449. An Important New Orleans Ursuline Convent Coin Silver Soup Ladle, c. 18201830, Anthony Rasch (1778-1858), wc. Philadelphia 1801-1820, New Orleans 1820-1858; marked “A.RASCH.” in rectangle, fiddle typt handle with square shoulders, engraved on reverse “S.U/PEN”, length 13 1/2 in., weight 7.6 troy ozs. $4000/6000 Provenance: A New Orleans Gentleman; exhibited “A Visible Presence, A Legacy of Service: 275 Years of the Ursulines”, The Historic New Orleans Collection, May 2003. Note: In February 1727, a handful of Ursuline nuns from Rouen came to New Orleans with the mission of nursing the sick and educating young women. By the time their first convent was completed in 1734, the sisters’ responsibilities had expanded to include care of orphans and “women and girls of bad life”, whose presence in the small community had become a burden. The Ursuline Convent, presently standing on Ursuline Street, is the second on the site and was completed in 1753. It is the only structure in New Orleans to have survived from the French Colonial city. When Louisiana became part of the United States in 1803, the Ursulines feared for their property and wrote to President Jefferson for assurances, which they received, that their property and means for carrying on their works of charity would be secure. However, a dispute over a portion of the convent property developed, and in 1824 the nuns were obliged to make a land swap with the United States. After occupying their home for nearly a century, the nuns decided to build a new convent about two miles down river and eventually sold much of their French Quarter property to defray the cost of construction. Nothing is left of what was apparently a handsome collection of early Greek Revival buildings—the site of the second convent complex now lies under the Industrial Canal. It was probably in these buildings that this Rasch ladle was used, most likely by one of the more wealthy nuns, who all were required to supply their own silver and linens at the time they entered the convent. A dessert spoon made by Anthony Rasch for the Sisters of the Ursuline convent and engraved “SU/PEN” sold in these rooms April 8, 2000, lot 273. 450. An Important New Orleans Ursuline Convent Coin Silver Ragout Spoon, c. 1820-1830, “ghost” of rectangular mark, possibly Rasch, fiddle handle with square shoulders, engraved on reverse “SU/PEN”, length 11 1/8 in., weight 3.65 troy ozs. $1500/2500 Provenance: A New Orleans Gentleman
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451. A New Orleans Coin Silver Beaker, Jean P. Bellanger, wc. 18101827, marked “Bellanger” in rectangle, double struck, seamed construction with applied moldings, engraved in script “T. Frazer”, height 3 3/8 in., weight 4.05 troy ozs. $1000/1500
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Reference: Crescent City Silver, p. 118, mark illustrated p. 125; Mackie, Carey Turner et al. New Orleans Silversmiths, Goldsmiths, Jewelers, Clock and Watchmakers 1720-1870. p. 12.
452. A New Orleans Coin Silver Beaker, Jean-Marie Lamothe (b. Sainte-Domingue 1795, d. New Orleans 1880) and Jean-Baptiste Lamothe (b. Sainte-Domingue 1800, d. New Orleans 1874) wc. 18241846, marked “Lamothe” in conforming cartouche, triple struck, seamed construction with applied molded rims, engraved in script “A. Hoa”, height 3 1/4 in., weight 3.25 troy ozs. $1000/2000 Note: The Lamothe brothers were members of the largest family of silversmiths in 19th century New Orleans, which included their father, master silversmith Pierre Lamothe, 452 their maternal grandfather Jean Couvertie, uncles Jean-Baptiste and Louis-Gabriel Couvertie, as well as cousins. The family fled their home in Sainte-Domingue during the slave uprising, going to Santiago de Cuba in about 1803. They came to New Orleans in 1810 when the French were expelled from Cuba. Jean-Marie Lamothe served as sergeant in Plauche’s Battalion, Louisiana Militia, during the Battle of New Orleans. Reference: Crescent City Silver, pp. 68-73, closely related beakers illustrated pp.72 and 73, mark illustrated p. 126; Mackie, Carey Turner et al. New Orleans Silversmiths, Goldsmiths, Jewelers, Clock and Watchmakers 1720-1870, pp. 100-101.
Exhibited: “A Visible Presence, A Legacy of Service: 275 Years of the Ursulines”, The Historic New Orleans Collection, May 2003. W denotes the lot is illustrated at www.nealauction.com
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