Customer Reviews

Silver of the Americas, 1600-2000: American Silver in the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston

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This volume is outstanding for its main contribution, which is updating the published information on the American silver collection at the Boston Museum of Fine Arts with pieces acquired since 1972. Particularly useful is the section on modern silver, which includes contemporary works seldom found in the collectors' literature. Less exciting is the space devoted to the well-known works of major firms like Gorham and Tiffany; while these are stunning, and nice to see, they hardly need much analysis for anyone likely to purchase this book. Marks are shown for every piece, along with the standard museum-recording data and descriptive and interpretive text - all very well done.

The title is quite misleading, however; of its 540 pages, only 50 are devoted to Latin American silver, and I don't remember seeing a single piece of Canadian silver. This may well reflect US collectors' interests, but it is not remotely adequate for its claim to represent "the Americas". There are a number of mate cups and bombillas from Argentina, and several pieces from less well documented areas like Guatemala and Paraguay, along with the expected colonial and later silver from Mexico and Peru, but the latter are not very well represented considering their prodigious output. There is no Caribbean work (admittedly very scarce, but if one is going to claim to represent "the Americas"...), and three Spratling pieces are the only examples of contemporary work. Then there's the total absence of Canadian silver, which is mystifying given Boston's proximity to the eastern provinces and the historical connections.

It is a spectacular volume, and one that every serious collector will want to own. I can only hope that the museum is currently currying donors to broaden its collections so that the next volume (before I die?) will be more representative.

Jeannine Falino and Gerald W.R. Ward edit SILVER OF THE AMERICAS, 1600-2000: AMERICAN SILVER IN THE MUSEUM OF FINE ARTS, BOSTON, packing in over 1,000 reproductions in a catalog which updates Kathryn Buhler's 1972 tome. All the American silver to enter the MFA's collection after 1972 are included, making for a powerful presentation packing in nearly 700 objects in over 400 entries. Perfect for dedicated art libraries strong in American jewelry history.