Star Imprinted Tin Bowl

A star imprinted into the surface gives this small tin bowl its single design accent, the handles and stamped motif turning a humble metal object into a considered one. Spratling worked in tin as well as silver, and pieces like this show the same design attention applied to an inexpensive material.

The impressed star is the kind of simple stamped motif that gave Spratling's tinwork its character, ornament struck directly into the metal rather than applied. The handles make the small bowl functional while the star marks it as a designed piece.

As a first-period tin bowl it belongs to the broader metalwork the studio produced beyond precious metal, where stamped pattern and clean form carried the design, and such tin pieces are seen only occasionally.