Accession Number

2020.008.007

Alternate Name

tray

Description

A circular silver-plated and mirrored combination table plateau and serving tray, the outer rim of the tray forming a raised base with four feet to support the brilliant-cut bordered mirror, the floor of the tray side covered in reptile hide, stamped into metal inner ring on the tray side: “THE J.D. BERGEN Co. Quadruple plate 2871 14”.

Narrative

This tray/plateau’s long history within the Dunsmuir/Bryden family makes it a highly desirable object in The Castle Society’s Primary Collection.

History of Use

This table plateau/tray was acquired by John William Bryden (1869-1953) and his wife Ellen Gertrude Tarbell (1882-1964) sometime after 1899 and used at their house on Gartley Beach at Royston, Vancouver Island, B.C. After their deaths, it was used by their son, Gerald Robert Bryden at his house in Royston, and then donated by his daughter to Craigdarroch Castle in 2020. She used it as a base for her wedding cake, as did her sister, and previous generations of Bryden women.

The plateau might have been given by Mary Jean Dunsmuir to Mr. and Mrs. John William Bryden on the occasion of their marriage on Thursday, June 1, 1905. ¹

1. The Cumberland News, July 5, 1905

Date

circa 1900

Material

Leather, hide; Metal, alloy; Metal, silver; Glass

Technique

Electroplated; Machined; Engraved

Country of Origin

United States of America