.jpg?w=1)
Lot Essay
The present lot was made for the Dordrecht arbalests guild of St. George. The original use of the piece is unknown. It is almost identical to a piece made by Dordrecht silversmith Govert Steenbeek for the same guild, and which is thought to be a drum shield, i.e. a decorative shield that was attached to a drum (Depicted in: Dordrechts Goud en Zilver op. cit.). However, the identification is based on a thumb-nail sketch of a drum shield of the local company De Vrijheid in G. Paape De geschiedenis van de gewapende burgercorpsen in Nederland (op. cit.) and is not convincing at all.
Only one Dutch drum shield is known. It is the shield of the Hague guild of St. Sebastian and is identified as such by an inscription. According to the inscription the drummer would receive three guilders for every time the shield was carried. Compared with the Hague shield both pieces from Dordrecht appear too fragile to have served as drum shields. Both pieces definitely need a solid and fixed support. A ceremonial standard or a wall would be a perfect support.
In 1677 Matthys Balen made a description of the valuables and showpieces in the quarters of the guild of St. George, including Een Zilver-Vergulden Halsband, van den Gulden-Vliese, aangehecht, l'Ordre du Sainte Esprit (A silver gilt collar with the Golden Fleece, attached the Order of the Holy spirit), three silver gilt beakers and three silver gilt cups with covers. Seemingly the design of the present lot mirrors the collar.
M. Balen, Beschryvinge der stad Dordrecht, Dordrecht, 1677 (Reissue , Dordrecht, 1966), pp. 670-671.
Catalogue of the exhibition: Dordrechts Goud en Zilver, Dordrecht (Museum Mr. S. van Gijn), 1975, pp. 46-47, nr. 144.
Mr. S. van Gijn, Dordracum Illustratum II, Dordrecht, 1908-1912, no. 2961.
G. Paape, De geschiedenis van de gewapende burgercorpsen in Nederland I (part two), Delft, 1787, p. 33.
Only one Dutch drum shield is known. It is the shield of the Hague guild of St. Sebastian and is identified as such by an inscription. According to the inscription the drummer would receive three guilders for every time the shield was carried. Compared with the Hague shield both pieces from Dordrecht appear too fragile to have served as drum shields. Both pieces definitely need a solid and fixed support. A ceremonial standard or a wall would be a perfect support.
In 1677 Matthys Balen made a description of the valuables and showpieces in the quarters of the guild of St. George, including Een Zilver-Vergulden Halsband, van den Gulden-Vliese, aangehecht, l'Ordre du Sainte Esprit (A silver gilt collar with the Golden Fleece, attached the Order of the Holy spirit), three silver gilt beakers and three silver gilt cups with covers. Seemingly the design of the present lot mirrors the collar.
M. Balen, Beschryvinge der stad Dordrecht, Dordrecht, 1677 (Reissue , Dordrecht, 1966), pp. 670-671.
Catalogue of the exhibition: Dordrechts Goud en Zilver, Dordrecht (Museum Mr. S. van Gijn), 1975, pp. 46-47, nr. 144.
Mr. S. van Gijn, Dordracum Illustratum II, Dordrecht, 1908-1912, no. 2961.
G. Paape, De geschiedenis van de gewapende burgercorpsen in Nederland I (part two), Delft, 1787, p. 33.