Tray

This pitcher and accompanying tray were awarded to Samuel R. Platt’s schooner, Montauk, in honor of its victory at the inaugural Goelet Cup race in 1882. Held off Newport, Rhode Island, during the New York Yacht Club’s summer cruise, the race was open to schooners and sloops. New York businessman, real estate scion, and avid yachtsman Ogden Goelet (1851-1897) funded the prizes, a $1,000 cup for the winning schooner and a $500 cup for the victorious sloop. The dynamic and fanciful design of this schooner prize, which incorporates a mermaid, a dolphin, mermaid heads, seahorses, seaweed, and brightly enameled accents of conventionalized floral motifs, is a testament to Charles Osborne’s consummate skill and highly original artistic vision. In its April, 1883 issue, The Art Amateur published an illustration of the pitcher and tray, of which they wrote, "In beauty of outline, grace of composition and delicacy of fancy, we do not think that it has been excelled in this country. The originality of the design is one of its greatest charms. We congratulate Mr. Platt on possessing such a genuine work of art, admirably conceived by an American designer."