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Lot Essay
Spanning an astonishing five centuries, the unbroken provenance of the present cup can be traced back to its original owners. The arms prick-engraved on the shield of the standing warrior final are those of Hillersdon, for Richard May (1536-1587) and his wife Mary Hillersdon (1544⁄8-1618), who were married in the Saint Mary Le Bow Church, London, on 25 January 1562. As the date of this cup so closely corresponds with the couple’s marriage, it is reasonable to presume that this cup was a wedding gift, likely from the bride’s parents, John Hillersdon (1508-1569) and Elizabeth Kirkham (1510-1575). May was a merchant tailor and later master of his guild, who in 1581 purchased Rawmere (or Mid Lavant) in Sussex. The cup then descended in the female line to May’s granddaughter, Mary Hicks (1587-1643), who in 1606 married firstly Charles Morrison, 1st Bt. Cashiobury (1587-1628). Mary, who married again in 1629 and 1632, was youngest daughter and co-heiress of Baptist Hicks, 1st Viscount Campden (1551-1629), a textile importer and adviser to Elizabeth I regarding her purchases of rich silks, satins and velvets. In 1618 Mary presented the cup and cover to the St. Mary’s Church, Watford, as recorded by the engraved inscription The guife of the Lady Mary Morison to the Church of Watford Anno Domini 1618, which encircles the body of the cup. She and her first husband, Charles, are buried in the Essex Chapel, originally known as the Morison Chapel. Their graves are marked by an elaborate white marble monument carved by Nicholas Stone, which depicts a reclined Charles propped on his elbow and with hand resting on a scull. Next to him Mary lies in slumber with her head on a cushion. Her richly embroidered dress a nod to her father and grandfather’s professions in the textiles trade.
The present lot displays all the signature design elements of classic covered cups made in the Tudor period. A comparable cup, the Seymour Cup, commemorating the brief marriage of Henry VIII and Jane Seymour, was designed by Hans Holbein (1497-1543) in 1536. Although the Seymour cup was sold in 1625 at the order of Charles I and subsequently melted down in 1629, Holbein’s spectacular drawing can be viewed at the Ashmolean Museum, Oxford. The silhouettes of both the Seymour and Zilkha cups are quite similar with domed bases rising to vase-form stems repeated on the covers and thistle form bowls. The chased and engraved ornamental elements are then arraigned on a series of horizontal bands. While the maker of the Zilkha’s cup, Wiliam Denham (1519-1583), was likely not familiar with Holbein’s designs for Henry VIII’s court, similar designs and ornamental prints were in circulation. In 1538 German print maker, Hans Brosamer (1550-1552) published 44 designs of plate expressly for the use of goldsmiths. Brosamer’s first edition, which included 31 designs for covered cups, would certainly have served as a design source for Denham and his contemporaries. In his catalogue of the Zilkha collection, Timothy Schroder notes that the maker William Denham’s served as Prime Warden of the Goldsmiths’ Company in 1580. His shop sign was ‘The Gylte Cup’ (Schroder, 2012, p. 97).
The present lot displays all the signature design elements of classic covered cups made in the Tudor period. A comparable cup, the Seymour Cup, commemorating the brief marriage of Henry VIII and Jane Seymour, was designed by Hans Holbein (1497-1543) in 1536. Although the Seymour cup was sold in 1625 at the order of Charles I and subsequently melted down in 1629, Holbein’s spectacular drawing can be viewed at the Ashmolean Museum, Oxford. The silhouettes of both the Seymour and Zilkha cups are quite similar with domed bases rising to vase-form stems repeated on the covers and thistle form bowls. The chased and engraved ornamental elements are then arraigned on a series of horizontal bands. While the maker of the Zilkha’s cup, Wiliam Denham (1519-1583), was likely not familiar with Holbein’s designs for Henry VIII’s court, similar designs and ornamental prints were in circulation. In 1538 German print maker, Hans Brosamer (1550-1552) published 44 designs of plate expressly for the use of goldsmiths. Brosamer’s first edition, which included 31 designs for covered cups, would certainly have served as a design source for Denham and his contemporaries. In his catalogue of the Zilkha collection, Timothy Schroder notes that the maker William Denham’s served as Prime Warden of the Goldsmiths’ Company in 1580. His shop sign was ‘The Gylte Cup’ (Schroder, 2012, p. 97).