 Whilst the drinking of punch from punchbowls was an actual social practice of the times , the Sydney Cove punchbowls were specially commissioned and expensive items which had other purposes . Such punchbowls were prestigious items owned by individuals of high rank in society , such as John Hosking Sydney 's first elected Mayor , and New York 's fourth Governor Daniel Tomkins , who also acquired a punchbowl . The two punchbowls , previously owned by Hosking , are the first Chinese objects acquired by the Australiana Fund . The bowls could also have been commissioned as commemorative gifts , like the 1812 Grand Lodge of Pennsylvania Union Lodge punchbowl <unk> and the New York City punchbowl presented to the City of New York on 4 July 1812 . It has also been suggested that , given the Aboriginal marriage motif , the Sydney punchbowls may have been a marriage gift . <unk> were also regarded as exotic souvenirs at the time . 
