Monteith
Samuel Kirk & Son
(active 1846–1861, 1868–1896)
Samuel Kirk
(American, 1793–1872)
Henry Child Kirk, Sr.
(American, 1827–1914)
Henry Child Kirk Jr.
(American, joined firm in 1890)
1868–96
Object PlaceBaltimore, Massachusetts, United States
Medium/TechniqueSilver
DimensionsOverall: 20.5 x 26.2 cm, 1.33 kg (8 1/16 x 10 5/16 in., 2.93 lb.)
Credit LineGift of Joseph Randolph Coolidge IV
Accession number1989.810
On View
On viewClassificationsSilver hollowware
Collections
English in origin and a rare form in American silver (see cat. no. 141), the monteith was reserved for grand occasions, when it assumed pride of place on the tables of the wealthy. Produced during the last quarter of the nineteenth century, an era sometimes referred to as the “gilded age,” this lavishly hand-decorated punch bowl with its crownlike rim belonged to one of Boston’s most distinguished families.
This text has been adapted from "Silver of the Americas, 1600-2000," edited by Jeannine Falino and Gerald W.R. Ward, published in 2008 by the MFA. Complete references can be found in that publication.
