Chafing Dish

Peter Van Dyck

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

Originally a continental form, the silver chafing dish appeared in England by the fifteenth century. These vessels were more frequently made in copper, brass, iron, or pewter than in silver. Consisting of a pierced bowl with a removable grate, three scrolled knops to support a plate or bowl, and a wood baluster-form handle, the standard eighteenth-century model was fueled by hot coals. The initials “S” over “I S” engraved beneath this chafing dish are those of the original owners, John Schuyler (1705–1773) and his first wife, Sara Walter (1704–1734), who were married on January 20, 1729.

The American Wing

An exhibit at Metropolitan Museum of Art

The American Wing's ever-evolving collection comprises some 20,000 works of art by African American, Euro American, Latin American, and Native American men and women. Ranging from the colonial to early-modern periods, the holdings include painting, sculpture, works on paper, and decorative arts—including furniture, textiles, ceramics, glass, silver, metalwork, jewelry, basketry, quill and bead embroidery—as well as historical interiors and architectural fragments.

Metropolitan Museum of Art