Description:

Abraham Lincoln
Washington, D.C., Ca. 1865
Lincoln's White House "Buff" China Service, Ordered by Mary After Re-Election. Did Lincoln Enjoy His Last Meal with this Set?
Tableware
A dinner plate from the ‘buff' china service set ordered by First Lady Mary Todd Lincoln from J. K. Kerr of Philadelphia, whose shop was known as China House. The plate features a buff band within gold gilt borders around the rim and a gilt circle in the center. It remains in fine condition with light wear to the gilt decoration. Accompanied by paperwork concerning the history of this piece, including a photocopy of a notarized letter from the great-granddaughter of the original purchaser of the set, and photocopies of letters from both the White House and Smithsonian Institution accepting donations of other pieces from the set. The plate measures 9.5" in diameter.

Mary Todd Lincoln commissioned this set of presidential china for the beginning of Abraham Lincoln's second term, with records showing it was billed to the White House on January 30, 1865, described as, ‘One extra large French China Dining, Dessert and Coffee Service decorated on a white ground delicate Buff border with burnished Gold Lines.'

The National Archives records the primary delivery on February 13, 1865. Could this very plate have graced the table during one of President Lincoln and Mary Todd's final dinners together? Perhaps it bore witness to a quiet moment between the couple, or maybe it was present as Lincoln and his cabinet toasted the nearing end of the Civil War. If only this plate could speak, what remarkable stories of triumph, hope, and somber reflection might it reveal from within the walls of the Lincoln White House?

After Lincoln's assassination, Andrew Johnson, who reportedly did not favor the set, was left to settle the bill, with payments recorded in August 1865 and February 1866. Johnson's administration instead replenished the ‘solferino' china from Lincoln's first term. When President Chester A. Arthur redecorated the White House in 1881, remnants of three china services were placed in storage and later sold in a public auction. This plate was part of the set purchased by Sylvanus Wilson Hall at an auction in Philadelphia in the 1880s.

This item comes with a Certificate from John Reznikoff, a premier authenticator for both major 3rd party authentication services, PSA and JSA (James Spence Authentications), as well as numerous auction houses.

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  • Provenance: Copies of letters from WH and Smithsonian.
  • Dimensions: 9.5" in diameter
  • Medium: Tableware

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October 30, 2024 10:00 AM EDT
Wilton, CT, US

University Archives

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