Child's Transferware Cup "Eva Dressing Uncle Tom" from "Uncle Tom's Cabin"
Unknown American, American
after George Cruikshank, English, 1792 - 1878
about 1852-1855
Glazed earthenware cup with black transfer design and gold line at base and rim
Height: 3 1/8 in. (8 cm)
Hood Museum of Art, Dartmouth: Purchased through the James and Barbara Block Acquisitions Endowment
2016.4
Geography
Place Made: United States, North America
Period
19th century
Object Name
Tools and Equipment: Food Service
Research Area
Decorative Arts
On view
Inscriptions
Inscribed, below image: "EVA DRESSING UNCLE TOM"
Label
This cup and saucer are printed with illustrations of scenes from the 1851 novel Uncle Tom’s Cabin. The cup shows Uncle Tom being dressed in flowers by the little girl Eva, whose father bought Tom at Eva’s request. The plate features Uncle Tom being violently whipped in an attempt to “break” him of his Christian values. The story contrasts the immoral forces that support and benefit from slavery with the enslaved people of African descent who are ennobled by their embrace of Christianity. Uncle Tom’s Cabin is credited with helping fuel the abolitionist movement in the United States and Europe, and its popularity led to the production of numerous domestic objects like these.
From the 2026 exhibition Inhabiting Historical Time: Slavery and Its Afterlives, curated by Amelia Kahl (Barbara C. & Harvey P. Hood 1918 Senior Curator of Academic Programming) and Alisa Swindell (Associate Curator of Photography)
Course History
Humanities 2.01, The Modern Labyrinth, Lucas Hollister, Petra McGillen, Andrea Tarnowski, Laura Edmondson, Winter 2023
Art History 38.04, Food and Art: Global History, Nicola Camerlenghi, Spring 2023
Religion 17.01, African and African American Studies 83.05, African Religions in the Americas, Eugenia Rainey, Spring 2024
Writing 5.20, Foundations at Dartmouth, Doug Moody, Fall 2024
Writing 5.23, Foundations of Dartmouth: Samson Occom, Edward Mitchell, and the History and Cultures of Native American, African American, and “Minority” Students at Dartmouth College, Doug Moody, Winter 2025
Exhibition History
Inhabiting Historical Time: Slavery and Its Afterlives, Jaffe and Hall Galleries, Hood Museum of Art, Dartmouth College, Hanover, New Hampshire, December 20, 2025 - July 11, 2026.
Provenance
Ian McKelvey Antiques, South Windham, Connecticut; sold to present collection, 2016.
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