“The Patriot and Soldier. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant” Commemorative Glass Bowl, circa 1885 (clear)

Presented is a commemorative glass bowl for President Ulysses S. Grant, circa 1885. At the center of this glass bowl is a head and shoulders portrait of Grant. The bowl is stamped "The Patriot and Soldier/ Gen. Ulysses S. Grant” along the top and bottom outer rim. The bowl has a delicate scalloped border. The bowl is made of yellow Uranium vaseline glass. It is unmarked, but similar round scalloped and square variant patterns have been attributed to Bryce, Higbee & Co. of Pittsburgh, PA and Jeanette Glass Company, of Jeanette, PA. 

Pressed glassware depicting a president was “successful because companies created and marketed their wares at two key times: during a presidential campaign or election year, and when a president died. Campaigns, elections, and funerals were events that brought people together and glass was a way to memorialize the event and give the parlor room in the home a place in venerating America’s national heroes” (Grimminger, 2018). These objects served to elevate everyday items, like bread plates and glasses, into "reliquary" status, allowing citizens to feel a closer connection to a leader in the immediate aftermath of their death.

CONDITION:

Fine condition. Pressed glass bowl, with scalloped border. No chips or scratches. Clear glass. 

Dimensions: 9 3/8" Dia. x 1 3/4" H.

REFERENCES: 

Grimminger, Daniel Jay, Ph.D. “Presidential Glass.” Journal of Antiques & Collectibles, July 21, 2018.

Marsh, Tracy H. The American Story Recorded in Glass: Chronologically Arranged. Minneapolis: Tracy H. Marsh, 1962. pp. 227–228.