Bowl thumbnail 1
Bowl thumbnail 2
Image of Gallery in South Kensington
On display at V&A South Kensington
Medieval & Renaissance, Room 62, The Foyle Foundation Gallery

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
  • Upper rim diameter: 21.5cm
  • Foot ring diameter: 12.2cm
  • Maximum height: 6.3cm
Measured for the Medieval and Renaissance Galleries
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
  • Lightbown, R.W., Secular goldsmith's work in medieval France: A History. London: Society of Antiquaries of London/Thames and Hudson, 1978.
  • Lightbown, R.W., French Silver. London: Victoria & Albert Museum, 1978, cat. no. 21.
Collection
Accession number
214-1866

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Record createdApril 28, 2009
Record URL
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