Pa. German Stove Plate c. 1937

Roy Weber created this Pa. German Stove Plate at an unknown date, employing iron. The plate’s solid materiality speaks volumes. Imagine the heat it could withstand, radiating warmth in a Pennsylvania German home. Iron production itself has a rich social history. This piece likely began with the labor of miners extracting ore, then foundry workers smelting and casting the metal. The design, picturing figures and text, would have been carefully impressed into a sand mold to be cast into the plate. This wasn't just decoration; it was a functional element reflecting the cultural identity of the community. The choice of iron signifies more than just practicality; it also embodies the strength and resilience of the people who relied on these stoves, whose labor was poured into the ground to extract the raw materials to forge the plates. By considering materials and making, we recognize that the stove plate is more than just a utilitarian object; it's a cultural artifact, imbued with the spirit of industry and tradition.