Chalice thumbnail 1
Chalice thumbnail 2
Image of Gallery in South Kensington
On display at V&A South Kensington
Medieval and Renaissance, Room 50c

Chalice

ca.1500 (made)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

The form of this chalice is characteristic of central Italy in the late 15th century. The roundels represent scenes from the Life of the Virgin and Christ’s Passion.


Object details

Categories
Object type
Materials and techniques
Gilded silver, decorated with niello
Brief description
Church plate, Continental
Physical description
Chalice, gilded silver, decorated with niello (black composition) plaques, depicting the life of The Virgin and and The passion. Includes a bishop’s coat of arms with the letters NB. Six lobed and cusped foot, hexagonal stem, depressed spherical knop and calyx, all decorated with acanthus ornament, bell shaped bowl. Foot, knop and calyx are each set with nielloed plaques. One with the coat of arms (quarterly first and fourth with a lion rampant to sinister, second and third, an oak tree, over all a cross) surmounted by a mitre and flanked by the initials, NB, occurs in each group.
Dimensions
  • Height: 29.7cm
  • Diameter: 18.1cm
  • Weight: 0.920kg
Measured for the Medieval and Renaissance Galleries
Marks and inscriptions
A coat of arms (quarterly first and fourth with a lion rampant to sinister, second and third, an oak tree, over all a cross) surmounted by a mitre and flanked by the initials, NB, occurs in each group. (Letters included in a bishop's coat of arms.)
Credit line
Given by Dr. W. L. Hildburgh FSA.
Subjects depicted
Summary
The form of this chalice is characteristic of central Italy in the late 15th century. The roundels represent scenes from the Life of the Virgin and Christ’s Passion.
Collection
Accession number
M.417-1936

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Record createdMay 1, 2009
Record URL
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