Tankard

Philip Syng Jr.

1730–50 · Silver · The American Wing

Characteristic of Syng’s surviving tankards are the tall domed cover, applied handle drop, and triangular-shaped handle terminal evident here. Although the initials, G over S * E, engraved on the handle are contemporary with the tankard’s date of manufacture, the identity of the original owners is unknown. The underside of the tankard is nicely engraved with the original scratch weight of 34 troy ounces, 17 pennyweights, and 12 grains. This feature, which is routine on early English silver, is far less common on American examples. This tankard is one of several outstanding pieces of early American silver bequeathed to the Metropolitan Museum by Scientific American editor and publisher Charles Allen Munn (1859–1924).

Artist

Philip Syng Jr.

Date

1730–50

Medium

Silver

Culture

American

Department

The American Wing

Credit line

Bequest of Charles Allen Munn, 1924