Olive Jordan Smith and Unidentified

Tea Chest

Chest: c. 1740; Cannisters and spoon: c.1700-1720

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Decorator: Olive Jordan Smith
Workshop: Unidentified

Tea Chest

Chest: c. 1740; Cannisters and spoon: c.1700-1720

Physical Qualities Lacquered découpage, wood, pewter, silver alloy, Part B with lid: 4 3/8 x 3 3/4 x 2 1/4 in. (11.1 x 9.5 x 5.7 cm) Lid: 2 x 2 x 1/2 in. (5.1 x 5.1 x 1.3 cm) Part C with lid: 4 1/2 x 3 3/4 x 2 1/4 in. (11.4 x 9.5 x 5.7 cm) Lid: 2 x 2 x 5/8 in. (5.1 x 5.1 x 1.6 cm) Part D: 4 1/4 x 4 x 2 3/8 in. (10.8 x 10.2 x 6 cm) Part D lid open: 4 x 7 1/4 x 2 3/8 in. (10.2 x 18.4 x 6 cm) Part E: 7 1/4 x 3/4 x 1 in. (18.4 x 1.9 x 2.5 cm)

Credit Line Purchased as the gift of Mr. and Mrs. Francis C. Taliaferro in Memory of Mr. and Mrs. Austin McLanahan

Object Number 1970.37.1

This colonial American tea chest is decorated with cut-and-pasted prints of popular images from the 18th-century British empire, including an idyllic English countryside, busy tropical shorelines, and angels, birds, and insects. These prints were likely applied by Olive Jordan Smith, wife of Reverend Thomas Smith (1703–1795). A prominent preacher and property investor, Reverend Smith also coordinated ruthless attacks on Indigenous Wabanaki communities in present-day Maine. A print inside the chest lid shows a rider hunting wild animals with a bow and arrow. This image characterizes the violent tactics English colonists used to expand territory during the 18th century.

Baltimore Museum of Art by gift, 1970; Mrs. F.S. Dane; Rev. Thomas Smith, Portland, ME