Medallion pattern
Metals
Ball, Black & Company (Retailer)
John Rudolph Wendt (Designer and maker)
New York, New York, United States, North America
1862-1871
Silver
Stamped
2022.0010
Object Number2022.0010 |
Spoon (Teaspoon)
Medallion pattern
Metals
Gift of Charles J. Robertson III
Ball, Black & Company (Retailer)
John Rudolph Wendt (Designer and maker)
1826-1907
New York, New York, United States, North America
After 1859 Ball, Black & Company's building was at 565-567 Broadway at the corner with Prince's Street in Manhattan.
1862-1871
1. Mark; Handle, underside; "BALL BLACK && CO" stamped incuse
2. Mark; Handle, underside; "STERLING" stamped incuse
3. Mark; Handle, underside; "PATENT / 1862" in rectangle
Classical
Silver
Stamped
6 (L)
15.24 (L)
The name of the designer and maker of this influential spoon handle is absent from the silver itself, but John R. Wendt’s oval medallion with volutes and a rosette was the origin of an enduringly popular American silver pattern. The teaspoon’s handle tip features what Wendt called an “antique medal” (profile of a man’s head in a Phrygian cap) that most closely resembles his patent drawing dated May 13, 1862. This bust of Attis or Ganymede is uncommon, as Wendt’s workshop rapidly incorporated different profiles from antiquity while producing silver for several retailers in New York and Philadelphia. Within two years competing silver manufacturers began creating diverse and elegant variations on Wendt’s theme. Medallion ornaments on silver flatware and hollowware appealed to consumers with classically oriented tastes well into the 20th century.
[Book] Venable, Charles L. 1994 Silver in America 1840-1940 A Century of Splendor.
• Biography: pp. 323 and "Rogers" p. 321.
[Book] Soeffing, Donald Albert. 1988 Silver Medallion Flatware.
• Biography pp. 76-78; Patent p. 98-99
[Article] Cramer, Diana. 1992 John R. Wendt of Boston and New York. Silver Magazine. (May-June): 12-13.
• Alternate marks, p. 13