Porringer

Along with Thomas Bentley (1764 – 1804) and Robert Dawes (b. 1767), who preceded him, Thomas Knox Emery was probably the last silversmith to apprentice in the large shop run by his father, Stephen (1749 – 1801). Thomas began working independently about the time of his father’s death, with the likely inheritance of the “sundry Shop tools & Utensils” valued at $30 that was listed in his father’s inventory. The mark he employed — that of his first initial and full surname within a shaped cartouche — resembles the one used by his father.

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.