Description:
Deep, cresent-shaped brass gorget decorated with engraved Masonic Order symbols (a portractor intersecting a square) over the motto "WITHOUT FEAR OR ENUI," and embossed decoration at each end which have holes for hanging from a ribbon. This and other alledged Major General John Sullivan-related items acquired in 1962, were said to be, "Unreservedly guaranteed to have been purchased directly from the home of Col. James and Mrs. Sullivan of Ashfield, Massachusetts" (nothing in the file about Col. James Sullivan). Major General John Sullivan (1740-1795) was commissioned a general in the Continental Army under George Washington in 1775; was a member of the Continental Congress representing New Hampshire; and was later President (Governor) and U.S. District Judge of New Hampshire. He was also one of the founders of the Society of Cincinnati and the first President of the Order in New Hampshire. During the second half of the 17th century, the gorget changed from being part of the defensive armor which protected the throat to an ornamental symbol of rank for officers, which was worn by British, French and some German officers. At the time of the Revolution, the crescent-shaped gorget was regulation in the British army, but was never officially adopted by the Continental Army; as a result, there is no uniformity in the design of American gorgets. They were worn by some field officers in the French and Indian Wars and by a few officers early in the Revolution. George Washington is shown wearing a gilt brass gorget engraved with the Colonial Arms of Virginia in a 1772 painting by Charles Wilson Peale; and Harold L. Peterson illustrates an identically-shaped gorget to this "Sullivan" gorget, which was a British gorget worn by an American officer, Adam Stephen (c.1730-1791) who first served as a captain of militia under George Washington during French and Indian War and later in the colonial wars. Sullivan is shown wearing a gorget with a different shape than this one in the print of "Major General John Sullivan" (HD 62.222C) published by Thomas Hart of London in 1776; however, Fowble noted the "sameness" of the mezzotint portraits of Continental officers issued by London publishers between 1775-1778 and doubted that those publishers had a personal acquaintance with each subject. The Masonic symbols refer to the teachings and practices of the secret fraternal organization of the Free and Accepted Masons. Upholding the principles of morality, charity, and obedience to the law, Masons became a very popular and powerful civic organization in colonial and early America. Their members included many of the most famous Americans such as Thomas Jefferson, George Washington, Benjamin Franklin, and Paul Revere. Sullivan joined the Masons at the old St. John's Lodge Portsmouth, NH, on March 19, 1767, and became Grand Master of the Lodge in 1789. The source/association of the motto "WITHOUT FEAR OR ENUI" has not yet been identified.
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https://museums.fivecolleges.edu/detail.php?t=objects&type=ext&id_number=HD+62.222D |
