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Easter Egg Chocolate Mold

Easter Egg Chocolate Mold

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Description (Brief)
This two piece, metal chocolate mold was designed to produce one Easter egg.
Description
Molds began appearing in the late 1840s to early 1850s in Europe. In the late 1880s, U.S. companies began manufacturing chocolate molds, but Germany remained the largest supplier to the U.S. until the early 1900s. During the First World War, U.S. firms began to gain more ground against their European counterparts.
The design of molds often followed the trends of the time. The “classic period” of 1880-1910 consisted of very realistic pieces made to resemble an object as closely as possible. Chocolatiers would often set up small vignettes depicting a complicated scene. These were time consuming and painstakingly complicated. From 1910-1930, molds were redesigned to be simpler and rounder in appearance. Fantasy began replacing realism. The mechanical design of the molds also began to change to accommodate changes in technology, such as new rotary machines that were developed to spin multiple molds at the same time to evenly distribute the chocolate.
Eppelsheimer was formed in 1880 in New York City. In 1910 the company was acquired by William H. Warren, and in the 1940s the name was changed to Eppelsheimer & Co., Warren Bros. The American Chocolate Mould Co., formed in 1916 in New York City, took over Eppelsheimer in 1947, and by 1972, the company stopped producing metal molds and focused on plastic products and a few novelty molds.
Location
Currently not on view
Object Name
Mold, Chocolate
chocolate mold, rabbits, easter egg
maker
Eppelsheimer & Co.
place made
United States
ID Number
AG.76-FT-04.0015A
catalog number
76-FT-04.0015A
accession number
315132
Credit Line
Chocolate Manufacturers Association of the USA
See more items in
Work and Industry: Food Technology
Food
Data Source
National Museum of American History
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