Sugar Bowl 1807 - 1810

This sugar bowl, crafted in the late 18th or early 19th century by Garret Forbes, is an elegant example of early American silverwork. In this period, sugar was an expensive commodity, and owning a piece like this indicated wealth and status. Consider how the consumption of sugar in the West was deeply entangled with the brutal realities of the transatlantic slave trade. Sugar plantations in the Caribbean and Americas relied on the forced labor of enslaved Africans. As you look closer, reflect on the hidden histories embedded in such a seemingly innocuous object. This silver sugar bowl tells a complex story of luxury and labor, and invites us to think critically about the origins and consequences of our desires.