Gorham Antique Coin Silver 'Medallion' Gravy Boat, Providence, RI, 1868

This wonderful item by Gorham is a rare example of the Medallion pattern in holloware. Its oval, slender form with applied handle and extended spout makes a wonderful presentation when serving gravy or dessert sauce. The ornamentation includes applied, Greek-key banding around its shaped top, finely chased and repousséd garlands against a textured background, lovely applied medallions on both sides and a mask on the handle. It is engraved on one side with the family crest of a turret with three birds.  

This stunning gravy/ sauce boat is marked with Gorham's trademark and model number '30.' It measures 8.5 inches across the handle and spout by just over 4 inches wide by 4.5 inches to the top of the handle and weighs approximately 9.30 troy ounces. It is in excellent antique condition. According to the Gorham Archives costing record at the John Hay Library, Brown University, the number 30 gravy boat was first introduced in March of 1868 and had a factory cost of $39.60 - a fair amount of money at the time.

Gorham Archives image courtesy of the John Hay Library, Brown University.