Gold chalice with incised inscription, made by Walda Giyorgis, Gonder, Ethiopia, 1732-1740

Gold chalice with a slightly domed and tiered circular foot. The trumpet shaped stem with three knops separated by embossed floral bands. The stem is surmounted by a wide cup with a flat rim. Under the rim of the chalice is an incised dedicatory inscription. On the base is the name of the maker.

The Eastern Churches
The history of the church around and beyond the eastern Mediterranean is complex. The earliest eastern churches were established in Antioch, Alexandria and other cities in the 1st century. They were independent communities and theological controversy sharpened their differences.

In 330 Constantinople (now Istanbul) became the capital of the Roman empire. Successive bishops of Constantinople, later given the title of patriarch, gradually won authority over other eastern churches, despite the opposition of the pope. Churches that accepted the jurisdiction of the patriarch became known as Orthodox, but others, including those of Armenia and Ethiopia, developed along separate lines. Diversity of practice and doctrine in the eastern churches is reflected in the different kinds of regalia and sacred silver. Yet some forms such as the chalice are common to all, indicating a shared core of beliefs.

The maker's name is incised on the foot.

This chalice comes from the Ethiopian Orthodox church and was used for the consecration of the wine. An inscription records that it was given to the church of Qwesqwam by King Iyyasu II (ruled 1730-55) and his mother Empress Mentewwab. It reads, 'This is the chalice of our King Iyyasu, whose throne name is Adyam Saggad, and of our Empress Walatta Giyorgis, Berhan Mogasa, which they gave to the tabot of Quesqwam so that it might be for them salvation of body and soul'. (A tabot is a symbolic representation of the biblical Ark of the Covenant.) The chalice was taken by British troops at the siege of Maqdala (Magdala) in 1868. It was deposited at the South Kensington Museum (later renamed the Victoria and Albert Museum) by H.M. Treasury in 1872. The Ethiopian church was part of the Coptic church until 1959, when it became fully independent.

M.26-2005