Souvenir spoon: Columbian Exposition
Providence, Rhode Island
Patented 1891
Maker
Tilden-Thurber & Co. (1880-1892)
Measurements
5-7/8 in x 1-1/4 in x 3/4 in
Materials
Silver
Credit Line
Historic Odessa Foundation, The David Wilson Mansion, Inc.
Accession Number
1971.1174
Inscription
“COLUMBIAN EXPOSITION” is in relief down the face of the handle. “COLUMBUS / 1492” is in relief at the tip of the bowl.
“TILDEN,THURBER & CO.STERLING .” is in relief along the back of the handle with an unidentified touchmark near the bowl. “PAT.91.” is stamped into the handle.
Provenance
Ex coll. Mrs. E. Tatnall (Mary Corbit) Warner
Comments
The souvenir spoon was patented in 1891 although the exposition did not open until 1893. The spoon bears imagery related to Christopher Columbus. The tip of the handle features his portrait, and the bowl depicts him commanding four crew members, perhaps as the Santa Maria is landing. The back of the handle shows the ship above an anchor.
The spoon is referenced and discussed in Anton Hardt, Souvenir Spoons of the 90’s: As Pictured and Described in “The Jewelers’ Circular” & The James Catalogue in 1891 (New York: the author, 1962), p. 229, accompanied by two images and biographical text about Columbus.
The Tilden-Thurber & Co. changed its name to Tilden-Thurber Corp. in 1892. It ceased manufacturing about 1980. The 1895 building survives in Providence.
Bibliography
Accumulation & Display: Mass Marketing Household Goods in America, 1880-1920 (The Henry Francis du Pont Winterthur Museum, 1986), no. 162, p. 130.
