Chicago World’s Fair of 1893: The Diana Tray, An American Parcel-Gilt Silver and Enamel Dish, Designed by William Christmas Codman for Gorham Mfg. Co., New York and Providence, RI, 1893

William Codman [Jr.], The Illustrated History of Silverware Design, Providence: The Gorham Company, 1930, p. 74, illus.

William Codman’s historicist designs and the firm’s sophisticated enamel work were two of the highlights of Gorham’s display at the 1893 Columbian Exposition in Chicago. They won 47 awards, more than any other exhibitor (and more than Tiffany), including two specifically for enameled silver items like this one.

This piece was considered important enough that Codman’s son included it in his Illustrated History of Silverware Design almost 40 years after it was first created. The enamels were painted under the direction of Count Gyula de Festetics in Gorham’s New York workshop. It was noted that his “designs are executed by young women, mostly American, chosen for their artistic tendencies” – a rare female outpost in the masculine world of a silver factory, and a group for whom the story of Diana, the chaste goddess of night, the moon, and childbirth, may have particularly resonated.

A similar Gorham enameled tray from 1893, "The Dancers", also just over 18 in. was recently with dealers Spencer-Marks. They note that piece required 75 hours to form in silver, 210 hours to chase the ornament, and an incredible further 240 hours to enamel - over three months of work by Gorham's skilled craftsmen.