I've treasured it, and polished it occasionally, and maybe used it once. That was one very good punch that I served at a party for University of Hartford Art School students and staff in Windsor, CT. Or maybe it was that party for friends in Tallahassee, FL...good parties have that problem, the next day you forget exactly what you were drinking.
But I can only find one ancestor with these initials, Mary Catherine Gainer. And they were her initials after her second marriage. Would an antebellum woman (who already had children) have received a punch ladle on a second marriage?
I have no idea. So I keep looking for other women who married into a "G" family in my tree.
And I cannot yet figure out the manufacturer. Here's the stamp in the handle on the back.
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| Stamp on back of punch ladle "MCG" monogram |
But when I browsed on line for maker's marks and names, nobody seems to have these initials. I don't even know if it's sterling, since there isn't a stamp saying so.
So perhaps this ladle belonged to some ancestress who served some mean eggnog. I tend to think so, because of the way my grandmother gave it to me. She didn't know whose it had been, and as a teetotaler, seemed embarrassed to have it.
I'm thinking it is initials for someone. I have some silver napkin holders that my grandparents made for us, with each one having our name own name on it. Something that I've also seen in very wealthy families where they even print their names on the underside of fine china! It is a very lovely piece, what a treasure to own, and perhaps someday you'll discover the whole story.
ReplyDeleteWell, the challenge for me now is to find a punch bowl large enough to use this ladle again...as well as to determine who had it monogrammed. I only put my initials on my silverware box, and did a silly thing using my middle initial rather than maiden name. But then I was divorced, so I went back to my maiden name eventually anyway.
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