AFA Autumn 2021

2021 Antiques & Fine Art 73 This large document displays the skills of Gershom Cobb, a little-known Boston bank clerk and writing master, who was a skilled calligrapher and artist. He was also a wood engraver, as evidenced by several bookplates and by an ambitious elegy for USS Chesapeake commander James Lawrence that was engraved on silk circa 1813; examples of the elegy are today at the Worcester Art Museum and the American Antiquarian Society. This roll must have been one of Cobb’s final works, as he died in Dorchester on October 3, 1825, aged 44. The Boston Sea Fencibles, originally organized in 1813, trace their origin to the War of 1812, when, following an English and European practice, similar companies were formed for coastal marine defense in several American cities. Although most groups were disbanded after the war, the Boston Sea Fencibles, as stated on this document, were incorporated in June 1817. Membership consisted of “Masters and Mates of Vessels” living in Boston or within five miles who “are, or shall hereafter be exempted from, military duty.” In addition to their ostensible defense duties, the Boston Sea Fencibles also were a civic-minded service organization. Here, above the median strip, Cobb provides the names of the officers of the Boston Sea Fencibles, starting with the captain, and including the names of the ensign; two lieutenants; treasurer; ordinary, first, second, third, and fourth sergeants; armourer; and secretary. The lower section gives the names of several honorary members and a longer roster of active members. Roll of the Boston Sea Fencibles, Gershom Cobb, Boston, Massachusetts, 1824. Pen and ink on paper. 37 × 24 inches. Gift of Benjamin A. G. Fuller, 1876 (R0443).