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Gorham Manufacturing Company, Providence, Rhode Island, Ice Bowl and Spoon, designed 1870, this example 1872

The Baltimore Museum of Art: Purchased as the gift of the Friends of the American Wing in Honor of their 40th Anniversary, BMA 2010.16.1-2

Commemorating their 40th anniversary in 2010, the Friends of the American Wing presented this resplendent work of art to the Museum. The pieces were designed in 1870, shortly after the controversial purchase of Alaska for $7.2 million in 1867. Publicity over the Alaska purchase and the Victorian taste for cold drinks inspired Gorham’s extravagant iceberg-shaped bowl and spoon adorned with polar bears. With its geographical theme, the bowl expresses America’s global ambitions, both political and economic.