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拍品專文
The present box is struck with the letter 'B' for 1700. The maker's mark reads AVS above what seems to be a mountain. It is of a type that was quite common at the end of the 17th Century in The Hague. Marks with a comparable composition were used by master HCB (Voet 11), GVW (Voet54), and JVH (Voet 58).
If we only look at the initials, Adriaan van Sanden is the likely maker of the present box. He married 22 March 1699 at the age of 20 years and entered the guild on 25 June 1701. In The Hague, silversmiths of many instances started producing work before they were sworn in (See also Voet pp.153-154). The date of marriage therefore seems to be an acceptable terminus post quem, and for that reason it might very well be possible to date a work by Van Sanden in 1700.
The mountain in the maker's mark might be explained as follows: 1) It may be a derivative of his mother's maiden name Tegelenberg, or 2) Van Sanden refers to "sand" and therefore a dune or a mountain was chosen as a mark. Further clues which might support this hypothesis could be found in heraldry. An unlikely second candidate as the maker of the present box is The Hague goldsmith Adriaen van Spijck who worked between 1682 and 1721.
On the lid of the box Hercules is depicted. Hercules (Greek Heracles) was the hero and the personification of physical strength and courage in Greek Mythology. He was one of the most popular figures in classical and later art. His twelve labours, in which he triumphs over evil against great odds, are partly myth, partly heroic saga, reflecting his dual nature as god and hero. Hercules' labours were undertaken as a penance for slaying his own children in a fit of madness. He was ordered by the Delphic oracle to serve Eurystheus, king of Tiryns, for twelve years and to undertake any task he might require. Serving a mortal in a menial role was the punishment for a god who offended the Olympians. His third labour was to capture the Arcadian Stag alive. Hercules pursued the beast for a year, and finally wounded it with an arrow. On the lid of the present box we see how Hercules captures the Arcadian stag by grasping its antlers with both hands.
Comparative literature:
Hall, James, Dictionary of Subjects & Symbols in Art, London,1974, pp.147-153.
Voet Jr., E., Gelder, H.E. Van. Merken van Haagsche goud- en zilversmeden. Voorafgegaan door Haagsche goud- en zilversmeden uit de XVIe, XVIIe, en XVIIIe eeuw, 's-Gravenhage, 1941.
If we only look at the initials, Adriaan van Sanden is the likely maker of the present box. He married 22 March 1699 at the age of 20 years and entered the guild on 25 June 1701. In The Hague, silversmiths of many instances started producing work before they were sworn in (See also Voet pp.153-154). The date of marriage therefore seems to be an acceptable terminus post quem, and for that reason it might very well be possible to date a work by Van Sanden in 1700.
The mountain in the maker's mark might be explained as follows: 1) It may be a derivative of his mother's maiden name Tegelenberg, or 2) Van Sanden refers to "sand" and therefore a dune or a mountain was chosen as a mark. Further clues which might support this hypothesis could be found in heraldry. An unlikely second candidate as the maker of the present box is The Hague goldsmith Adriaen van Spijck who worked between 1682 and 1721.
On the lid of the box Hercules is depicted. Hercules (Greek Heracles) was the hero and the personification of physical strength and courage in Greek Mythology. He was one of the most popular figures in classical and later art. His twelve labours, in which he triumphs over evil against great odds, are partly myth, partly heroic saga, reflecting his dual nature as god and hero. Hercules' labours were undertaken as a penance for slaying his own children in a fit of madness. He was ordered by the Delphic oracle to serve Eurystheus, king of Tiryns, for twelve years and to undertake any task he might require. Serving a mortal in a menial role was the punishment for a god who offended the Olympians. His third labour was to capture the Arcadian Stag alive. Hercules pursued the beast for a year, and finally wounded it with an arrow. On the lid of the present box we see how Hercules captures the Arcadian stag by grasping its antlers with both hands.
Comparative literature:
Hall, James, Dictionary of Subjects & Symbols in Art, London,1974, pp.147-153.
Voet Jr., E., Gelder, H.E. Van. Merken van Haagsche goud- en zilversmeden. Voorafgegaan door Haagsche goud- en zilversmeden uit de XVIe, XVIIe, en XVIIIe eeuw, 's-Gravenhage, 1941.