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Hope is one of the seven virtues of Christianity and its symbol – a goddess with an anchor – was most commonly used in the Victorian period. Hebrews 6:19 states Which hope we have as an anchor of the soul, both sure and steadfast, and which entereth into that within the veil. The figure usually supports a large anchor, while the opposite arm is raised with the index finger of the hand pointing towards the sky. This symbolizes the pathway to heaven. The other figure depicted on the inkwell may be Hestia, the patron of house, home, family and domestic life, who protects the sanctity of the home. Her attributes include a hearth and flowering branch.
A pen handle (b) with nib is included with the inkstand. It consists of a long, tapered wooden handle, a cork finger rest and a steel nib.
ProvenanceFrom 1964
Reynolda House Museum of American Art, Winston-Salem, NC, acquired in 1964. [1]
Notes:
[1] In the early 1960s Charles H. Babcock (1899-1967) gave the house and its contents to the Mary Reynolds Babcock Foundation. The house was then incorporated as a museum and collection (Reynolda House, Inc.) on December 18, 1964 with the signing of the charter at its first board meeting. The museum first opened to the public in September 1965.
DepartmentHistoric House
Desk Set
Maker
Edward F. Caldwell & Company
[a] (1895 - 1959)
Date1917-1918
Mediumbrass, enamel, gilding, wood, paint, glass
DimensionsOverall: 5 3/4 × 13 1/2 × 9 1/8 in. (14.6 × 34.3 × 23.2 cm)
Credit LineReynolda Estate
CopyrightPublic Domain
Object number1922.2.143a-b
DescriptionThe inkstand (a) in neoclassical style consists of two glass liners inside two gilt-brass inkwells with hinged covers having flower finials. The containers feature two framed ovals each having what appear to be jasperware insets with figures of Greek goddesses, but which are actually metal with figures in relief and enameled white against a sage-green ground. One goddess is Hope with an anchor; the other may be Hestia with altar and flowering branch. Female masks with ribbons are above each framed figure, which are tied together by husk swags. The sides of the inkwells are fluted and incurve gently from a faggot base to hinged covers. Both inkwells are mounted in a black-painted oval wooden base with a narrow band of gilt-brass beading, the whole base raised on a plain, narrow gilt-brass foot. A small gilt-brass container for stamps with a rectangular cover is also embedded in the wooden base. The cover of the small container has neoclassical ornament in relief.Hope is one of the seven virtues of Christianity and its symbol – a goddess with an anchor – was most commonly used in the Victorian period. Hebrews 6:19 states Which hope we have as an anchor of the soul, both sure and steadfast, and which entereth into that within the veil. The figure usually supports a large anchor, while the opposite arm is raised with the index finger of the hand pointing towards the sky. This symbolizes the pathway to heaven. The other figure depicted on the inkwell may be Hestia, the patron of house, home, family and domestic life, who protects the sanctity of the home. Her attributes include a hearth and flowering branch.
A pen handle (b) with nib is included with the inkstand. It consists of a long, tapered wooden handle, a cork finger rest and a steel nib.
ProvenanceFrom 1964
Reynolda House Museum of American Art, Winston-Salem, NC, acquired in 1964. [1]
Notes:
[1] In the early 1960s Charles H. Babcock (1899-1967) gave the house and its contents to the Mary Reynolds Babcock Foundation. The house was then incorporated as a museum and collection (Reynolda House, Inc.) on December 18, 1964 with the signing of the charter at its first board meeting. The museum first opened to the public in September 1965.
Status
On viewcirca 1900
circa 1900