Bowl
ca. 1540-1550 (made)
Artist/Maker | |
Place of origin |
A banquet proclaimed a host’s wealth. Across Europe, this was partly achieved by displaying valuable silver, glass or ceramics, like this bowl, on a makeshift, stepped structure. In Italy, this was called a ‘credenza’ (meaning ‘trust’, a reference to the practice of testing food for poison), while in France and England it was a ‘buffet’. Sometimes food and functional objects were included on the bottom tier. Once dinner was over, the shelves were dismantled and the valuables locked away. The shape of this bowl is still influenced by Gothic design, though the decoration already shows Renaissance elements.
Object details
Categories | |
Object type | |
Materials and techniques | Silver, parcel-gilt, chased, embossed, engraved |
Brief description | Silver, parcel-gilt, France, ca.1540-1550 |
Physical description | Bowl, silver, parcel-gilt, with domed base, upper rim with traces of gilding; the centre with parcel-gilt embossed decoration of interlacing strapwork, quatrefoil motif and grotesque foliage inscribed in a circle; with separately made gilt foot with egg-and-dart decoration |
Dimensions |
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Style | |
Marks and inscriptions | '*I* TRAV*' (Engraved by amateur hand on outer rim; interpreted as a name by R.W. Lightbown in 1978.) |
Gallery label | BOWL.
Silver parcel-gilt.
FRENCH; EARLY 16th CENTURY.
214-1866.(Pre-2000) |
Subjects depicted | |
Summary | A banquet proclaimed a host’s wealth. Across Europe, this was partly achieved by displaying valuable silver, glass or ceramics, like this bowl, on a makeshift, stepped structure. In Italy, this was called a ‘credenza’ (meaning ‘trust’, a reference to the practice of testing food for poison), while in France and England it was a ‘buffet’. Sometimes food and functional objects were included on the bottom tier. Once dinner was over, the shelves were dismantled and the valuables locked away. The shape of this bowl is still influenced by Gothic design, though the decoration already shows Renaissance elements. |
Bibliographic references |
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Collection | |
Accession number | 214-1866 |
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Record created | April 28, 2009 |
Record URL |
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