Lot Essay
This particular variant, generally known as "Jungfernbecher" or maiden cups, of the category of wager cups originated in Germany during the last quarter of the sixteenth century within the Nuremberg circle of the celebrated Jamnitzer dynasty of artist in silver: an early example by Elias Zorer, made at Augsburg circa 1590 and now in the Berlin Kunstgewerbe Museum, shows the same kind of bold and plain swivel as in the Berlin Kunstgewerbe Museum, shows the same kind of bold and plain swivel as in our cup. Rare in every country where they were made, only four Dutch examples have survived to this day.
But quite exceptional and possibly unique for this kind of object in the specimen now offered for sale is the appearance of the name of the bride for whom the cup was originally made, as recorded in its temporary inscription.
During the wedding-meal both cups were filled with wine, the "skirt" for the groom, the smaller cup for the bride.
The newly-weds, having to stand closely together, then had to empty their respective cups without spilling, this difficult task often increasing the gaiety of the occasion.
In a scholarly article K.A. Citroen has convincingly demonstrated that the original marks on the cup were obliterated in order to make room for the 1843 inscriptions. He compares the execution of the "skirt" with identical parts of Amsterdam windmill-cups, all made by Gerrit Valck (fl. 1613-1663), who specialized in these kinds of drinking vessels.
It is interesting to note that Gerrit Valck (through his wife, who was related to a large number of other Amsterdam silversmiths) was an uncle of Martin Droeshout, the engraver of Shakespeare's portrait as frontispiece for his First Folio edition.
The contemporary inscription states the name of its first recipient: Catherine, daughter of Henrick Coppit. She was born at Amsterdam in 1613 and married there on 24 May, 1641 Henrick Heykens, a rich banker's son, but the bride's ancestors were even wealthier, the money having come from her paternal grandfather James Coppit, a proeminent gunpowder merchant, whose undivided estate in 1631 was valued at two hundred thousand florins, thereby making his heirs one of Amsterdam's richest families. Incidentally, Catherine's sister Oopje and her husband Martin Soolmans were both painted by Rembrandt; the pair now graces the Paris Rothschild collections.
The second inscription is not less interesting for the cup's history. August Frederick, Duke of Sussex (1773-1843), the sixth son of King George III, was not only an emancipatory figure and an erudite with a library of over fifty thousand volumes, but also an inveterate collector; apart from a fine cabinet of paintings, he owned a large number of varied objects of applied art and curiosities. After his death it took Christie's four full days to disperse his collections which also included "an unrivalled collection of pipes, Havannah cigars and Manilla cheroots." His "truly magnificent collection of ancient collection of ancient and modern silver, silver-gilt and gold plate", with a total weight of more than 1250 kilograms, was sold in 695 lots, half of which were collectors's items. Our cup must have been acquired by the Duke shortly after 1814, when it was repunched in Holland.
But quite exceptional and possibly unique for this kind of object in the specimen now offered for sale is the appearance of the name of the bride for whom the cup was originally made, as recorded in its temporary inscription.
During the wedding-meal both cups were filled with wine, the "skirt" for the groom, the smaller cup for the bride.
The newly-weds, having to stand closely together, then had to empty their respective cups without spilling, this difficult task often increasing the gaiety of the occasion.
In a scholarly article K.A. Citroen has convincingly demonstrated that the original marks on the cup were obliterated in order to make room for the 1843 inscriptions. He compares the execution of the "skirt" with identical parts of Amsterdam windmill-cups, all made by Gerrit Valck (fl. 1613-1663), who specialized in these kinds of drinking vessels.
It is interesting to note that Gerrit Valck (through his wife, who was related to a large number of other Amsterdam silversmiths) was an uncle of Martin Droeshout, the engraver of Shakespeare's portrait as frontispiece for his First Folio edition.
The contemporary inscription states the name of its first recipient: Catherine, daughter of Henrick Coppit. She was born at Amsterdam in 1613 and married there on 24 May, 1641 Henrick Heykens, a rich banker's son, but the bride's ancestors were even wealthier, the money having come from her paternal grandfather James Coppit, a proeminent gunpowder merchant, whose undivided estate in 1631 was valued at two hundred thousand florins, thereby making his heirs one of Amsterdam's richest families. Incidentally, Catherine's sister Oopje and her husband Martin Soolmans were both painted by Rembrandt; the pair now graces the Paris Rothschild collections.
The second inscription is not less interesting for the cup's history. August Frederick, Duke of Sussex (1773-1843), the sixth son of King George III, was not only an emancipatory figure and an erudite with a library of over fifty thousand volumes, but also an inveterate collector; apart from a fine cabinet of paintings, he owned a large number of varied objects of applied art and curiosities. After his death it took Christie's four full days to disperse his collections which also included "an unrivalled collection of pipes, Havannah cigars and Manilla cheroots." His "truly magnificent collection of ancient collection of ancient and modern silver, silver-gilt and gold plate", with a total weight of more than 1250 kilograms, was sold in 695 lots, half of which were collectors's items. Our cup must have been acquired by the Duke shortly after 1814, when it was repunched in Holland.