1906 through the $5,000
donation of the citizens and
schoolchildren of Maryland,
was intended originally for
the then new armored cruiser
USS Maryland, but is now on
permanent loan from the U.S.
Navy to the state of Maryland.
The makers of the service
were Samuel Kirk and Sons
in Baltimore, silversmiths
who introduced the repoussé
technique in America. The
effort joined the expertise of
Kirk with the inspiration of the
people of Maryland country.
The service is a unique
masterpiece of decorative
art, portraying the houses,
churches and events of
Maryland's
history.
Kirk
unified the pictorial content
of the pieces with decorative
borders symbolizing the
economy and culture of
the state: horns of plenty,
festooned tobacco leaves
and oyster shell borders, all
emblems of the fruitful land
and water of Maryland.
