Lot Essay
The arms are those of Bartram, as borne by John Bartram (1699-1777) of Philadelphia, first native American botanist (for John Bartram's bookplate bearing these arms, see Charles Knowles Bolton, Bolton's American Armory, 1927, p. 11).
A closely related bowl by Syng, also engraved with arms in a rococo cartouche, is in the collection of the Philadelphia Museum of Art and is illustrated in Morrison H. Heckscher and Leslie Greene Bowman, American Rococo, 1992, fig. 69, p. 108.
There is evidence that John Bartram adopted the Bartram arms after learning of them from George Bartram, a Scottish emigre who came to Philadelphia before 1760. A letter from George Bartram to a Scottish relative John Bartram of Lannarkshire dated March 1, 1760 requests a rendering of the Bartram arms to give to John Bartram of Philadelphia. He writes "I hope you will excuse the liberty I have taken in desireing the favour of you to inclose me a Draft of your Coat of Arms, which you will please to have done in as Nice a manner as possible on paper, as it is for a Gentleman of this place, a Mr. Bartram & his brother residing at North Carolina who are my particular friends and are very anxious to have their Arms, which is not to be had here." (Scottish Record Office). " The arms on the present bowl, then, could be those of John Bartram or George Bartram, who married John Bartram's daughter Ann in 17**. The initials GAB on the bowls in the following lot, which descended together with the Syng bowl, would suggest that all three bowls belonged to George and Ann Bartram at some time.
A closely related bowl by Syng, also engraved with arms in a rococo cartouche, is in the collection of the Philadelphia Museum of Art and is illustrated in Morrison H. Heckscher and Leslie Greene Bowman, American Rococo, 1992, fig. 69, p. 108.
There is evidence that John Bartram adopted the Bartram arms after learning of them from George Bartram, a Scottish emigre who came to Philadelphia before 1760. A letter from George Bartram to a Scottish relative John Bartram of Lannarkshire dated March 1, 1760 requests a rendering of the Bartram arms to give to John Bartram of Philadelphia. He writes "I hope you will excuse the liberty I have taken in desireing the favour of you to inclose me a Draft of your Coat of Arms, which you will please to have done in as Nice a manner as possible on paper, as it is for a Gentleman of this place, a Mr. Bartram & his brother residing at North Carolina who are my particular friends and are very anxious to have their Arms, which is not to be had here." (Scottish Record Office). " The arms on the present bowl, then, could be those of John Bartram or George Bartram, who married John Bartram's daughter Ann in 17**. The initials GAB on the bowls in the following lot, which descended together with the Syng bowl, would suggest that all three bowls belonged to George and Ann Bartram at some time.