Furniture Hardware
1820–30
Medium
Gilt brass
Dimensions
Diam. 2 1/2 in. (6.4 cm)
Classification
Furniture hardware
Department
The American Wing
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Gift of Mrs. Edward Hunting Smith, 1968
Accession Number
Inst.68.8.41
Art Historical Context
This elegant set of furniture hardware, crafted by Henry Kellam Hancock between 1820 and 1830, exemplifies the refined decorative arts of early nineteenth-century America. Measuring just two and a half inches in diameter, these gilt-brass pieces—likely drawer pulls or escutcheons—were designed to adorn fine wooden furniture such as chests or desks. The use of gilt brass, a technique that coats brass with a thin layer of gold, allowed makers to achieve the luxurious appearance of solid gold at a more accessible cost, reflecting the period’s blend of elegance and practicality. Housed in the Met...
About the Artist
Henry Kellam Hancock · 1816–1851
Henry Kellam Hancock (1788–1854) was a prominent American cabinetmaker based in Boston, Massachusetts, where he contributed significantly to the city's early nineteenth-century furniture trade. Son of Captain Belcher Hancock and Ann "Nancy" Susan Ackers, he entered the profession as a chairmaker around 1816 and transitioned to cabinetmaking by 1826, maintaining workshops on Orange Street from abou...