Nathanael Greene's Silver Presentation Cup, ca. 1780
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GUEST:
This is a silver cup that belonged to Major General Nathanael Greene during the Revolutionary War. It was a gift from his good friend, Lafayette. And it's been in the family. He was my great-great-great- great-grandfather.
APPRAISER:
The story is fantastic, that it's been passed down through the family, there's a direct line of descendants from the original gift to you. We know that it was a gift to Nathanael Greene for a number of reasons, the beginning of which is that his monogram right here on the front, the N.G., and then also it says "N. Greene" on the bottom as well, which is a really wonderful touch. We know it's American silver. You have very generously loaned it to the Telfair Museum in Savannah, Georgia. And they have put it in their catalogue on silver in the South. And it's illustrated in that book. One of the things that we feel may be slightly inaccurate is it's dated as 1790. We believe it dates from around about 1780. The reason I say 1780 is that according to records, Lafayette left in the early part of the 1780s. And he did not return until 1824. And so a date of circa 1780 is appropriate.
GUEST:
Okay.
APPRAISER:
We do not know who made the cup.
GUEST:
Mm-hmm.
APPRAISER:
According to the book it's illustrated in, it's one of a set of six.
GUEST:
It says that.
APPRAISER:
And that this is the only one we know in existence today.
GUEST:
That's correct.
APPRAISER:
If this cup were to come in as just an American silver cup, no provenance, just a great find with no maker, it would be worth about $800. Because of the importance of these two men, and because we have a direct line of descendance from the gift all the way to now, we are 100% sure of that, I would put an insurance value of $25,000 on the cup.
GUEST:
You're kidding. Really?
APPRAISER:
I never kid.
GUEST:
I'm shocked. I am shocked. Ooh. (chuckles)
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