William Abdy I
Bread (or Cake) Basket
1783-1784
Physical Qualities
Silver, sterling standard, 10 1/2 x 14 1/2 x 10 in. (26.7 x 36.8 x 25.4 cm.)
Credit Line
Bequest of D. Sterett Gittings
Object Number
1949.66
An elegant silver basket for serving bread or cake bears London marks for 1783 – 1784 on the underside of its handle. Made shortly before Mary Sterett married Richard Gittings, Sr., in Baltimore in 1788, the basket is engraved with the initials “JDS” for Mary’s parents, John Sterett and Deborah Ridgely Sterett. Perhaps it was a wedding present. In any case, the basket descended in the Gittings family until it came to the BMA in 1949. Charles Willson Peale’s portrait of Mary hangs above.
The Baltimore Museum of Art by bequest, 1949; D. Sterett Gittings, MD
Inscribed: Engraved initials: 'JDS', for John and Deborah Sterett of Baltimore, surmounted by the Ridgely crest (Mrs. Sterett was a 'Ridgely').
Markings: Etched on underside: "1783" Stamped on underside of handle: "WA" maker's mark Stamped on top edge: "WA", lion, lion with crown, "h"
