This Federal-style mahogany sofa upholstered in French Aubusson tapestry was one of a pair probably made for Margaret (1783-1813) and Robert L. Livingston (1775-1843), the daughter and son-in-law of Robert R. Livingston. The couple purchased the tapestry while they resided in France with the Chancellor. The sofas may have been used at Arryl House, a manor Livingston built on the grounds of Clermont in 1793. While visiting the house in 1794, the architect William Strickland commented on the beauty and fineness of its interior: "The principal rooms which are of good dimensions are hung with French papers . . . the whole house is handsomely & commodiously finished and furnished."

This soup tureen, originally one of a pair, reflects the early nineteenth-century fashion for silver in the French Empire style drawn heavily from the grandeur of antiquity. Livingston family history suggests that the tureen was made for the Philadelphia couple Coleman Fisher (1793-1857) and Mary Read (1799-1875). The form of this vessel derives from the ancient Greek kylix, a wide drinking cup with horizontal handles. 

Originally purchased by New Yorker Gouverneur Morris (1752-1816) during his time in France as the United States minister, he later sold this late eighteenth-century coffeepot to Robert R. Livingston during his term in the office there. The coffeepot was probably purchased from French aristocrats who were seeking funds to flee the vicissitudes of the French Revolution. Morris approached Livingston, arguing that when in France it was more economical to own silver, as “your French servants will knock China plates to pieces very fast.” Livingston purchased a silver service from Morris, which included this coffeepot, and had it engraved with the Livingston family arms.