Copper Cruet 1937

This copper cruet was made by Edward Jewett; we don’t know exactly when. The warm, reddish tone of the metal is immediately appealing, but it’s the texture that really grabs you. See how the surface is covered with countless tiny hammer marks? That effect wasn’t achieved by accident. Copper is a relatively soft material, easy to shape, but it does require a lot of coaxing. Each of those hammer blows would have been carefully placed, gradually working the metal into its final form. The handle, too, would have been shaped and then attached with rivets. This kind of hand-wrought texture was popular at a time when industrial production was becoming dominant. The Arts and Crafts movement, which flourished in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, valued honest materials and the mark of the maker’s hand. This cruet is a testament to that ethos, a celebration of skilled labor and the beauty of simple, functional design. Recognizing the labor involved in the creation of an artwork like this helps us to better understand the context of its creation, beyond any traditional hierarchy of art.