Bud vases

Even during the most eclectic periods of nineteenth-century design, simple pieces of silver with plain surfaces and quiet ornament were available to the consumer. The restrained classical-style decoration and form, combined with their petite size, suggest that this pair of bud vases was intended to ornament a private space. During the second half of the nineteenth century, vases became increasingly popular as grand public presentation pieces and personal gifts for domestic use.

Even though the company was chartered in 1863 and incorporated in 1865, Gorham continued to stamp “Gorham & Co.” on its Union Square silverware through the 1880s. Carpenter has noted that silver marked “Union Square” was probably made at the small shop Gorham operated in New York about 1875 – 1885.

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.