Tureen
Made by Charles Fox and James Turner (w.1801-1804)
London, England
1802
The graceful lines of the tureen epitomize neoclassical silver styling and imitated the forms of a Greek earthenware vessel, the kylix. One side is engraved with the pheon, the Hyde family crest. George Clarke (1768-1835) may have brought this piece to New York when he moved from England in 1806. It is listed in an inventory of silver at Hyde Hall by his daughter-in-law in 1854.
Cast Iron Stove
Made by Isaiah and John Townsend
Albany, New York
c.1833-1834
George Clarke (1768-1835) purchased this stove on April 9, 1834, for $264.36. The previous summer he paid several craftsmen at the Townsend firm to carve the casting patterns, making this a truly unique stove. On a bill from Townsend, Clarke referred to this piece as “My stove in the hall.”
Drawing Room Window Valances
Hyde Hall, Springfield, New York
Supplied by Pierre L. Morange
Albany, New York
Pierre L. Morange of Albany, New York was hired to design and hang curtains in the drawing and dining rooms at Hyde Hall. He also supplied the gilded valances for both rooms. As Morange was an upholsterer, the valance may have been made by Lawton Annesley (1795-1865) a well-known dealer in picture frames and mirrors in Albany, New York. This set, a pair of tripartite windows in the drawing room, utilizes Greek anthemion, volutes, and acanthus leaf decoration which was in keeping with Grecian furniture acquired at the same time.
Oval windows, Stone House (1817-1819)
Hyde Hall, Springfield, New York
Build by Cyrenus Clark (1777-after 1856)
Oval windows were a favorite decorative motif of the Federal period and particularly the architecture of Philip Hooker (1766-1836). Two pairs of oval windows were supplied to the Stone House section of Hyde Hall: one for a bedroom, the other for the stair hall. They were made by master carpenter Cyrenus Clark (1777- after 1856 ) in late December, 1819.
