Vork met het helmteken Clifford 1806

This silver fork, made by Roelof Helweg, now resides in the Rijksmuseum, but what can it tell us about Dutch society? Consider that the fork, embellished with the Clifford family crest, speaks volumes about status. In a time of increasing trade and colonialism, having silverware engraved with your family crest would have been an overt display of wealth and power. The Clifford family were powerful Amsterdam bankers who facilitated trade for the Dutch East India company and had a vested interest in the maintenance of that institution. As historians, we can look into the Clifford family tree, genealogical records, and financial papers to understand the exact nature of their position within this complex system. An object like this is a potent reminder that even seemingly innocuous domestic items can reveal a complex tapestry of social relations.