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Featured Objects

 

In each issue, the bimonthly DAR magazine, American Spirit, highlights an object from the DAR Museum collection in its "National Treasures" feature. These objects always have a story to tell about American history.

 

National Treasures

A Necessary Accessory
By Alden O'Brien
 

This odd-shaped small glass container is a highly personal accessory. It is a lady’s urinal for travel, and it dates to the 18th century. In an era when travel was far from luxurious and access to facilities along any route was uncertain, using one’s own device, available at any moment, may have seemed preferable if not unavoidable. Today, women can purchase pulp paper and plastic versions. If you are wondering how ladies “back then” would have managed this with all their skirts and under-petticoats, remember that they were not wearing drawers or underpants at this time, so discreet management under the skirt would have been possible.

For more National Treasures, please visit the DAR Museum's Featured Objects.

 

More National Treasures

  • By Alden O'Brien This odd-shaped small glass container is a highly personal accessory. It is a lady’s urinal for travel, and it dates to the 18th century. In an era when travel was far from luxurious...

  • by Alden O'Brien This odd-shaped small glass container is a highly personal accessory. It is a lady’s urinal for travel, and it dates to the 18th century. In an era when travel was far from luxurious...

  • By Carrie Blough Imagine Jonathan Armstrong, exhausted and victorious after a hard-fought battle during the American Revolution, quenching his thirst with this canteen. Canteens were often made of...

  • Harriet Cany was born in 1799 in Philadelphia, Pa. She worked in her parents’ dry goods store until she started studying art in the 1830s. It was at that time that she met with Rembrandt Peale, at the...

  • Revolutionary War veteran James Sharlay was born in 1753 in Rockingham County, N.H. In April 1775, he enlisted in the Revolutionary War, and on May 1, 1775, he joined Captain Samuel Sprague’s 9th...

  • The death of George Washington, universally adored in a period before partisan politics, spurred national mourning. An account of Washington’s last hours, written by his personal secretary, Tobias...

  • by Alden O'Brien There were few American industries prior to the Revolutionary War, but Lynn, Mass., was considered the “shoe capital of the world” in the 18th century. The shoes featured above—made...

  • by William Strollo It is easy to assume that Hannah Morgan Stillman, seen draped in pricey textiles and sitting in a finely upholstered armchair, lived a life of leisure. However, Stillman’s black...

  • by Patrick Sheary Remarkable—little else could accurately characterize the skill and breadth of David Drake, an enslaved African-American potter who is remembered as one of the most prolific talents...

  • by Carrie Blough Chip-carved from pine, walnut or butternut trees , decorative butter prints and molds are vestiges of the past that illustrate the care and consideration that went into something as...