Horn, Powder

Object Name:

Horn, Powder

Creator:

Calfe, John (1741-1808)

Date:

1777

Material:

Skeletal
Wood
Glass

Dimensions:

H-3.5 W-6 L-14 inches

Description:

Powder Horn. Yellow horn, dark gray at small end, which is carved abruptly narrower than body, carved, raised neck, stopper missing. Wide end contains a mirror surrounded by a wooden rim. Fine and masterful line carving over entire horn, flowers and shell forms against hatch background, vines, geometrical stars within circles, two chimneys, house, inscription and detailed map of Mount Independence and Fort Ticonderoga with surrounding area. Inscription: "WHAT I CONTAIN SHALL FREELY GO: TO BRING A HAUGHTY TYRANT LOW. / JOHN:CALFE. / HIS HORN, MADE AT / Mount Independence, Apl 1777."

Provenance:

Belonged to John Calfe (1741-1808) of Hampstead, NH, and may have been made by him. Calfe's diary, reprinted in H. E. Noyes, A MEMORIAL OF THE TOWN OF HAMPSTEAD, v. 1, pp. 288-94, recounts his journey to Ticonderoga, his four-month stay across the river at Mount Independence, and the general retreat that followed.

Subjects:

Powder horns, Revolutionary War

People:

Calfe, John (1741-1808)

Place of Origin:

Mount Independence, Orwell, VT

Collection Name:

Inventory

Item Number:

1922.003

Accession Number:

1922.003

Type of Material:

Objects

Copyright Statement:

For information regarding copyright, permissions, and reproductions contact the New Hampshire Historical Society

Credit Line:

Gift of Lizzie E. Crowther

Participating Organization:

New Hampshire Historical Society