Domestic Furnishings

Tiffany Floor Lamp

Washboards, armchairs, lamps, and pots and pans may not seem to be museum pieces. But they are invaluable evidence of how most people lived day to day, last week or three centuries ago. The Museum's collections of domestic furnishings comprise more than 40,000 artifacts from American households. Large and small, they include four houses, roughly 800 pieces of furniture, fireplace equipment, spinning wheels, ceramics and glass, family portraits, and much more.

The Arthur and Edna Greenwood Collection contains more than 2,000 objects from New England households from colonial times to mid-1800s. From kitchens of the past, the collections hold some 3,300 artifacts, ranging from refrigerators to spatulas. The lighting devices alone number roughly 3,000 lamps, candleholders, and lanterns.

Date: 1840s

Creamer

Raised double-bellied pitcher on a flared and coved circular pedestal base; flat- and repousse-chased scalloped oval panels cover both sides, the C-scroll reserve at center of one is engraved "A. Taylor." in script.
Description
Raised double-bellied pitcher on a flared and coved circular pedestal base; flat- and repousse-chased scalloped oval panels cover both sides, the C-scroll reserve at center of one is engraved "A. Taylor." in script. Incurved neck flares to a deeply curved, everted rim with wide pouring lip. Die-rolled band of eight-pointed stars at pedestal top and foot. Cast sprigged C-curve handle. Wood insert fitted inside foot; unable to see underside of base or bottom. From cream and sugar set, DL*59.2284A-B.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1835 - 1845
ID Number
DL.59.2284B
catalog number
59.2284B
accession number
113420

Sèvres porcelain teapot (part of a service)

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1840
ID Number
CE.P-808Aab
catalog number
P-808Aab
accession number
225282

Waffle Iron

Circular waffle iron, plier form, with two, long, tapered handles, rectangular in section, the shorter one ending in a small loop with shaped locking ring that fits over the ball-and-acorn terminal on the other handle to secure closed.
Description
Circular waffle iron, plier form, with two, long, tapered handles, rectangular in section, the shorter one ending in a small loop with shaped locking ring that fits over the ball-and-acorn terminal on the other handle to secure closed. Both handles have arrow-shaped pads welded to plates. No marks.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1790-1840
ID Number
DL.388211
catalog number
388211
accession number
182022

Box or Trunk

Japanned, dome-top trunk or lidded box with scrolled hasp lock on front, circular wire ring handle on top, and two hinges at back.
Description
Japanned, dome-top trunk or lidded box with scrolled hasp lock on front, circular wire ring handle on top, and two hinges at back. Box front is painted along top with two, staggered, swag-and-tassel bands in red, yellow, and green, the top one overpainted on a white band, and along base with a yellow ribbon, thin red line, and green dots. Yellow dot-and-drops brushwork runs diagonally across the box sides and straight across the lid sides. Yellow brushwork forms a diamond shape around the handle; yellow bands border the lid top and box sides. Three-piece lid has a wire-rolled rim. Two-piece box has a top edge folded with wire bead below and a flat bottom. Tinned interior. No marks.
Attributed to the North Shop of Fly Creek, NY, circa 1790-1841.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1790-1841
ID Number
DL.247993
catalog number
247993
accession number
47773

Half Gill or Half Noggin Measure

Haystack measure; half gill or half noggin size. Conical or ovoid body with molded neck, midbody, and base bands; circular, everted rim with flared and beaded lip.
Description
Haystack measure; half gill or half noggin size. Conical or ovoid body with molded neck, midbody, and base bands; circular, everted rim with flared and beaded lip. Tapered, D- or ear-shaped handle has an arched and tongued thumbrest; upper scrolled terminal with stepped oval attachment below neck; flat lower terminal attached at midband. Touchmark of Joseph Austen & Son on bottom outside.
Maker is Joseph Austen & Son, Cork, Ireland; circa 1823-1846 (previous working dates, circa 1828-1833).
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1828-1833
ca 1823-1846
ID Number
DL.67.0189
catalog number
67.0189
accession number
250853

Half Mutchkin Measure

Uncrested tappit hen measure with ridged thumb piece; half mutchkin (1 1/2 English gill) size. Flat-domed lid with three incised concentric circles. Faint incised lines around molded rim and plain base; flat bottom with three concentric circles inside.
Description
Uncrested tappit hen measure with ridged thumb piece; half mutchkin (1 1/2 English gill) size. Flat-domed lid with three incised concentric circles. Faint incised lines around molded rim and plain base; flat bottom with three concentric circles inside. S-scroll handle with stepped thumbrest and short terminal; oval strut.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1750-1840
ID Number
DL.67.0200
catalog number
67.0200
accession number
250853

Trunk

Black-painted, flat-top box with scrolled hasp lock on front, circular wire ring handle on top, and two hinges at back.
Description
Black-painted, flat-top box with scrolled hasp lock on front, circular wire ring handle on top, and two hinges at back. Box front is painted with a yellow, dotted and crosshatched, triangular basket filled with pairs of red fruit, red-and-yellow buds, red flowers with yellow dotted and crosshatched centers, and wet-painted, blue-and-white daisies; box sides are plain. Lid has single yellow crossed lines on top and a line-rope-and-dot band on its front and sides, some elements possibly stenciled. One-piece lid has a wire-rolled rim. Three-piece box has a top edge folded with wire bead below and a flat bottom. No marks.
Flat-top, painted tinware trunks are considered to be unique to the Stevens Tinshop of Stevens Plains (now Westbrook), ME, circa 1800-1842. The inverted-triangle basket motif is rare.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1800 - 1842
ID Number
1978.0119.16
accession number
1978.0119
catalog number
1978.0119.16

Fork

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1839 - 1851
1846 - 1851
patent date
1846-07-10
retailer
Ball, Tompkins & Black
ID Number
DL.60.1111
catalog number
60.1111
accession number
70138

St. Louis Sulphide Paperweight

In the 1700s, paperweights made from textured stone or bronze were part of the writer’s tool kit, which also included a quill pen and stand, inkpot, and blotter.
Description (Brief)
In the 1700s, paperweights made from textured stone or bronze were part of the writer’s tool kit, which also included a quill pen and stand, inkpot, and blotter. By the mid-1800s, decorative paperweights produced by glassmakers in Europe and the United States became highly desired collectibles.
Decorative glass paperweights reflected the 19th-century taste for intricate, over-the-top designs. Until the spread of textiles colorized with synthetic dyes, ceramics and glass were among the few objects that added brilliant color to a 19th-century Victorian interior. The popularity of these paperweights in the 1800s testifies to the sustained cultural interest in hand craftsmanship during an age of rapid industrialization.
Glass production at Saint Louis was authorized by Louis XV in 1767. By 1782 the firm was creating high quality glass crystal, progressing into pressed glass in the 1800s. St. Louis produced paperweights from 1845 to about 1867.
This St. Louis paperweight is known as a “sulphide,” meaning it contains a porcelain cameo—in this case an American eagle. The eagle is surrounded by concentric millefiori, in which colored glass canes are placed in rings around a center cane, including one date cane marked “1847.” Millefiore paperweights, first manufactured in Venice, consist of sections from rods of colored glass encased in a clear, colorless sphere. By the mid-nineteenth century, glass factories elsewhere in Europe were emulating the millefiore style.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1847
maker
St. Louis
ID Number
CE.65.480
catalog number
65.480
accession number
264964
collector/donor number
32

Sevres porcelain plate

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1843
maker
Sevres
ID Number
CE.P-1058
catalog number
P-1058
accession number
225282

Pot

One-quart cooking pot on three, semicircular feet with a flared lip, bulbous body and wire bail handle looped around triangular lugs or ears.
Description
One-quart cooking pot on three, semicircular feet with a flared lip, bulbous body and wire bail handle looped around triangular lugs or ears. Hollow cast with three fillets, one around rim and two around body, the lowest one is a horizontal seam; two vertical seams on upper half and single gate mark on bottom exterior. Cast-in mark on side reads "ALLAIRE / 1", in raised serif letters inside a rectangle (partially visible).
James P. Allaire founded Allaire Iron Works, in New York, NY, in 1816, and purchased Howell Iron Works, located in present-day Farmingdale, Monmouth County, NJ, in 1822. Since Allaire Iron Works specialized in marine steam engines, it is possible pots marked "ALLAIRE" and "HOWELL" were both made in New Jersey.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
late 18th century
1816-1846
ID Number
1982.0090.68
accession number
1982.0090
catalog number
1982.0090.68

Trunk

Japanned, dome-top box with scrolled hasp lock on front, circular wire ring handle on top, and two hinges at back.
Description
Japanned, dome-top box with scrolled hasp lock on front, circular wire ring handle on top, and two hinges at back. Box front and sides are painted with a yellow-bordered, scalloped white band overpainted with red scalloped flowers and pointed oval buds amidst two types of green leaves; black veining and pencilwork details. Lid top has yellow brushwork fans and four-dot diamonds bordered by two yellow crossed lines; lid front and sides with alternating yellow brushstrokes. Three-piece lid has a wire-rolled rim. Three-piece box has a top edge folded with wire bead below and a flat bottom. No marks.
Attributed to the Upson Tinshop of Marion (Southington), CT, circa 1773-1837.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1800 - 1840
ID Number
1978.0119.17
accession number
1978.0119
catalog number
1978.0119.17

Fork

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1850
1851 - 1874
patent date
1846-07-10
retailer
Ball, Black and Company
ID Number
DL.60.1110
catalog number
60.1110
accession number
70138

knife, dinner

Dinner knife. Straight steel blade with tapered and rounded tip. Blade and bolster are one piece fitted into the top of a flat tapered block ivory handle with rounded edges.
Description
Dinner knife. Straight steel blade with tapered and rounded tip. Blade and bolster are one piece fitted into the top of a flat tapered block ivory handle with rounded edges. Deeply scratched and discolored overall, yellowed ivory, chipped and bent blade.
Blade is stamped: “V R/RODGERS’ CUTLERY/NORFOLK WORKS/SHEFFIELD”
Maker is Joseph Rodgers & Sons, active 1682-1971 in Sheffield, England.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1830- 1840
maker
Joseph Rodgers & Sons
ID Number
1986.0531.054
accession number
1986.0531
catalog number
1986.0531.054

Expulsion of Adam & Eve by James S. Baillie

This colored print depicts Adam and Eve, downcast beside a small lake. A distraught Eve is naked and kneeling on the ground. Adam is standing and fashioning a covering of branches to hide his nakedness and shame.
Description
This colored print depicts Adam and Eve, downcast beside a small lake. A distraught Eve is naked and kneeling on the ground. Adam is standing and fashioning a covering of branches to hide his nakedness and shame. A sylvan setting of trees and gentle hills forms the background.
The Expulsion represents the passage from the book of Genesis (3:22-24) after the Fall. That is, after Adam and Eve have eaten of the fruit which God has forbidden them to eat, they are cast out of the Garden of Eden and into the world where they are forced to labor and suffer the consequences of their sin. This scene encapsulates the central tenet of Christianity: only by repenting and following the teachings of Christ, can mankind obtain salvation.
This print was produced by James S. Baillie, who was active in New York from 1838 to 1855. James Baillie started as a framer in 1838, and then became an artist and lithographer in 1843 or 1844. He discovered how to color lithographs while working as an independent contractor for Currier & Ives in the mid 1840s. He was a prolific lithographer and colorist for Currier & Ives, and his prints were extremely popular with a wide distribution. James Baillie spent his later years concentrating on painting instead of lithography.
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
ca 1846
depicted
Adam
Eve
maker
Baillie, James S.
ID Number
DL.60.2972
catalog number
60.2972
accession number
228146

Elevated Oven Patent Model

Patent model (U.S. Patent No. 3,021) of a horizontal cylindrical, elevated or stepped-back oven with a firebox for its base that attaches to a cooking or heating stove; made by Samuel B. Spaulding of Brandon, VT, and patented on March 30, 1843. Folded seams.
Description
Patent model (U.S. Patent No. 3,021) of a horizontal cylindrical, elevated or stepped-back oven with a firebox for its base that attaches to a cooking or heating stove; made by Samuel B. Spaulding of Brandon, VT, and patented on March 30, 1843. Folded seams. Single damper that slides back and forth at back center underside of oven is for two flues: one surrounding the oven and the other, for when the damper is pushed in and the oven is not in use, wraps around its front half. No marks on object, but paper tags tied on with red wove ribbon and stored separately are printed and handwritten with patent information and object numbers.
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
1843-03-30
patent date
1843-03-30
inventor
Spaulding, Samuel B.
ID Number
DL.251513
accession number
48890
patent number
3,021
catalog number
251513

Letter Holder

Hanging letter holder for "THURSDAY", "FRIDAY" and "SATURDAY" in the form of a gothic tower or building consisting of four graduated brass plates stamped as facades that are attached one above the other to a single piece of sheet metal.
Description
Hanging letter holder for "THURSDAY", "FRIDAY" and "SATURDAY" in the form of a gothic tower or building consisting of four graduated brass plates stamped as facades that are attached one above the other to a single piece of sheet metal. "SATURDAY" features a pointed-arch portal while all the plates have triple pointed-arch and quatrefoil windows flanked by spires; the gables of "FRIDAY" and "SATURDAY" also include the Royal Arms of the United Kingdom with "DAY'S / PATENT" above and below. A partially legible, circular green paper label printed in black is affixed at bottom of the metal backing. One of two holders for all seven days of the week, DL*59.2300A-B.
Maker is Benjamin Day of Birmingham, England; Day first patented his multipurpose chimney ornaments (freestanding with folding candle or fire screens at top) in 1817.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1840
ID Number
DL.59.2300A
catalog number
59.2300A
accession number
113420

Lavinia Rogers (attrib) Overshot Coverlet; Tennessee; 1833

This overshot coverlet is said to have been made by Lavina Rogers of Horse Creek, Tennessee, in 1833. It is made of cotton and wool, and is woven in what some call the "Braddocks Defeat" pattern.
Description
This overshot coverlet is said to have been made by Lavina Rogers of Horse Creek, Tennessee, in 1833. It is made of cotton and wool, and is woven in what some call the "Braddocks Defeat" pattern. The coverlet appears to have been repaired, as the center seam and the hems are machine sewn with cotton sewing thread. There were very few female hand- weavers in 1833. In most cases women spun the yarn used in their coverlets, and commissioned a professional weaver to actually weave the coverlet.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1830-1840
1833
maker
unknown
ID Number
TE.T14956
catalog number
T014956
accession number
124301

Sèvres porcelain pitcher (part of a service)

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1840
ID Number
CE.P-808B
catalog number
P-808B
accession number
225282

Coal Carrier

Rectangular, scoop-shaped pan with flat, punchwork-decorated, hinged lid and metal-wrapped, wire loop handle.
Description
Rectangular, scoop-shaped pan with flat, punchwork-decorated, hinged lid and metal-wrapped, wire loop handle. Lid has bent edges that fit over the pan when closed, and features a design of a diamond inside two concentric circles with crosslets or plus signs in the corners, all punched from the outside. Pan is made from one piece, its corners cut, folded and riveted. Handle riveted to back side of pan. No marks.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1845
ID Number
1979.0568.571
catalog number
1979.0568.571
accession number
1979.0568

William Brosey; Jacquard, tied-Biederwand coverlet; 1842; Pennsylvania

William Brosey wove this Jacquard, 2:1 tied-Biederwand coverlet for J. Bassler in 1842. The coverlet features a variation of the "Four Roses" centerfield field pattern, substituting the traditional rose with what appears to be a marigold.
Description
William Brosey wove this Jacquard, 2:1 tied-Biederwand coverlet for J. Bassler in 1842. The coverlet features a variation of the "Four Roses" centerfield field pattern, substituting the traditional rose with what appears to be a marigold. The triple borders features a Germanic tree of life (Hom) flanked by addorsed thistle finches (Distelfinken) and interspersed with pairs of rose bushes. The cornerblock design is made up of a grid of nine, eight-petaled flowers with three, eight-pointed stars. This border and cornerblock design was used by an entire family of coverlet weavers in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. The green-, madder-, and indigo-dyed wool 2-ply, S-twist, Z-spun weft yarns interact with the 2- and 3-ply, S-twist, Z-spun cotton warp and weft to form an integrated weave structure known as tied-Biederwand and identifiable by the ribbed appearance of the fabric. The coverlet has two self-fringes along its side borders and applied faux self-fringe along the bottom. Also along the bottom edge can be found the woven inscription, “J*BASSLER/W*B” and the date, “1842.” The coverlet was woven as one length, cut, folded back on itself and seamed down the center. This is a standard construction feature for coverlets not woven on a broadloom with a fly-shuttle, as loom widths tended to not be wider than the average person’s arm span.
The Brosey family lived in Manheim Township, Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. The known weavers in the family included John Brosey Sr. (1789-1863), William Brosey (1818-1884), and John Brosey, Jr. (1829-1879). J. Bassler, the name at the base of the coverlet is almost certainly the customer’s name. It is not know which J. Bassler this might be, but the Lebanon Courier and Semi-Weekly Report reported a barn and corncrib fire in Lancaster County on the farm of Mr. John Bassler on November 18, 1853. It is possible that the J. Bassler named on the coverlet is indeed this same John Bassler of Lancaster County, but more research is needed to confirm this attribution. What can be determined is that William Brosey wove this coverlet as he signed it with his initials, “W*B” just under the client’s name. The Brosey centerfield designs and triple border are unique to Lancaster County suggesting that besides weaving they too were drafting their own designs and punching their own Jacquard punch cards.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1842
maker or owner
Bassler, J.
maker
unknown
Bishops Antiques
ID Number
1998.0081.03
accession number
1998.0081
catalog number
1998.0081.03

Sèvres porcelain covered pitcher

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1840
ID Number
CE.P-374ab
accession number
225282
catalog number
P-374ab

Skillet

Skillet on three, rounded triangular legs with a square lip and an integral, tapered, D-section handle chamfered or notched beneath its square end; rounded sides and flat bottom. Hollow cast with single gate mark on bottom exterior. No additional marks.Currently not on view
Description
Skillet on three, rounded triangular legs with a square lip and an integral, tapered, D-section handle chamfered or notched beneath its square end; rounded sides and flat bottom. Hollow cast with single gate mark on bottom exterior. No additional marks.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1800-1840
ID Number
DL.388250
catalog number
388250
accession number
182022

Half Pint Measure

Haystack measure; half pint size. Conical or ovoid body with molded neck, midbody, and base bands; circular, everted rim with flared and beaded lip.
Description
Haystack measure; half pint size. Conical or ovoid body with molded neck, midbody, and base bands; circular, everted rim with flared and beaded lip. Tapered, D- or ear-shaped handle has an arched and tongued thumbrest; upper scrolled terminal with stepped oval attachment below neck; flat lower terminal attached at midband. Body is stamped on front "1 HALF PINT" in incuse serif letters. Touchmark of Joseph Austen & Son on bottom outside.
Maker is Joseph Austen & Son, Cork, Ireland; circa 1823-1846 (previous working dates, circa 1828-1833).
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1828-1833
ca 1823-1846
ID Number
DL.67.0187
catalog number
67.0187
accession number
250853

Our collection database is a work in progress. We may update this record based on further research and review. Learn more about our approach to sharing our collection online.

If you would like to know how you can use content on this page, see the Smithsonian's Terms of Use. If you need to request an image for publication or other use, please visit Rights and Reproductions.