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Tankard
Marked by: Jacob Bodendeich (German (active in London), 1634–1681)
English (London)
1664–65
Object Place: Europe, London, England
Medium/Technique
Birch with silver gilt mounts
Dimensions
H. 20.6 cm (8 1/8 in.); W. 22.9 cm ( x 9 in.); Diameter (of base) 16.5 cm ( 6 1/2 in.)
Credit Line
Theodora Wilbour Fund in memory of Charlotte Beebe Wilbour
Accession Number1974.563
CollectionsEurope
ClassificationsSilver
DescriptionThe cylindrical tankard has a domed and stepped foot with bands of twisted wire decoration above and below an embossed thistle pattern. The body of the vessel is made of birch, carved with three roundels enclosing figural scenes: a mermaid holding in her left hand a lute, in her right, a flower with a scroll above inscribed, FORMOSSA SUPERNE; a putto tying a blindfold on a lion with a scroll above inscribed, CAPTIS OCULIS CAPITUR; a spider hanging on a web over a knotted snake, with a scroll above inscribed, AFFLUIT INCAUTIS. Between each large roundel is a pair of smaller roundels, similarly wreathed in laurel and enclosing a bird. The domed cover has a twisted wire around the rim; the dome is embossed with an acanthus and floral pattern. At the center is an applied embossed coat of arms, a nineteenth-century addition. The handle is molded with grotesque ornament, and the thumbpiece is in the form of a bearded face with an acanthus headdress. The body of the vessel is hollowed from a single piece of wood. The interior is lined with a silver-gilt sleeve mounted at the base with a threaded pin that fits through a hole in the wood base and is bolted to the silver foot mount. The mount is composed of a flat sheet soldered to the top of the embossed molding, with drawn and twisted wire borders above and below. The handle is cast in two pieces and bolted to the foot and rim. The cover is raised and embossed, with an applied flange and a twisted wire around the rim. The embossed and chased plaque bearing the armorials is bolted to the center. The hinge is fabricated; the thumbpiece is cast. The gilding has been renewed.
Marks
On inside cover, maker's mark IB above a crescent and two pellets (similar to Jackson, 1921, p. 130; rev. ed. 1989, p. 128); leopard's head crowned; lion passant; date letter G
InscriptionsArmorials: Chased on the cover, the arms of Crawford of Auchinames and of Drumsoy
ProvenanceSold Sotheby Parke Bernet, London, December 12, 1974, lot 151 [How (of Edinburgh), London], purchased January 8, 1975, Theodora Wilbour Fund in memory of Charlotte Beebe Wilbour.