Dish ring 1777

Editor: This gleaming silver dish ring, created around 1777, screams elegance. You'll find it over at the Met. Looking at its intricate details, the delicate piercings in the metal, what catches your eye? Curator: Well, firstly, let's consider function. It’s a very stylish solution to a common 18th-century problem! Hot dishes placed on a dining table could damage the wood finish, so this elevated the dish. But beyond mere practicality, this object feels almost… theatrical. The Neoclassical details, the almost austere profile surrounded by airy ornamentation—do you notice how it manages to be both imposing and delicate? I feel like it could play a leading role in a lavish period drama, or perhaps sit perched elegantly on Marie Antoinette's table. Editor: Definitely! It makes me wonder who was sitting at that table. Were these little faces and garlands trying to communicate something about the owner's taste or status? Curator: Precisely! Every element tells a story. The classical heads, for instance, connect the owner to a world of erudition, of cultivated taste. Silverware in general shows prosperity and refinement. You can almost see a powdered wig bobbing above it, hear the polite clinking of cutlery... do you get those sensory associations too? Editor: Absolutely! It’s like a whisper from the past. It definitely makes you look at something as simple as a "dish ring" differently. Curator: It does, doesn't it? The object becomes so much more alive when you approach it that way, filled with a quiet yet fascinating narrative.