Fine and Important Six Piece Tea and Coffee Service by
Goodnow and Jenks, Boston, c. 1895,
From the Ames Family of North Easton, MA

This very fine service is of urn form in the federal style that was popular around 1790. Each lid is surmounted by a beaded urn with a ball top. The rim under each lid, the upper edge of the urn and the base of the round part of each foot is similarly beaded.  Graceful spouts balance ebony  handles. The service comprises a hot water kettle, coffee pot, tea pot, sugar bowl, creamer and waste bowl. 

Goodnow and Jenks were the preeminent silversmiths working in Boston at the turn of the century. With excellent designers and talented artisans (including a young apprentice named George Gebelein), Goodnow and Jenks produced excellent work characterized by great colonial revival designs and significant hand work in production.  Hand engraved and hand pierced ornamentation on simple surfaces is a trademark of their shop. The  elegant proportions and understated decoration of this service make it a classic exemple of Goodnow & Jenks's best work.  This outstanding service was retailed by Bigelow, Kennard and Co., Boston's other great jeweler,  founded in 1830, they went out of business in 1972.

This set is engraved with laurel wreath cartouches which enclose, on one side,  "1895" and on the other the 'A' cypher of the Ames family.  This set weighs a respectable 150 troy ounces and the height of the hot water kettle is 14.5 inches.  The condition of this service is excellent - a very minor ding on one lid and some light wear to the engraving.

Provenance:  The Ames Family of North Easton, MA.

Our Price: SOLD

Item code: H840