Pattern Category: Places Series: Shell Border, Irregular or Grotto-Shaped Center Object Type: Dinner and Dessert Wares Dimensions: Description:
This bowl is unusual in that it has four image medallions in the border showing views of the center image, a view of Wadsworth Tower in the distance. The
tower is located on Talcott Mountain, overlooking the Connecticut River
Valley and lake. It was built in 1810 by Daniel Wadsworth as part of his
estate, "Monte Video." Hexagonal in shape and 55 feet tall, the tower
became a popular tourist destination, as Wadsworth opened Monte Video to
the public for their use. The tower was blown down in 1840, rebuilt,
and finally burned down. An early focus of the picturesque act of
looking at scenery, the Tower was a popular focus for artists. Wadsworth
himself sketched it for a guidebook/memoir published by his
brother-in-law Benjamin Silliman in 1820. Thomas Cole painted in as one
of a series of scenic canvases commissioned by Wadsworth in 1826-1828.
The well-known local poet Lydia Sigourney penned an ode to it as part of
her 1844 "Scenes in my Native Land." See the almost identical view, including shell border, by Stevenson, as well as Wadsworth Tower #1, with the shell border usually seen.
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