Reflective Creatures

Abstract

Fancy goldfish were an icon of wealth between 1870 and 1930. After their introduction in 1876, they were collected by elite New Yorkers, who treasured their rarity and metaphoric connection to gold. After 1900, as public attitudes toward ostentation shifted, the fish became a symbol of the ills of American materialism, having the glitter of gold without its intrinsic value. These reflective creatures thus mirrored the social order. Tracing the rise and fall of goldfish reveals how affluent New Yorkers came to reject the aesthetics of affluence while supporting the underlying capitalist system that made their fortunes possible.