Object Number 1962.0632

Object Name

Porringer

Category

Metals

Credit Line/Donor

Bequest of Henry Francis du Pont

Creator (Role)

Elisha Kirk (Probable maker)
12/25/1757-04/11/1790
Kirk was a watchmaker by trade, but he also worked in pewter. He was one of a few pewterers who cast the handles and bowls of porringers in a single mold; this practice was localized to small areas of Pennsylvania, including Chester and York counties. Furthermore, it seems that this method of manufacture was practiced by men who were engaged in other trades as their primary profession. Kirk was apprenticed to Isaac Jackson in 1774 to become a clockmaker. He became a partner in the business upon the completion of his apprenticeship. After marrying, he moved to York. For more on Elisha Kirk's mark, see C. Jordan Thorn, Handbook of American Silver and Pewter Marks (1949), p.264; Ebert, Collecting American Pewter (1973), p.135; Carl Jacobs, Guide to American Pewter (1957), p.121; Montgomery, History of American Pewter (1973), p.223. See also Laughlin, Pewter in America (1981), vol.2, p.64 and vol.3, p.142-143.

Simon Pennock (Possible maker)

Samuel Pennock (Possible maker)

Place of Origin

Chester, Pennsylvania, Mid-Atlantic, United States, North America

Date

1780-1830

Mark or Signature or Inscription or Label

1. Mark; Topside of handle; "IAB" cast is raised letters.

Materials

Pewter

Techniques

Cast

Dimensions (inches)

2.323 (H) , 7.205 (W) , 5.354 (Diam)

Dimensions (centimeters)

5.9 (H) , 18.3 (W) , 13.6 (Diam)

Object Description

Text available soon.