1800 WASHINGTON BRASS FUNERAL URN! RARE MOURNING SYMBOL:EXTREMELY FINE

Description

FEDERALIST BRASS MOURNING URN ORNAMENT
Ca.1800
Strongly believed to have been produced to mourn the death of George Washington
The listed brass ornament, measuring 2 1/2 inches long by 1 3/4 inches wide has a manufacturing
perforation on the reverse for mounting. Plainly this superbly crafted piece was attached to
a furnishing which fostered the mood of mourning befitting the loss of the great President.
It is worth comparing the urn in our listing to the one on the rare 1799 medal in
the collection of Yale University which dates to the very year of Washington's death.
Also, note, on that medal's obverse the wreath surrounding the President's portrait,
and the wreath around our urn.
Here is the brief description in the Yale catalogue:
Artist: Jacob Perkins,
American, 1766–1849
Subject: George Washington, American, 1732–1799,
LL
.D. 1781
Medal of George Washington, Funeral Urn
1799
I add the following which may give a sense of the national depression which produced
a general feeling of  mourning, and which was the context
of so many artworks portraying George Washington.
Edward Kahler states in a William and Mary 2003 Doctoral thesis:
During the national mourning for Washington in 1799-1800, vast numbers of Americans of all classes and
regions, under the aegis of national, state, and local authorities, participated in official activities designed
to mark the passing of the “Father of His Country.” Through such commemorative events, they paid tribute
to Washington, expressed gratitude for his services, and acknowledged and submitted to God’s will in the
death of their beloved and venerated hero. They also pursued secular agendas tied to the circumstances of the time.
The mourning activities were orchestrated to affirm and demonstrate the stability of the new republic, the unity of its
Federalist governing elites, and the consensus of the values upon which the American Republic stood. The memorial
events were also used to advance the claims of specific groups in American society for active roles in civic life
and for leadership of the nation. Clergymen, Freemasons, the Society of the Cincinnati, military officers,
and Federalist political elites all vied for key roles in shaping and directing the national mourning for Washington.
In mourning Washington, Americans at once displayed their sincere sentiments for the man, asserted their attachments
to the republic whose cause he embodied, and showed their eagerness to participate in public life.
GUARANTEE: This beautiful rendition of an authentic Circa 1800 mourning urn is of the period stated
and likely represented the death of the President, although there is no direct attribution possible in the absence of family provenance.