|
This rare pair of cups was made in New York by Francis W. Cooper, the leading maker of ecclesiastical silver in the US during that period. Reflecting the rococo revival (then called the 'French Style') popular during the mid-nineteenth century, the cup's primary decorative motif is the bold repoussed cartouche of c-scrolls and rocaille decoration with floral enhancements. A die-rolled cast band at the foot and lip along with the cast handle are applied. On a very interesting note, one cup, inscribed "Porter Isham" (b. 1863), is hand raised and the other, inscribed "Julia Isham" (b. 1866), is spun.
Francis Cooper worked in New York from from 1842-90. According to D. Albert Soeffing in Silver in America by Charles Venable, 'pieces marked by him are seldom found today'1 - many of the known pieces by Cooper are now in museum or church collections. Most of the silver that bears his mark is ecclesiastical, very few examples of his secular work - such as these - are known today. Cooper sold his high quality silver products through both Tiffany and Ball, Black & Co., but those pieces do not bear his mark. The earlier cup (Porter's) is marked 'F.W. COOPER/ 131 AMITY ST. N.Y.'. The later (Julia's) cup is marked 'F.W.COOPER' with 900 over 1000 denoting the coin standard. With the exception of the method of fabrication, these cups are virtually identical, clearly made to conform to the same design pattern. Each cup measures 4.25 inches high by 4.25 inches wide across the handles. Porter's handraised cup weighs 3.85 ounces while Julia's spun cup weighs 4.25 ounces.
Porter (b. 1863) and Julia (b. 1866) Isham were two of the six children born to William Bradley Isham and Julia Burhams. Isham was the son of a successful upstate (Malden, NY) merchant. He and his brother Charles both ran successful leather businesses on Gold St., continuing the family's merchant activities. William later also became a banker, serving as Vice-president of the Union Bank and later the Bank of the Metropolis. His activities included directorships and trusteeships at various financial and charitable organizations. Isham park (at 212 St. and Broadway in New York City), 'a portion of the country seat of William Bradley Isham and Julia Burnham Isham,' was given to the city by daughter Julia in 1911 and enlarged by more gifts from her and other family members and estates in 1912, 1915, and 1917.2
These extremely rare cups provide significant documentation about production, patronage and the marks used by this highly important, yet enigmatic, silversmith. They are in very good antique condition, the only thing that bears mentioning is that they were used, as evidenced by teeth marks to the left of the handle near the rim where a right handed child's mouth would have come in contact with the cups.
Our Price: SOLD
Item code: A080
For more information about Cooper, see "Francis W. Cooper Silversmith" by Jennifer M. Swope, in the February 1999 issue of The Magazine Antiques and Silver in America by Charles Venable.
Notes:
1) D. Albert Soeffing, "Biographies of Selected Silver Producers and Retailers" in Charles Venable, Silver In America: 1840-1940 A Century of Splendor (New York: Abrams, 1994); p.316.
2) Homer Worthington Brainard, A Survey of the Ishams in England and America: Eight Hundred and Fifty Years of History and Geneology (Rutland, VT: Tuttle,1938), pp. 391-2, 509.
|
