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Image courtesy of the Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library and Museum.
Image courtesy of the Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library and Museum.
Great Seal of the United States Soup Bowl

Great Seal of the United States Soup Bowl

Artifact IDMO 1941.8.57.3
Object Type Bowl, Soup
Maker (French ceramics manufactory, founded 1893)
Dateca. 1939-1940
Mediumceramic (porcelain)
Dimensionsoverall H 1 3/8 in x Diam 7 7/8 in (3.5 cm x 20 cm )
Physical DescriptionA Theodore Haviland soup bowl from the Franklin D. Roosevelt White House china service. At the top of the cream-colored bowl is the Great Seal of the United States in gold. A thick gold band circles the inner well of the bowl. A thinner gold band runs along the bowl’s outer edge.

On the underside of the bowl, the manufacturer's information is stamped in red and black: “Theodore Haviland / New York / MADE IN AMERICA.”
Historical NoteThis soup bowl is part of a set of china featuring the Great Seal of the United States. Made for the 1939 World’s Fair by Thomas Haviland and Lenox, the set was on display in the U.S. Pavilion at the Fair. After the Fair closed in 1940, the china was delivered to the White House and incorporated into the china service.

The FDR Library’s Museum collection contains a small sampling of pieces (MO 1941.8.57.1-12) from the set of which this bowl is a part of.Additional Details
Custodial History NoteDonated as a bequest of Franklin D. Roosevelt to the Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library and Museum in 1947.
Credit LineEstate of Franklin D. Roosevelt
National Archives Catalog CollectionFranklin D. Roosevelt Library Museum Collection (National Archives Identifier 735948)
National Archives Catalog SeriesGift Items and Commemorative Artifacts (National Archives Identifier 782690)
Use Restriction StatusUnrestrictedCopyrightReproduction or other use of these holdings or images thereof is unrestricted.
In Collection(s)
Not on view