Plaque

Physical description

Circular plaque depicting the Adoration of the Kings.

Place of Origin

Antwerp, Belgium (made)

Date

1628 (made)

Artist/maker

Somers, Wierick (I), born 1585 - died 1645 (maker)

Materials and Techniques

Silver-gilt

Marks and inscriptions

maker's mark of Wierick Somers I

Dimensions

Diameter: 10.20 cm

Object history note

Walter Leo Hildburgh was one of the most dedicated and generous patrons in the history of the V&A. His name is not well-known outside the museum world, but his influence on the shaping of the collections was immense. Born in New York in 1876, he trained as a scientist. Initially his collecting interest was ethnography, but after 1914 he turned to the decorative arts. His tastes were eclectic, but he developed his closest links with the Departments of Metalwork and Sculpture. Encouraged by successive Keepers of Metalwork, he began to accumulate European silver, with the gaps in the existing collections in mind. He travelled widely on collecting expeditions, usually recording when and where he bought something, but not (frustratingly for posterity) from whom.

Hildburgh's abiding passion was the art of Spain and Portugal, and it is no coincidence that the Museum holds one of the finest collections of Hispanic silver in the world. He also fell into the charming habit of giving the Museum presents at Christmas and on his own birthday. In some ways he was a shadowy figure, living frugally in a flat surrounded by what he called `the Museum mistakes', and devoting all his resources to collecting, but he is known to have been a keen skater. From 1924 when he offered the first objects to the Museum on loan, to 1956 when the huge collection was bequeathed, Hildburgh was part of the Museum landscape. We continue to benefit from his generosity; his will set up a fund for future purchases, administered in the spirit of his earlier acquisitions.

Descriptive line

Circular plaque depicting the Adoration of the Kings, silver-gilt, Wierick Somers I, Antwerp, 1628

Bibliographic References (Citation, Note/Abstract, NAL no)

The Golden Age of Dutch Silver, Charles Oman, V&A 1953

Labels and date

Silver Gallery:
This bold, sculptural plaque was originally set into a large tazza or standing dish. The point at which its stem was attached is still visible on the reverse. One of the kings is shown presenting infant Jesus with a golden cup filled with coins, a standard form of diplomatic gift in the 1620s. [26/11/2002]

Categories

Metalwork; Religion

Collection code

MET