Urn
Mathieu de Machy
(French, master 1770, still living 1793)
1789
Object PlaceParis, France
Medium/TechniqueSilver and ebonized wood
DimensionsOverall: 41 × 24.1 × 14.3 cm (16 1/8 × 9 1/2 × 5 5/8 in.)
Troy weight: 77 troy ounces, 18 dwt
Troy weight: 77 troy ounces, 18 dwt
Credit LineGift of Miss Ellen Susan Bulfinch
Accession number16.223
On View
Not on viewClassificationsSilver
Collections
Provenance1806, given by the Catholics of Boston to Charles Bulfinch (b. 1763 - d. 1844), Boston [see note 1]; by descent to his son, Thomas Bulfinch (b. 1796 - d. 1867); bequeathed by Thomas Bulfinch to his brother, Stephen Greenleaf Bulfinch (b. 1809 - d. 1870); by descent to his wife, Caroline Phelps Bulfinch (b. 1814 - d. 1904); 1904, by descent to her daughter, Ellen Susan Bulfinch (b. 1844); 1916, gift of Ellen Susan Bulfinch to the MFA. (Accession Date: June 8, 1916)
NOTES:
[1] A letter in the MFA curatorial file from Ellen Susan Bulfinch to Arthur Fairbanks of the MFA (June 4, 1916) details the provenance of the urn. Miss Bulfinch explains that her grandfather, the architect Charles Bulfinch, presented his plans for the Church of the Holy Cross (the first Roman Catholic church in Boston) on September 29, 1803 and that "in grateful recognition of Mr. Bulfinch's gift the silver urn, suitably inscribed, was presented to him." The urn is inscribed: "To Charles Bulfinch Esqr. / Presented by the Catholics of Boston / Jan.y 1, 1806."
NOTES:
[1] A letter in the MFA curatorial file from Ellen Susan Bulfinch to Arthur Fairbanks of the MFA (June 4, 1916) details the provenance of the urn. Miss Bulfinch explains that her grandfather, the architect Charles Bulfinch, presented his plans for the Church of the Holy Cross (the first Roman Catholic church in Boston) on September 29, 1803 and that "in grateful recognition of Mr. Bulfinch's gift the silver urn, suitably inscribed, was presented to him." The urn is inscribed: "To Charles Bulfinch Esqr. / Presented by the Catholics of Boston / Jan.y 1, 1806."
