TRUST GRANT AIDS STUDY OF AMERICAN SILVERSMITH

A grant from the Decorative Arts Trust permitted Christina Keyser, a Winterthur Fellow, to travel in search of information about the silversmith Anthony Rasch. In this report, she gives us not only the factual results of her study, but also her insights into the craftsman who was her subject.

Figure 1: Chaudron’s & Rasch Tea and Coffee Set made for the Dallas Family, 1809–1812. Winterthur Museum. Photo Courtesy of DAPC, Winterthur Museum.

Little is known about the life and career of the silversmith, Anthony Rasch (c.1780–1858). I chose to study Rasch after seeing his sauceboats on display at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and exploring Winterthur’s collection of Rasch silver. The research that I conducted this summer would not have been possible without the support and assistance of the Decorative Arts Trust as I followed leads to New Orleans, Massachusetts, New York City, Winston-Salem, and many other private collections and institutions. Current scholarship on silver production has skimmed over the shift from the eighteenth-century silversmith to the nineteenth-century manufacturing firms. After analyzing my research, I believe that Rasch was not a traditional craftsman, but was flexible in his life and business. He was not adept at maneuvering through the changing American economy, but was willing to adjust to the cultural transformations of the American consumer.

Figure 2: Anthony Rasch Ewer, 1820–1835. Ruth J. Nutt Collection. Photo Courtesy of Thomas R. Nutt.

Anthony Rasch was born in Bavaria around 1780, and was a fully trained silversmith by the time he arrived in Philadelphia. Rasch is documented in Philadelphia in 1806, and by 1807 he was employed in the shop of Simon Chaudron (1748–1846), a French emigré, watchmaker, and merchant. While Chaudron continued to operate a store in South Third Street, Rasch lived at and managed the manufactory, located on the west bank of the Schuylkill River. A tea and coffee service owned by the Winterthur Museum, with both the maker’s mark, “CHAUDRON’S & RASCH”, and the mark, “STER•AMERI•MAN•”, or sterling of American manufacture, on each piece, shows the high level of sophistication achieved by the partnership. (Fig. 1) Chaudron and Rasch relied heavily on die-rolled bands of ornament, like the examples seen at the shoulder and base of each piece in this set. The triangular bases, chased swag decoration, and cast ornaments all have their precedents in the designs of Percier and Fontaine, and French goldsmiths like Jean-Baptiste Odiot, which satisfied their customers seeking goods in the “latest fashions.”

Christina poses with a ladle made by Chaudron and Rasch between 1809 and 1812.

After separating from Chaudron in 1812, Rasch worked on his own in Philadelphia creating a wide range of items marked “ANTY. RASCH”. In 1817, Rasch partnered with George Willig, Jr., (c. 1795–c. 1860) and purchased models, rolling mills, and stamps from Europe. A pair of sauceboats at the Metropolitan Museum of Art labeled “A.RASCH & Co./PHILADELPHIA”, with serpentine handles and ram’s head spouts, shows this European influence in their overall design and the quality of their execution. Along with crafting silver in the French taste for his customers, Rasch imported significant amounts of Sheffield plated wares, jewelry, and other fancy goods. But, even this diversification did not prevent him from going insolvent during the Panic of 1819. With his credit decimated, Rasch sought out a new location where he could continue as a craftsman and a merchant.

In 1820, before all the accounts were settled in Philadelphia, Rasch moved to New Orleans where he had business contacts and the support of the Roman Catholic Church. Throughout that decade, he manufactured silver in the same French style as his Philadelphia pieces. A ewer in the Ruth J. Nutt Collection was most likely made during Rasch’s early years in New Orleans. (Fig. 2) Rasch also continued to operate as a merchant, supplying the city of New Orleans with 200 street lamps and glass panes in 1822.

In the 1830s, the rise of large silver manufacturing firms in New Orleans overshadowed Rasch’s small-scale production. He became a fancy goods merchant, traveling to Europe at least every two years to purchase merchandise and keep his lines of credit open. This shift away from silver manufacturing shows that although Rasch was a silversmith, he was more concerned with financial stability and was willing to change in order to satisfy his customers. If he could not provide them with the silver they desired, he would sell other goods.

Figure 3: Christina at Rasch’s burial place, the Layton Family tomb. St. Louis Cemetery #1, New Orleans, LA.

The Panic of 1837 and Rasch’s second insolvency effectively ended his ability to change with the market. Because of bad investments, his lines of credit were cut, and he was forced to rely on his three sons-in-law just to maintain his home and store. He returned to silversmithing, but, still unable to compete with the larger firms, he focused on flatware and used the mark, “A.RASCH.” with a period after the ‘H’. Rasch, by then an elderly gentleman, spent less time crafting silver and volunteered more of his time to the Catholic Church, helping establish the St. Mary’s Orphan Asylum for Boys. Rasch listed himself as a silversmith in the 1850 census, and as a jeweler in the city directories up until 1858, the year he died. His obituary, entitled “Death of an Old Citizen,” venerates a man who “met the trials and vicissitudes of the world with humility and forbearance, and fulfilled the duties of life with rectitude and faithfulness.” He is buried in a tomb in St. Louis Cemetery #I in New Orleans. (Fig. 3)

The years during which Rasch worked were a time of transition in the United States economy and culture. Rasch relied on his personal connections for financial security, but was financially ruined twice by retractions in the new banking system. Rasch’s cultural transition more successfully blended with the cultural shifts of American consumers. Between the American Revolution and the mid-nineteenth century, many Americans struggled to negotiate their adherence to the Republican ideology of the new nation with their reliance on Europe for cultural inspiration. Rasch negotiated this space for them by creating and importing European-styled goods which were sold within the social context of a culturally-aware immigrant utilizing the freedoms and opportunities available only in America.

Christina would like to thank the members of the Trust for their support and encouragement. She is more than happy to discuss her research, and can be reached at Christina.Keyser@gmail.com.