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A handled mug incised with lines and applied with a conch-shell cross section, this piece carries one of Spratling's signature marine motifs, the same conch he used in the designs for the Hotel Pierre Marques in Acapulco. Its identity sits in useful ambiguity: though struck with Spratling's primary sterling mark, it appears to be silver plate, possibly a model made for that hotel commission, and its silver content has not been tested.
The strap handle with a rolled edge and the engraved banding are the restrained, surface-led decoration that defined his table objects. As a likely prototype for the Pierre Marques line, the mug documents how a hotel commission moved from model to production.
The piece is recorded in Phyllis M. Goddard's Spratling Silver: A Field Guide. Pieces connected to the Pierre Marques commission form a distinct and sought-after category.
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