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Object Timeline

-0001

1903

  • We acquired this object.

2006

2015

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2025

  • You found it!

Horn and Silver Folding Spoon with Leather Case Spoon

This is a spoon. It is dated ca. 1710 and we acquired it in 1903. Its medium is horn, silver, leather, paper. It is a part of the Product Design and Decorative Arts department.

text from "Manufacturing and Marketing in Europe 1600-2000" in Feeding Desire exhibition catalogue:

" High-style objects, particularly those embellished with porcelain or amber, gilded, or with princely associations, have been treasured for centuries, and predominate in museum collections. Household books describe table etiquette for the elite, their staff, and those aspiring ot be seen as elite (figs. 4-6)."

This object was donated by Samuel P. Avery. It is credited Gift of Samuel P. Avery.

Its dimensions are

L x W x D (Spoon open): 18.2 × 4.5 × 2.4 cm (7 3/16 × 1 3/4 × 15/16 in.) L x W x D (Spoon closed): 105 × 4.5 × 2.1 cm (41 5/16 × 1 3/4 × 13/16 in.) L x W x D (Case top): 6.3 × 5.2 × 2.7 cm (2 1/2 × 2 1/16 × 1 1/16 in.) L x W x D (Case bottom): 8.5 × 5 × 2.4 cm (3 3/8 × 1 15/16 × 15/16 in.)

It has the following markings

Unmarked

Cite this object as

Horn and Silver Folding Spoon with Leather Case Spoon; Germany; horn, silver, leather, paper; L x W x D (Spoon open): 18.2 × 4.5 × 2.4 cm (7 3/16 × 1 3/4 × 15/16 in.) L x W x D (Spoon closed): 105 × 4.5 × 2.1 cm (41 5/16 × 1 3/4 × 13/16 in.) L x W x D (Case top): 6.3 × 5.2 × 2.7 cm (2 1/2 × 2 1/16 × 1 1/16 in.) L x W x D (Case bottom): 8.5 × 5 × 2.4 cm (3 3/8 × 1 15/16 × 15/16 in.); Gift of Samuel P. Avery; 1903-1-39-a/c

This object was previously on display as a part of the exhibitions Plastics and Feeding Desire: Design and the Tools of the Table, 1500-2005.

This image is in the public domain (free of copyright restrictions). You can copy, modify, and distribute this work without contacting the Smithsonian. For more information, visit the Smithsonian’s Terms of Use page.

If you would like to cite this object in a Wikipedia article please use the following template:

<ref name=CH>{{cite web |url=https://www-4.collection.cooperhewitt.org/objects/18135723/ |title=Horn and Silver Folding Spoon with Leather Case Spoon |author=Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum |accessdate=10 February 2025 |publisher=Smithsonian Institution}}</ref>