Pewter Salt or Sugar Bowl

Art Historical Context

This delicate rendering captures a modest pewter salt or sugar bowl, just two inches high, that once graced an early American table. Created around 1936 by Sara Garfinkel, the work belongs to the Index of American Design, a New Deal project that employed hundreds of artists to document the nation’s decorative arts heritage through precise illustrations. By recording everyday objects like this small bowl, the project preserved visual evidence of colonial and folk craftsmanship during a time when many original artifacts were disappearing. Garfinkel employed watercolor, graphite, and gouache to ...