Nut pick

1855

Place madeNew York, New York, United States, North America

Silver

Overall: 5 × 1/2 × 1/4 in., 9.6 dwt (12.7 × 1.3 × 0.6 cm, 15 g)

Gift of the Honorable Perry Belmont

1936.331

On December 28, 1855, the Chamber of Commerce and Merchants of New York presented Commodore Matthew Calbraith perry with a 381-piece silver dinner service in acknowledgement of his successful negotiation of a treaty with Japan in 1854. In the letter of presentation the committee remarked, "To have brought this secluded Empire, into the intercourse of nations; is an achievement which may justly be ranked, among the greatest events of the age..."

Markingsengraved: on the undersides of the handles: the Perry family crest, an anchor on fess below a hind's head stamped: on the undersides of the stems: "W G & S" in roman letters

ClassificationsSILVER

DescriptionOne of thirty-five silver nut picks with downturned wavy-end handles with foliate decoration; pointed triangular picks with leaf decoration on the undersides; handles engraved with the Perry family crest, an anchor on fess below a hind's head; makers' marks stamped on the undersides of the stems.

Object NameNut pick