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Tankard
Unknown - Enlarge image
Tankard
- Place of origin:
Germany (made)
- Date:
1720-1730 (made)
- Artist/Maker:
Unknown (production)
- Materials and Techniques:
Opaque white glass, enamelled and gilt, and mounted in silver-gilt
- Museum number:
1898-1855
- Gallery location:
Glass, room 131, case 20, shelf 1
This tankard is made of opaque white glass in imitation of Chinese porcelain.
In the 18th century small workshops, especially in Germany and Bohemia (now the Czech Republic), specialised in decorating glass and porcelain blanks. They used soft enamel colours and operated in their own homes. Once painted, the wares were taken to a glass factory or larger central workshop, where the colours would be fired onto the surface in special kilns. The most popular enamel colours were black and red, based on lead oxide and iron oxide respectively.
The painters used contemporary prints as source of inspiration for their work. The elaborate ornament on this beer tankard has the C- and S-shaped scrolls typical of the Rococo style.
