MARK OF ADAM FLETCHER, BASEL, CIRCA 1682

The engraved arms are those of Pierre Tanner (1634-1702) who served as Abbot of Lucelle from 1677 until his death. Born in Colmar, during a brief period when occupied by the Swedish army, to parents Georg Tanner, the bursar of the Saint-Martin’s Church and Maria Buchinger, Tanner entered the novitiate in 1655 and studied theology and philosophy in Dijon and Dole. He was ordained into the priesthood in 1660 and subsequently became a prior. In early 1677 he was elected abbot of the priory at Saint-Apolliniare, an annex of the Cistercian Abbey in Lucelle, after forcing the resignation of the presiding abbot, Edmond Quiquerez (d. 1677). Tanner was known for his cantankerous temperament; stubborn, vindictive and litigious, he initiated numerous lawsuits. The construction of a new convent, as conceived by Tanner, became the subject of a number of these legal pursuits, and Tanner sued his architect, suppliers and leaseholders. He also aimed to better the profitability of the abbey through the exploitation of iron mines and forests in Löwenburg, which had been granted to the abbey (rather than the French crown) in 1681.

The engraved inscription on the present lot translates to The monastery of Lucelle to it’s advocate, the most excellent and noble Adam François, Doctor of Laws, on account of the case against the nobleman D.[?] Hendell which was so brilliantly carried through 1682. The inscription coupled with the standing figure of Justice with her scales, indicate that the present standing bowl was very clearly intended to honor a legal victory. While little of François or Hendell are known, the dating of the inscription suggests the gift could have been related to litigation of the new convent or securing the abbey’s rich land holdings. By 1690, Tanner was bankrupt with his debts amounting an astonishing 300,000 pounds. By comparison, the annual income of the abbey’s holdings in Löwenburg was about 20,000 pounds. On 6 December 1699, a fire swept through the abbey, destroying the library but sparing the church. Thereafter, Tanner left Lucelle and retired at the priory at Blotzheim, where he is buried in the chapel (see E. Sitzmann, Dictionary of Biography of Famous Men of Alsace, vol. 2, Rixheim, 1910, p. 858).

Goldsmith Johann Fechter (1649-1718) became master in 1670. He was part of the Basel-based Fechter goldsmithing dynasty, which included some twelve silversmiths between the late 16^th and mid-18^th centuries. Basel was the nearest silver production center to Lucelle, and would have be the reasonable place to source a commission such as the present standing bowl (Schroder, 2012, p. 156).