Sleeve Button 1767 - 1792

These sleeve buttons were made in America by Daniel Rogers, sometime in the late 18th century. Even a seemingly minor object like this can tell us a lot about the history of commerce and class in the early United States. The buttons’ delicate, decorated surface speaks to the rise of a wealthy merchant class with the money and taste to demand fine goods, including ones that served only a decorative function. But the buttons also suggest the existence of a skilled artisan class in America, able to provide those goods for the wealthy to purchase. We can see in these buttons the seeds of a new, distinctly American social hierarchy being formed. To understand it better, we might research account books from the time or browse digitized newspapers, considering the market for luxury goods in the young republic. The social life of art is always waiting to be discovered.