Vintage Silver Butter Trays

The cost and perishability gave butter luxury status in the 19th Century. In rural areas of the United States, women commonly made butter at home for their family and for sale to the city’s grocers. This practice continued long after the advent of factory produced butter in the 1860’s.

In Early 20th Century, the standard for farm and factory production of butter was molding into one pound circular cakes, which measured roughly four inches in diameter. Butter dishes were usually designed to conform to the round shape.