Pewter Coffee Urn c. 1936

This is Philip Johnson's pewter coffee urn, a vessel embodying both utility and classical aspiration. Here, the urn form, with its curved body and handles, evokes ancient amphorae, vessels used for wine and oil, symbols of sustenance and civilization. These forms echo through time, appearing in Renaissance paintings and neoclassical sculptures. The urn's spout, rendered in contrasting metal, reminds us of the cornucopia, overflowing with nature's bounty. Yet, here, it dispenses not ambrosia but coffee, the elixir of modernity. We find ourselves drawn to the warmth implied by this object. The ritual of coffee-making, like ancient libations, offers a moment of pause. The cyclical nature of such rituals reminds us that the symbols of the past are never truly gone. They resurface, evolve, and take on new meanings in different contexts, forever entwined with our collective memory.