Tongs, Sugar

Object Name:

Tongs, Sugar

Object ID:

2019.043

Creator:

Gilman, John Ward (1741-1823)Silversmith

Place of Origin:

Exeter, NH

Date:

1762-1780

Description:

Sugar scissors or nippers. Made by John Ward Gilman, Exeter, NH, 1770-1790. Silver. Oval finger holes with short scrolls; reversed scrolls to pivot hinge; pinned in center at two circular molded hinge plates; shaped shanks with scroll at end and hollowed shell tips. "IWG" stamped in rectangle on inside of each tip. Rose engraved on surface of each hinge plate. Scrolls engraved on surface of shanks.

Material:

Metal
Silver

Dimensions:

W-1.7 L-4.5 D-0.5 inches Weight-0.9 oz

Provenance:

John Ward Gilman (1741-1823) of Exeter, NH, was one member of a prolific multigenerational family of artisans and metalworkers in late 18th and early 19th-century New Hampshire. Exeter was the seat of state government during the last quarter of the 18th century, which was probably a factor in Gilman achieving distinction as a leader in political affairs, signing a protest against the Stamp Act in 1765, serving as Lieutenant in the New Hampshire Militia fighting the British at Cambridge in 1775, and serving as town postmaster for 40 years. In addition to engraving plates for printing sheet music and illustrations, he made seals, swords, buckles, and spoons from the 1760s through the 1810s. The scissors are from the collection of former New Hampshire Historical Society President Charles H. Batchelder (1876-1948) and were exhibited in The Decorative Arts of New Hampshire, 1725-1825, at the Currier Gallery of Art in 1964.

Purchased by the donor from a collector who bought them at a Bourgeault-Horan auction in Portsmouth, NH, August 18, 2019.

Credit Line:

Richard F. Upton Collection, Gift of William W. Upton

People:

Gilman, John Ward (1741-1823)