This linen napkin has a history of service to the U.S. consul to the Azores. United States diplomatic relations with Portugal and Great Britain were managed on Faial Island by three generations of the Dabney family. Charles William Dabney succeeded his father, John Bass Dabney, as U.S. consul in 1826, and this napkin may be from a set of table linens purchased around that time. The makers, Coulson’s Manufactory in northeastern Ireland, were a multi-generational business. Their famous linen damask weavers attracted patronage throughout the Atlantic world.

Napkin featuring the Great Seal of the United States of America, Coulson's Manufactory, Lisburn, Ireland, 1818-26, linen, damask weave, Gift of Sally Dabney Parker 2003.0035

This porcelain butter dish was intended to be interpreted as a symbol of imported luxury and social refinement rather than a complex geopolitical statement. It was made to order in China and decorated with the arms of a Dutch family that held land in central Ireland. The land and the title of Earl were awarded to an ancestor who served as a general in King William’s forces, notably the Battle of the Boyne in 1690. Following that battle, ennobled Protestant and non-Irish-born landholders participated in the genteel, aristocratic Irish culture advanced by Georgian politics, which disenfranchised citizens of the Catholic faith.

Dish and Cover, decorated with the arms of Frederick Christian Ginkel, 5th Earl of Athlone, Jingdezhen, China, 1775-85, porcelain (hard paste), Bequest of Henry Francis du Pont 1963.0767

Reflecting light in times of darkness, even without candles, this chandelier was suspended in the chapel of a small Dominican convent just outside Galway’s town walls. The donors were two nuns who were also sisters from a prosperous local family. An engraved dedication records the memory of their brother, John Lynch, who died in France likely after seeking refuge during the reign of Britain’s Protestant rulers William and Mary.

Silver is a precious metal, and the maker maximized his resources by using thin, hammered branches connected to hollow, central spheres instead of heavier cast elements. The fixture may have first illuminated the Lynch home, but by 1742 it served the convent and remained there through generations of religious turbulence until 1893. Decades later, Winterthur’s founder, Henry Francis du Pont, purchased the chandelier, recognizing its remarkable historic origins and artistic rarity.

Inscribed: ~ Pray for ye Soule of mr Jno Lynch of Burdeux who Dyed ye 4 of 8ber 1737 Pray also for his wife & posterity. ~/ For his Sisrs ye Rd mors Bridget & Ann Lynch who gave this Branch to this Community of=/ Jesus Maria Joseph of Galway this 21st Day of Decber 1742 ~ and Pentinet ad Monast. Jesu et Mariae O.P. Galviae.

Twelve-light chandelier, Probably made by Mark Fallon, Galway, Ireland, 1730-42, silver, silverplate on brass, iron, bequest of Henry Francis du Pont 1956.0519

Inscribed: D. O’Connell MP. Born August -6th- 1775. He died May 15th -1847 at Genoa
The inscription on this colorful jug does not include Daniel O’Connell’s first name, but by the time he died, he was renowned in Ireland, England, and the United States. O’Connell (1775-1847) worked first as a lawyer in Dublin but then devoted his career to legislating for rights for Catholics, who were barred from Parliament at that time. After succeeding with the Catholic Emancipation Act of 1829, O’Connell came to be known as the “Great Agitator” and “Irish Liberator.”

Commemorative Jug, probably made in Ireland, 1847-50, lead-glazed earthenware, Gift of Barbara P. Katz 2007.0028.001

This portrait of John Perceval, 1st Earl of Egmont (1683‒1748), represents an early interest among Ireland’s aristocracy in creating better living conditions for people in British prisons. Perceval worked closely with James Oglethorpe on this issue, ultimately helping to establish the American colony of Georgia in 1732 as a haven for English subjects who had been imprisoned for debt.

Sir John Percivale Baronet of Burton in the County of Cork in Ireland, engraved and published by John Smith (1652/4–1742) after a painting by Sir Godfrey Kneller, printed in London, England, 1715‒25, mezzotint on laid paper, Gift of Mrs. Waldron Phoenix Belknap 1967.0975

This lady’s dress belt buckle was designed by goldsmith Philip Syng, Jr., who emigrated from Cork around 1714 when his father brought the family to Philadelphia. Syng’s superb design features tiny scallop shells and two faces or “masks” peering up from the buckle’s curved edge. The first owner, by tradition, was Sarah Jervis (1708‒1756), who lived in Philadelphia, where she married William Sandwith, a Quaker merchant from Wexford, Ireland. Her initials, SS, are engraved on the underside. The buckle was preserved by their daughter, the noted Philadelphia diarist Elizabeth Drinker.

Buckle, marked by Philip Syng, Jr. (Irish-American, 1703‒1789), Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, 1740-50, gold, gold-plated steel, Gift of Mr. Lammot du Pont Copeland 1968.0304

The sounds of pounding hooves are almost audible in this colored print celebrating the 1872 Conyngham Cup. Steeplechase racing, a challenging cross-country sport, was an international passion at the time, as indicated by the American and Continental flags flying at this racecourse west of Dublin. Early Irish arrivals to America also included the Thoroughbred horses who traveled with their breeders and trainers to support avid racing interests. Today their bloodlines still flow through competitors at the Punchestown Festival races, the heart of Irish racing history.

"Punchtown, Conyngham Cup 1872, The Finish", engraved by Edward Gilbert Hester (after the John Sturgess painting), printed by L. Banker, published by Thomas Cranfield, Dublin, Ireland, 1874, aquatint on paper, Gift of Mrs. S. Hallock du Pont 1983.0153.004

Portrait artist Thomas Frye’s professional interests carried him from Ireland to London, where he also developed business connections with the state of Virginia in pursuit of kaolin clay sources for porcelain manufacturing. His work at the Bow Porcelain Factory is noteworthy, but his originality within the medium of mezzotint prints is what most consider to be his legacy. This softly shaded depiction of an unidentified woman, possibly a London actor, is one of a series of Frye’s portraits that Winterthur acquired as representative of Irish mezzotints in circulation in colonial America. The artist titled the series “Ladies, very elegantly attired in fashion, and in the most agreeable attitudes.”

Portrait of a Young Woman, designed and engraved by Thomas Frye (Irish, 1710‒1762), printed in London, England, 1762, mezzotint on laid paper, Bequest of Henry Francis du Pont 1968.0754

Producing printed cottons, called calicoes, was not the professional life first sought by Archibald Hamilton Rowan (1751–1834), who had been born into the gentry class. As a young man during the time of revolutions, Rowan publicly championed Irish liberty and co-founded Dublin’s rebellious branch of the Society of United Irishmen. His passionate actions and fame resulted in imprisonment, jailbreak, and exile that included lost years with his wife and ten children.

While exiled in 1795, he sought business opportunities in the Brandywine region and acquired a calico printing business. This humble book is a rare record of samples for cotton fabric designs and colors and also preserves a lonely chapter in Rowan’s tumultuous life. Ultimately, his wife negotiated for his pardon, and this book, covered with an Irish newspaper, returned with Rowan to Ireland.

Sample book for Brandywine Mills, Wilmington, Delaware, 1795–99, block-printed, colored-paper made at Gilpin Mill, Wilmington, Joseph Downs Collection of Manuscripts and Printed Ephemera, Winterthur Library 50, 66x141

Not long after John James Barralet arrived in Philadelphia, the Hibernian Society called on him to design their membership certificate. The organization, founded in 1790, contributed financial and cultural aid to immigrants from Ireland. On the certificate, Barralet arranged the allegorical figures of Hope (anchor) and America (eagle and Pennsylvania state seal) with that of Ireland (harp). Society members such as sugar merchant Charles Schaffer, whose certificate we see here, were established citizens who supported organizations that helped disadvantaged families. Professional and social networks like the Hibernian Society, The Society of the Friendly Sons of St. Patrick, and the Ancient Order of Hibernians also gave structure to Gaelic culture’s enduring traditions in America.

Certificate of the Hibernian Society of Philadelphia, designed by John James Barralet (Irish, 1747‒1815), engraved by Henry H. Houston (Irish, active Philadelphia 1796‒98), Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, 1796‒98, ink on laid paper, Museum purchase 1964.0183

Ornate designs, rare materials, and, as in this example, vividly colored needleworked flowers have embellished covers of religious texts from the very earliest manuscripts. Flowered family Bible covers were typically the choice of Anglo-Protestant needlework artists. Those co-existed alongside covers with the vibrant, abstract flame stitch, also called the “Irish” stitch. Shortly after this book was purchased, the cover was decorated and personalized with “Hugh McCulloch” on one side. Hugh’s wife, Christina, most likely the maker, relocated with him from Ireland to Philadelphia, where he became a prosperous flax merchant.

Holy Bible and Book of Common Prayer, needlepoint cover attributed to Mrs. Hugh McCulloch (Irish-American, 1716−1796), printed by George Grierson, Dublin, Ireland, 1741, leather, wool crewel needlework, linen, paper, Bequest of Henry Francis du Pont 1967.0899

Thomas Moore’s poetry, especially as ballads set to music, became a mainstay of Ireland’s cultural and emotional memory during the early 1800s. These books (2 of 10) were a collaboration between Moore and noted Dublin-born composer John Stevenson. Moore’s melodies were popular on both sides of the North Atlantic for several generations. They carried the nostalgic Irish nationalism and sentimental patriotism into performances in American public assembly halls and homes.

A Selection of Irish Melodies with Symphonies and Accompaniments by Sir John Stevenson and characteristic words by Thomas Moore Esq., words by Thomas Moore (Irish, 1779−1852), music by Sir John Stevenson (Irish, 1761−1833), printed by George E. Blake’s Musical Repository and Circulating Library Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, 1810, ink on paper, Joseph Downs Collection of Manuscripts and Printed Ephemera, Winterthur Library M1744 S84*

The sitter for this handsome, treasured miniature portrait was Revolutionary War veteran Nicholas Gilman (1755‒1814). After the war, Gilman served honorably in political offices in New Hampshire. In contrast, artist John Ramage led anything but a model life after arriving from Dublin.

Ramage’s talents as a portraitist garnered accolades from Loyalist patrons in Halifax, Nova Scotia, and he became a Royal Irish Volunteer in Boston by 1775. He later switched allegiance to the American cause and joined the New York Militia by 1777. His career led to prominent commissions, including a miniature of George Washington. Characterized as flamboyant and socially adept, Ramage persuaded at least three, possibly four, women each to be his wife (without divorcing any). No single marriage, however, rescued him from accrued debts, and he fled to Montreal in 1794.

Portrait of Nicholas Gilman, attributed to John Ramage (Irish, 1748−1802), Probably New York City, possibly New Hampshire, 1787‒94, watercolor on ivory, gold, Museum purchase with funds provided by the Henry Francis du Pont Collectors Circle 2003.0002