Images(2)

Beaker

Date1811-1812

Marked by Charles Alexander Burnett (1769 - 1849)

OriginAmerica, District of Columbia, Washington, Georgetown

MediumSilver

DimensionsH: 3 1/8"; Diam: 3"; Diam (base): 2 5/8"

Credit LineGift of Dr. and Mrs. Joel Mattison

Object number1978-8

DescriptionStraight-sided silver beaker with drawn, stepped bands at the rim and base.
Label TextBeginning in the 1780s, small, handleless, straight-sided silver beakers became popular drinking vessels in America. The form initially was adopted throughout the young nation, but it was most strongly embraced in the American South, where it persists even today as the “julep cup.” This example was made in the shop of Charles Alexander Burnett, who produced silver in the District of Columbia for the citizens of our new seat of government. Burnett’s mark appears on a wide array of forms, including table- and teawares of all kinds.
Inscribed"M" in feathered script on the side (possibly for Anna Maria Mason [1776-1859])
MarkingsStamped on bottom in relief "C·A·BURNETT" within a rectangle
ProvenanceDr. and Mrs. Joel Mattison