GENERAL DESCRIPTION
During the mid-19th century, most Americans served dinner in the traditional English fashion, wherein serving dishes and platters were placed on the table, then passed by the guests. Beginning in the 1860s, however, Americans increasingly adopted the Russian fashion, known as service à la russe, in which the meal was divided into courses served individually to the guests by servants. The hostess of a formal dinner would ring a dinner bell, like this Neoclassical example by William Bogert & Co., to signal the servants to present the next course. In addition, the new service à la russe style eliminated serving dishes and platters from the table and thus provided space for further ornamentation, such as centerpieces, candelabra, and vases. It is possible that this bell was included in a extensive dinner service, because the figure of Ceres, the Greek goddess of agriculture, also appears on a large centerpiece produced by the New York firm.
Adapted from
Charles L. Venable, Silver in America, 1840-1940: A Century of Splendor (Dallas, Texas: Dallas Museum of Art; New York, New York; Harry N. Abrams, Inc., 1994), 130, 135, 338.
NOTES
TMS updates - GeoXrefs - business location, place of birth and death, place of origin - JBA (10/23/2017)
I changed the maker from John Bogert (an error) to William Bogert & Co., as listed in the following:
- Charles L. Venable, Silver in America, 1840-1940: A Century of Splendor (Dallas, Texas: Dallas Museum of Art; New York, New York; Harry N. Abrams, Inc., 1994), 135, 338.
- D. Albert Soeffing, "William Bogert and His Family," The Magazine Antiques (July 1996): 100-109.
I updated Provenance, Exhibition History, and Published References.
I added the following as a TMS Text Entry: Charles L. Venable, Silver in America, 1840-1940: A Century of Splendor (Dallas, Texas: Dallas Museum of Art; New York, New York; Harry N. Abrams, Inc., 1994), 338.
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RELATED OBJECTS
PROVENANCE
Until 1995: The Charles R. Masling and John E. Furen Collection, Houston, Texas [1]
From 1995: Dallas Museum of Art, gift of the above [1]
[1] See Deed of Gift (date March 16, 1995, copy in Collections Records Object File).
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Metropolitan Museum of Art~Read more about Nineteenth-Century American Silver.
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Apply to objects where number equals 1995.45
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General Description
During the mid-19th century, most Americans served dinner in the traditional English fashion, wherein serving dishes and platters were placed on the table, then passed by the guests. Beginning in the 1860s, however, Americans increasingly adopted the Russian fashion, known as service à la russe, in which the meal was divided into courses served individually to the guests by servants. The hostess of a formal dinner would ring a dinner bell, like this Neoclassical example by William Bogert & Co., to signal the servants to present the next course. In addition, the new service à la russe style eliminated serving dishes and platters from the table and thus provided space for further ornamentation, such as centerpieces, candelabra, and vases. It is possible that this bell was included in a extensive dinner service, because the figure of Ceres, the Greek goddess of agriculture, also appears on a large centerpiece produced by the New York firm.
Adapted from
Charles L. Venable, Silver in America, 1840-1940: A Century of Splendor (Dallas, Texas: Dallas Museum of Art; New York, New York; Harry N. Abrams, Inc., 1994), 130, 135, 338.
Fun Facts
Archival Resources
Web Resources
Notes
TMS updates - GeoXrefs - business location, place of birth and death, place of origin - JBA (10/23/2017)
I changed the maker from John Bogert (an error) to William Bogert & Co., as listed in the following:
- Charles L. Venable, Silver in America, 1840-1940: A Century of Splendor (Dallas, Texas: Dallas Museum of Art; New York, New York; Harry N. Abrams, Inc., 1994), 135, 338.
- D. Albert Soeffing, "William Bogert and His Family," The Magazine Antiques (July 1996): 100-109.
I updated Provenance, Exhibition History, and Published References.
I added the following as a TMS Text Entry: Charles L. Venable, Silver in America, 1840-1940: A Century of Splendor (Dallas, Texas: Dallas Museum of Art; New York, New York; Harry N. Abrams, Inc., 1994), 338.
Catalogue essays
Artist/designers
Cultures
Geography
Process/materials
Historical periods
Individuals
Subject terms
RELATED OBJECTS
PROVENANCE
Until 1995: The Charles R. Masling and John E. Furen Collection, Houston, Texas [1]
From 1995: Dallas Museum of Art, gift of the above [1]
[1] See Deed of Gift (date March 16, 1995, copy in Collections Records Object File).
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