Monday, January 28, 2013

British Silver at The Met, NYC

An excursion into The City included a morning at The Metropolitan Museum of Art at 1000 5th Avenue.  This amazing museum houses a wide variety of exhibits and collections.  We happened upon the exhibition British Silver, the wealth of a nation which featured 80 objects from the mid-sixteenth thru the mid-eighteenth centuries.  On exhibition since May of 2012, the Sunday we were there was its final day on display.
This gorgeous rococo style tea kettle with spirit lamp and stand were crafted by London silversmith Paul de Lamerie and owned by prosperous merchant David Franks of Philadelphia, most likely in celebration of his marriage.
This elegantly elaborate dish would certainly make a statement at any special event.
















This lovely assortment of silver spoons was also on display.  Notice the sugar tongs in the top of the picture, and the strainer spoon below it, used to remove any stray tea leaves that might be in the tea pot.
These darling miniature pieces on display captured my eye.  How I would love to have a piece or two in my collection!

6 comments:

Linda Jennings said...

I visited this display for quite a while until my guys pulled me on to another.

relevanttealeaf said...

Exquisite silver display. I would enjoy seeing that exhibit, but since I can't I'm grateful you shared it.

Steph said...

You found this just in time. Amazing detail!

Marilyn Miller said...

What a beautiful display. I love seeing the teapot on the top, but the miniatures would definitely be a treasure to have.

Angela McRae said...

Glad you made it in time! What amazing pieces!

La Tea Dah said...

So beautiful!