Set of Hinges

Date1760-1800 (possibly)

OriginAmerica, Pennsylvania, Northeastern

MediumWrought iron

DimensionsOverall (each): 14 3/4 x 7 1/2 x 1 1/4in. (37.5 x 19.1 x 3.2cm)

Credit LineGift of James C. Sorber

Object number1977.808.1,2

DescriptionOne in a set of two wrought iron hinges, known as the ram's horn (i.e."Staghorn" or "Buckhorn") type, pintle-supported. The knuckles are plain adn undecorated; the straps run out from the knuckles in nearly straight lines, flaring outwards only slightly with champfered edges; at 1 5/8" from the knuckles, the straps form bulbous bases, as tulip bulbs; each bulb hten splits, each half forming an elaborate cyma curve; inside each cyma, next to the bulb, a G-scroll branches off, its termination flattened at right angles to the main body of the hinge.
The termination of each cyma curve is similarly flattened. Twice on the cyma curve and once on the G-scroll within it, appears a foliate notch. At the outermost edge of each cyma curve appears a bud-like form. All edges and nal or screw holes are champfered.

Label TextOften described as “ram’s horn,” “staghorn,” or “buckhorn” in modern jargon, scrolling wrought iron hinges are indelibly linked with Germanic settlers of eighteenth-century Pennsylvania. Hinges of this general shape can vary greatly from simple designs to more ornate forms; the large size of these examples suggests they probably were used on an exterior door. Notable for beautifully illustrating the decorative possibilities of wrought iron, their finely executed scrolls, deftly filed beveled edges, uniformity of thickness, and precise shaping are exceptional.
ProvenanceBurt Guest, Chadds Ford, Penn.; Donald Streeter, Iona, N. J. ; gift of James C. Sorber, West Chester, Penn.