Table Spoon 1780 - 1790

This silver tablespoon was crafted by Benjamin Halsted in New York, sometime in the late 18th century. Halsted was a silversmith working in a bustling city marked by the complex intersections of wealth, labor, and identity in colonial America. Consider the lives intertwined in this single object: the silversmith, likely a man of some standing in the community, and the laborers, including enslaved people, who mined and processed the silver. The spoon bears an engraved monogram, signaling ownership and status. This seemingly simple utensil speaks volumes about the era's social stratification, where access to finely crafted goods was a marker of privilege. Imagine holding this spoon, feeling its weight, and knowing it once touched the lips of someone whose life was vastly different from those who made its creation possible. It’s a poignant reminder of the distances, both social and material, that underpin our history.