Accession Number

2009.003.001.004

Description

Part of an assembled 13 piece dresser set, this clothes brush is part of four matching Gorham sterling silver pieces with ornate repousseed and embossed decoration in the French taste, the cartouche on the centre back monogrammed with 'LMD' (for Laura Miller Dunsmuir), one repouseed cherub above and below the cartouche.

Narrative

This mirror is part of a fine 13-piece silver dresser set assembled and owned by Laura Miller Dunsmuir (nee Surles). The set is unusually large and of very high quality. A Canadian woman of Mrs. Dunsmuir's wealth and social status during the Victorian and Edwardian eras would typically have had a dresser set similar to this one. 

History of Use

This brush is part of a fine 13-piece silver dresser set assembled and owned by Laura Miller Dunsmuir (nee Surles). She used it at her house Burleith, at Government House while her husband James served as Lieutenant Governor of British Columbia, and at her residence Hatley Park. After her death, it was passed down through her descendents until acquired by The Castle Society.

Date

1900 – 1910

Dimensions

17.5 x 3.5 cm

Material

Metal, silver; Bristle

Technique

Repoussed; Engraved; Embossed

School/Style

rococo revival

Inscription

LMD (for Laura Miller Dunsmuir)

Country of Origin

United States of America