Abraham Lincoln Inkstand

The “Emancipator” Abraham Lincoln Bronze and Crystal Inkstand

After George Edwin Bissell (American, 1839–1920) Cast by the Gorham Manufacturing Company, circa 1898–1910

A rare turn-of-the-century American writing set. The centerpiece features an 8-inch patinated bronze statuette of Abraham Lincoln clutching the Emancipation Proclamation, reduced from Bissell’s celebrated 1893 international monuments. The figure stands upon a substantial green marble base measuring 13.25″ x 7.25″, complete with a hand-carved pen trough.

The perimeter is framed by a heavy bronze relief border depicting classical fasces, symbolizing national unity. Flanking the statue are two brilliant, heavy cut-lead crystal inkwells fitted with matching patinated bronze lids, each surmounted by a detailed finial of an American eagle perched upon a rock.

The Sculpture and Foundries

• The Sculptor: The statuette is after George Edwin Bissell (1839–1920). This specific pose—Lincoln standing in a frock coat, holding a scrolled document in his right hand with his left arm behind his back—is a reduction of Bissell’s famous 1893 Emancipation Monument erected in Edinburgh, Scotland (the first monument to Lincoln outside the United States), and his later 1898 monument in Clermont, Iowa. The scroll he clutches represents the Emancipation Proclamation.
• The Cast/Foundry: Gorham Manufacturing Company cast these high-quality reductions starting around 1898. The quality of the rich, warm brown patina shown on this statuette is a signature characteristic of Gorham’s fine art casting from this period.

The Base and Metalwork

• The Marble: The base is a beautifully figured, multi-toned green marble (a Verde Antico or a deep Connemara/Alpine green) featuring a chiseled pen trough across the front.
• The Border: The metalwork trim framing the marble perimeter is an intentional piece of iconography. It features a continuous relief pattern of fasces (bundles of wooden rods bound together with a ribbon). In classical revival design, the fasces symbolized strength through unity and executive authority—a deeply fitting motif for a post-Civil War Lincoln memorial piece.
• The Lids: The heavy cast lids are topped with figural finials of an American eagle perched upon a rocky crag with outspread wings.

Materials

• The Glass: The two substantial inkwells are cut lead crystal. The stepped, cross-hatched pattern cut into the lower bases gives them an brilliance, refracting light through the green marble underneath.
• Copper vs. Bronze: These elements are cast bronze with a dark statuary patina to match the Lincoln figure, or cold-molded bronze over a weighted core. These pieces show the classic, dark chemical oxidation typical of fine turn-of-the-century desk bronzes.

Date: circa 1898–1910