Communion Set

1786/87

Each of the items in this communion service is engraved with the initials “IHS”—the first three letters of Jesus’s name in Greek—with a cross above the letters and three nails below, all surrounded by rays of light. The set was issued by the British government to James Crawford, governor of Bermuda from 1794 to 1796, for use in the royal chapel there. While in office, Crawford became embroiled in political difficulties and as a result, the service was kept in a London bank. It remained in storage until its sale in 1989, which accounts for its pristine condition.

Medium	silver
Dimensions	Height of flagon: 11 3/4 in. (29.8 cm); base diameter: 6 9/16 in. (16.7 cm) Troy weight: 53 toz (1648.5 g) Height of flagon: 11 3/4 in. (29.8 cm); base diameter: 6 9/16 in. (16.7 cm) Troy weight: 52.25 toz (1648.5 g) Chalice: 10 x 4 13/16 x 4 13/16 in. (25.4 x 12.2 x 12.2 cm) Base diameter: 4 in. (10.2 cm) Troy weight: 25.6 toz (796.3 g) Paten: 3/4 x 8 3/8 x 8 3/8 in. (1.9 x 21.3 x 21.3 cm) Troy weight: 18.4 toz (572.3 g) Alms dish: 3 1/2 x 12 1/16 x 12 1/16 in. (8.9 x 30.6 x 30.6 cm) Base diameter: 4 11/16 in. (11.9 cm) Troy weight: 42.1 toz (1309.5 g)
Object Number	1990.5
Acquisition	Acquired by the Clark, 1990
Status	On View

Image Caption

William Pitts, Communion Set, 1786/87, silver. Clark Art Institute, Acquired by the Clark, 1990.5

Select Bibliography

Timothy Schroder Limited. Timothy Schroder Limited: Fine Silver and Works of Art. Exhibition catalogue. London: Timothy Schroder Limited, 1989. Wees, Beth Carver. English, Irish, and Scottish Silver at the Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute. New York: Hudson Hills Press, 1997. Hugues, Joy. "Royal Bounty: George III's Gifts to the Governors of New South Wales." Australiana 35, no. 2 (May 2013). Shirley, Pippa. "Review of English, Irish and Scottish Silver at the Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute by Beth Carver Wees." The Burlington Magazine 140, no. 1147 (October 1998): 692–93.

Provenance

James Crauford; by descent, sold Sotheby's, London, 4 July 1989, lot 202; with Timothy Schroeder Limited, London; sold to Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute, May 1990.