY”, “No CAROLINA.”, “So CAROLINA.”, “GEORGIA.”, “NEW HAMPSHIRE”, “MASSACHUSETTS.”, “VERMONT”, “RHODE ISLAND”, “CONNECTICUT.”, “NEW YORK.”, “IERSEY.”, “PENNSYLVANIA”, “DELAWARE”, and “MARYLAND”, respectively.Published ReferencesHannah Boettcher and Ronald W. Fuchs II, "Martha Washington's 'United States China': A New Link Found in a Family Notebook," Ceramics in America (Milwaukee: Chipstone Foundation, 2020), 50.
Adam Erby, “Setting the Presidential Table,” Mount Vernon Magazine, Fall 2016, 14-15.
General references:
Susan Gray Detweiler, American Presidential China (Philadelphia: Philadelphia Museum of Art, 2008), 26-27.
Carol Borchert Cadou, The George Washington Collection: Fine and Decorative Arts at Mount Vernon (New York: Hudson Hills Press, 2006), 149.
Jaap van Braam Houckgeest, “Hidden meaning,” The Magazine Antiques 166/4 (October 2004), 38, 40.
Jean McClure Mudge, Chinese Export Porcelain in North America (New York: Clarkson N. Potter, Inc., 1986), 215.
Jean Gordon Lee, Philadelphians and the China Trade 1784-1844 (Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 1984), 88-89.
Susan Gray Detweiler, George Washington's Chinaware (New York: Harry N. Abrams, Inc., 1982), 151, 154-158.
Arlene M. Palmer, A Winterthur Guide to Chinese Export Porcelain (New York: Crown Publishers Inc., 1976), 130.
Jean McClure Mudge, Chinese Export Porcelain for the American Trade 1785-1835 (Wilmington: University of Delaware Press, 1962), 153, 174.
Mount Vernon China (Mount Vernon: Mount Vernon Ladies’ Association, 1949), 22-24.
Samuel W. Woodhouse, Jr., “Martha Washington’s China and ‘Mr. Van Braam,’” The Magazine Antiques 27/5 (May 1935): 186-188.
Benson J. Lossing, Mount Vernon and Its Associations: Historical, Biographical, and Pictorial (New York, New York: W. A. Townsend, 1859), 240-241.
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c. 1876
c. 1789-1797
c. 1870