The Liberty Bowl honored ninety-two members of the Massachusetts
House of Representatives who refused to rescind a letter sent
throughout the colonies protesting the Townshend Acts (1767),
which taxed tea, paper, glass, and other commodities imported
from England. This act of civil disobedience by the "Glorious
Ninety-Two" was a major step leading to the American Revolution.
The bowl was commissioned by fifteen members of the Sons of
Liberty, a secret, revolutionary organization to which Revere
belonged; their names are engraved on the bowl as are references
to Englishman John Wilkes, whose writing in defense of liberty
inspired American patriots. The Liberty Bowl, the Declaration of
Independence, and the Constitution have been called the nation's
three most cherished historical treasures. The bowl was
purchased by the Museum in 1949, with funds that included seven
hundred donations by Boston schoolchildren and the public.
Inscribed below the rim: "Caleb Hopkins, Nathl barber, John
White, Willm Mackay, Danl M