S5: Tankard
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© The Holburne Museum of Art, Bath
| Museum number | S5 |
| Title | Tankard |
| Object type | In category: Metalwork » Drinking vessel » Tankard |
| Date | Between 1683 and 1684 |
| People |
By Unknown - Gold/silversmith(s) Unknown - Chaser(s) York, Frederick Duke of (1763-1827 - Previous owner(s) |
| Place of origin | Europe » Northern Europe » British Isles » Great Britain » England » London |
| Condition |
Good |
| Dimensions |
20.0 cm height whole 23.0 cm width whole 14.8 cm depth whole |
| Weight |
32.0 ounces whole |
| Materials & techniques |
In category:
Metal
»
Silver-gilt
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| Description |
Silver-gilt tankard with a tapering cylindrical body, a stepped lid with a volute ram's horn thumbpiece and a scroll handle with beaded decoration and shield terminal.The body is richly embossed with a half-length portrait of Elizabeth I, flanked by two full-length courtiers within scrollwork against a matted ground. The lid is embossed with a bust of Lord Burghley and the inscription CECIL LORD BURLEIGH. The underside of the base is embossed with a tudor rose surrounded by scrollwork and flowers and the inscription ELIZABTHÆ · NATTA · GRENVICI · 1533 · SORORI · SVCCESSIT IN REGNO 1558 [Elizabeth, born at Greenwich 1558, succeeded her sister as Queen 1558].
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| Marks and inscriptions |
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| Subject |
History |
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| Notes | This late seventeenth century tankard was probably originally a relatively plain, ungilded piece, perhaps decorated with engraved armorials. However, during the early nineteenth century it was elaborately embossed with floridly 'historicist' decoration depicting Elizabeth I and her chief minister, Lord Burghley. Collectors of silver only began to understand hallmarks from the 1850s; the early nineteenth century embosser of this tankard probably believed that it was sixteenth century and this would account for the somewhat incongruous 'Tudor' decoration on a seventeenth century object. Holburne's inventories note that the tankard was formerly in the collection of Frederick, Duke of York (1763-1827). The Duke was a noted collector of early silver and it is probable that the later decoration was added for him. Many pieces were similarly treated in the nineteenth century. It is not clear whether Sir T. W. Holburne acquired the tankard directly from the sale of the Duke's extensive collection in 1827 or later. When the tankard was exhibited by Holburne at the 1862 and 1868 National Exhibitions its hallmarks had been fully deciphered and its true date realised. The decoration, however, was not recognised as later. A second eighteenth century tankard in the collection is also said to have been the Duke of York's. It is decorated with later embossing depicting Henry VIII. Both tankards were probably recreated as 'Tudor' objects by a nineteenth century craftsman specialising in reworking earlier pieces. |
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| Literature |
A. Butcher and E. J. C. Smith, A Catalogue of Silver at the Holburne Museum, Bath, 1996, p.2, no. 3 P. Glanville, Silver in England, London, 1987, p. 293 |
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| Muse theme | The Art of Collecting |
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| Muse chapter |
The History of the Holburne Collection » Sir William Holburne and his Collection » Building the Collection
The History of the Holburne Collection » The Collection » Silver |
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| Gallery Label |
TANKARD English, London, 1683, with nineteenth-century embellishments. Silver-gilt. Originally a simply-decorated tankard of the late seventeenth century, this piece was enhanced with repousse ornament depicting Elizabeth I and Lord Burghley. Acquired by Sir William Holburne from the sale of the Duke of York's Collection, 1844. Exhibited at South Kensington in 1862, Leeds in 1868. S2 (Winterbottom, Matthew) 10-7-2006 |
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| Method of acquisition | Bequest | ||||||||||||
| Provenance | Frederick, Duke of York (1763-1827); Thomas William Holburne (1793-1874); by whom bequeathed to Mary Anne Barbara Holburne (1802-1882), by whom bequeathed to the Museum | ||||||||||||
| Exhibition history |
Title of exhibition: National Exhibition of Works of Art Title of exhibition: Special Exhibition of Works of Art Title of exhibition: Centenary Exhibition of Silver in the Holburne Collection |
