1 / 6
+1
Gorham Shrapnel Shell Cocktail Shaker
The “Eighteen Pounder” Cocktail Shaker
Attributed to the Gorham Manufacturing Company
Circa 1917
A striking fusion of wartime engineering and American cocktail culture, this rare shaker takes the form of a World War I 18-pound shrapnel shell. Attributed to the Gorham Manufacturing Company, it reflects a moment when industrial design inspired domestic luxury objects. Produced after the war, it is finely detailed, even incorporating a decorative time delay fuze mechanism. At almost two feet high, it is among the largest cocktail shakers of its era. The base conceals a fitted interior with a vertical stand for four shot glasses, while the upper section functions as a fully operational cocktail shaker with strainer and stopper.
Gorham, one of America’s leading silver manufacturers, became renowned for its inventive silver plate production, particularly during the early 1900s when novelty and craftsmanship merged in the decorative arts. The firm’s “Shrapnel Cocktail Sets,” introduced around 1915, captured public fascination with wartime motifs adapted for the home, transforming industrial design language into objects of luxury.
Underside marked "Fac-Simile Eighteen Pounder Shrapnel Shell / Patent Applied for in America and Foreign Countries"
22 3/4" high x 4" diameter
Attributed to the Gorham Manufacturing Company
Circa 1917
A striking fusion of wartime engineering and American cocktail culture, this rare shaker takes the form of a World War I 18-pound shrapnel shell. Attributed to the Gorham Manufacturing Company, it reflects a moment when industrial design inspired domestic luxury objects. Produced after the war, it is finely detailed, even incorporating a decorative time delay fuze mechanism. At almost two feet high, it is among the largest cocktail shakers of its era. The base conceals a fitted interior with a vertical stand for four shot glasses, while the upper section functions as a fully operational cocktail shaker with strainer and stopper.
Gorham, one of America’s leading silver manufacturers, became renowned for its inventive silver plate production, particularly during the early 1900s when novelty and craftsmanship merged in the decorative arts. The firm’s “Shrapnel Cocktail Sets,” introduced around 1915, captured public fascination with wartime motifs adapted for the home, transforming industrial design language into objects of luxury.
Underside marked "Fac-Simile Eighteen Pounder Shrapnel Shell / Patent Applied for in America and Foreign Countries"
22 3/4" high x 4" diameter
The “Eighteen Pounder” Cocktail Shaker
Attributed to the Gorham Manufacturing Company
Circa 1917
A striking fusion of wartime engineering and American cocktail culture, this rare shaker takes the form of a World War I 18-pound shrapnel shell. Attributed to the Gorham Manufacturing Company, it reflects a moment when industrial design inspired domestic luxury objects. Produced after the war, it is finely detailed, even incorporating a decorative time delay fuze mechanism. At almost two feet high, it is among the largest cocktail shakers of its era. The base conceals a fitted interior with a vertical stand for four shot glasses, while the upper section functions as a fully operational cocktail shaker with strainer and stopper.
Gorham, one of America’s leading silver manufacturers, became renowned for its inventive silver plate production, particularly during the early 1900s when novelty and craftsmanship merged in the decorative arts. The firm’s “Shrapnel Cocktail Sets,” introduced around 1915, captured public fascination with wartime motifs adapted for the home, transforming industrial design language into objects of luxury.
Underside marked "Fac-Simile Eighteen Pounder Shrapnel Shell / Patent Applied for in America and Foreign Countries"
22 3/4" high x 4" diameter
Attributed to the Gorham Manufacturing Company
Circa 1917
A striking fusion of wartime engineering and American cocktail culture, this rare shaker takes the form of a World War I 18-pound shrapnel shell. Attributed to the Gorham Manufacturing Company, it reflects a moment when industrial design inspired domestic luxury objects. Produced after the war, it is finely detailed, even incorporating a decorative time delay fuze mechanism. At almost two feet high, it is among the largest cocktail shakers of its era. The base conceals a fitted interior with a vertical stand for four shot glasses, while the upper section functions as a fully operational cocktail shaker with strainer and stopper.
Gorham, one of America’s leading silver manufacturers, became renowned for its inventive silver plate production, particularly during the early 1900s when novelty and craftsmanship merged in the decorative arts. The firm’s “Shrapnel Cocktail Sets,” introduced around 1915, captured public fascination with wartime motifs adapted for the home, transforming industrial design language into objects of luxury.
Underside marked "Fac-Simile Eighteen Pounder Shrapnel Shell / Patent Applied for in America and Foreign Countries"
22 3/4" high x 4" diameter
$5,197.50
Original: $14,850.00
-65%Gorham Shrapnel Shell Cocktail Shaker—
$14,850.00
$5,197.50Description
The “Eighteen Pounder” Cocktail Shaker
Attributed to the Gorham Manufacturing Company
Circa 1917
A striking fusion of wartime engineering and American cocktail culture, this rare shaker takes the form of a World War I 18-pound shrapnel shell. Attributed to the Gorham Manufacturing Company, it reflects a moment when industrial design inspired domestic luxury objects. Produced after the war, it is finely detailed, even incorporating a decorative time delay fuze mechanism. At almost two feet high, it is among the largest cocktail shakers of its era. The base conceals a fitted interior with a vertical stand for four shot glasses, while the upper section functions as a fully operational cocktail shaker with strainer and stopper.
Gorham, one of America’s leading silver manufacturers, became renowned for its inventive silver plate production, particularly during the early 1900s when novelty and craftsmanship merged in the decorative arts. The firm’s “Shrapnel Cocktail Sets,” introduced around 1915, captured public fascination with wartime motifs adapted for the home, transforming industrial design language into objects of luxury.
Underside marked "Fac-Simile Eighteen Pounder Shrapnel Shell / Patent Applied for in America and Foreign Countries"
22 3/4" high x 4" diameter
Attributed to the Gorham Manufacturing Company
Circa 1917
A striking fusion of wartime engineering and American cocktail culture, this rare shaker takes the form of a World War I 18-pound shrapnel shell. Attributed to the Gorham Manufacturing Company, it reflects a moment when industrial design inspired domestic luxury objects. Produced after the war, it is finely detailed, even incorporating a decorative time delay fuze mechanism. At almost two feet high, it is among the largest cocktail shakers of its era. The base conceals a fitted interior with a vertical stand for four shot glasses, while the upper section functions as a fully operational cocktail shaker with strainer and stopper.
Gorham, one of America’s leading silver manufacturers, became renowned for its inventive silver plate production, particularly during the early 1900s when novelty and craftsmanship merged in the decorative arts. The firm’s “Shrapnel Cocktail Sets,” introduced around 1915, captured public fascination with wartime motifs adapted for the home, transforming industrial design language into objects of luxury.
Underside marked "Fac-Simile Eighteen Pounder Shrapnel Shell / Patent Applied for in America and Foreign Countries"
22 3/4" high x 4" diameter
