Happy 250th Birthday, America!

 Hello, and welcome to Panoply! Today, I am excited to share my latest tablescape with you, a tribute to the USA's birthday! Happy 250th Birthday, America!❤️🤍💙

I am thrilled to be hosting another tablescape blog hop today with the theme of summer. You will find the links of all the participants near the end of this post. You will find a whole host of summer ideas for tablescaping, both indoors and out!

In honor of our nation's founding 250 years ago, I really wanted to showcase a spirit of patriotism in today's tablescape. I don't know where I first saw the Mottahedeh Diplomatic Eagle salad plate, but it resonated with me loud and clear that this would be the basis of my table. As noted on 

the Mottahedeh website:

"Mottahedeh has attained the honor not once but three times, by making porcelain for the dinners of the President of the United States (including three consecutive presidential inaugurations), the U.S. State Department and the Diplomatic Corps. Furthermore, Mottahedeh products have a permanent home in the White House, where they are used on an everyday basis."

From the Ronald Reagan Foundation:

"The designs are adapted from Chinese export porcelain, circa 1810, bearing one of the earliest depictions of the American eagle found in ceramic decoration."

The bald eagle illustration on this china stems from the diplomatic seal adopted as part of the American Emblem in 1782 by the Continental Congress, and now used as the official Great Seal of the U.S. Department of State. The key components and symbolism are:

• The eagle faces the olive branch in its right talon, but stands ready for war with its arrows in its left talon.
• E Pluribus Unum banner held in the beak represents the union of the original 13 colonies: "out of many, one". 
• The shield of independence on the eagle's breast symbolizes the United States' virtue of  self-reliance, without any other supporters, as written by Charles Thomson, Secretary of the Continental Congress in 1782.

Another component of the official Great Seal not depicted in the salad plates used today, but in the trivet on the table (pictured above):

• The constellation of stars above the eagle's head represents the new nation taking its place among other sovereign states.

In the official Great Seal, the number thirteen is repeated in the arrow count, the stars in the constellation, and in the eagle's flag shield.

Leaning into the theme of the founding of our nation, once I saw the following framed pieces, I knew I wanted to use them somehow, either on my table or in my decor. This is a collection of our Founding Fathers* (see legend near the end of this post). 

Having the Founding Fathers on the table could make for interesting conversation and quizzing of American history trivia.

The solid brass eagle is from a prior estate sale that I am keeping and am using on the table today.

The table's centerpiece features an American Eagle drum manufactured by the Noble & Cooley company in Massachusetts. It is a vintage ice bucket designed to resemble a Civil War-era marching drum, produced for the 1976 U.S. Bicentennial celebration. I found this item online three years ago and have used it as decor in my home. Keeping the table vibe more masculine overall, I chose to not use flowers, although I was tempted to purchase something like a blue hydrangea or blood red celosia to fill the drum and plant later. The drum is centered on the table with place settings on either side of it, so it doesn't block viewing; however, it could easily be moved to a sideboard during dinner.

I dressed up the plain silver napkin rings with another magnetic flourish, this time the USA flag. In last year's summer table, I added star magnets. The napkins are the only detail with a feminine flourish, a cotton eyelet with ruffled edge. They are folded like buntings for the table.

The drinking stems used in this tablescape honor our First President and First Lady of the United States, George and Martha Washington. This glassware was produced for the U.S. Bicentennial release in 1976 by Avon, in collaboration with Fostoria. I found two glasses at our antique mall, and then the search was on to complete a set of six, three each of George and Martha (I have six of the salad plates). Ralph Lauren crystal Glen Plaid rounds out the drinking glassware (shown in the leading photo).

I also dressed up the bookcase and sideboard in the dining room with patriotic elements to celebrate America's 250th this summer.

I live in the capital city of West Virginia, and our Capitol building is directly across the river from our home. On the last weekend of May, I was happy to see our building, which is situated along the Kanawha River, dressed for America's 250th.  Isn't she beautiful?!

For my American readers, I hope this tablescape today inspires a feeling of pride in our nation's history as we celebrate its 250th birthday. For readers outside of  the US, my hope is that you can acknowledge this significant milestone of ours. At the same time, I hope you all feel inspired to use your china and other decor, whether new or old, to set a nice table. It's certainly a way to honor and entertain guests, but even if the table is set just as part of your decor, it's a nice way to capture a celebratory event, a season, or a mood. Below are my sources for items I used today, a means to keeping my inventory organized and for jogging my memory in the future.

Source List for Happy 250th Birthday, America!

Tablecloth - Williams Sonoma

Napkins - Juliska

Placemats, Napkin Rings - Amazon

Dinner Plates - Dollar Tree

Salad Plates (Mottahedeh Diplomatic Eagle) - HomeBello and eBay

Framed Founding Fathers, USA flag magnets - Etsy 

Glassware (Fostoria for Avon and Ralph Lauren), American Eagle trivet - eBay

Flatware, Brass Eagle - estate sale finds

American Eagle Drum - Nora Murphy

Other Decor Elements - Blenko, Caspari, Juliska, MacKenzie-Childs, Etsy, estate sale finds

For even more inspiration, below are the list of participants in today's summer tablescape blog hop. I hope you enjoy all the ideas shared by each of the creative individuals. The links will take you directly to their posts.

Panoply - Happy 250th Birthday, America!

Home is Where the Boat Is - Oh My Stars & Stripes

Hyacinths for the Soul - Celebrate With a Patriotic Heart

Olla-Podrida - Night of the Iguana Tablescape

Everyday Living - America is 250: Let's Celebrate!

Me and My Captain - Belmont Stakes, The Last Race of Triple Crown

The Cats Whiskerz - A Gardener's Tablescape

Pandora's Box - Summer Patriotic Tablescape and Kitchen Cart

Life and Linda - A Whimsical Elegant Pastel Summer Table

The Bookish Dilettante - Tablescape for America 250

My Thrift Store Addiction - Summer Serenity in the Garden: Elegant Breakfast For One

Corner of Plaid and Paisley - Celebrating America's Favorite Pastime

Thrifting Wonderland - Searching for Summer: A Thrifted Tablescape

Red Cottage Chronicles - From Antiquing to Dinner: A Simple Summer Gathering with Friends

Dinner at Eight - A Casual Summer Table Inspired by Island Daydreams

Mantel and Table - Blue and White Tablescape - How to Enjoy a Beautiful Summer

*Legend for the photo shown earlier in this post of  The Framed Founding Fathers on the bookcase. These were Revolutionary leaders who helped form the United States of America. Top shelf (L to R, #1-6); bottom shelf (L to R, #7-8):

1. George Washington - 1st President of the United States and Commander of the Continental Army which led to the American Revolution victory.
2. John Adams - 2nd President of the United States who helped draft the Declaration of Independence.
3. Thomas Jefferson - 1st United States Secretary of State, 3rd President of the United States of America, and principal author of the Declaration of Independence.
4. Alexander Hamilton - served as the 1st Secretary of Treasury of the United States. He co-authored the Federalist Papers with James Madison and John Jay (see below). He was an architect of the U.S. financial system framework. 
5. James Madison - 4th President of the United States, known as the "Father of the Constitution" for his role in its drafting. Co-authored the Federalist Papers with Alexander Hamilton (see above) and John Jay (see below).
6. James Monroe - 5th President of the United States, known for the Monroe Doctrine, the cornerstone of U.S. foreign policy.
7. Benjamin Franklin - the 1st United States Postmaster General. He was a polymath who served as a leading writer (the Declaration of Independence), scientist, inventor, diplomat, and political philosopher. He was key in securing French support during the American Revolution. 
8. John Jay - served as the 1st Chief Justice of the United States. He co-authored the Federalist Papers with Alexander Hamilton and James Madison (see above). He helped negotiate the 1783 Treaty of Paris which ended the American Revolutionary War.

Thank you so much for your visit today. I hope you'll leave a comment to let me know you stopped by. I try to respond to each one, but if your comment shows as Anonymous, please let me know who you are. 

❤️🤍💙God Bless the United States of America!❤️🤍💙

Rita C. at Panoply

Parties I Share With: Pieced Pastimes, Love Your Creativity, Our Hopeful Home, My Thrift Store Addiction, BNOTP, French Ethereal SYS, Katherine's Corner, County Road 407 Farmhouse Friday