A large early Baroque silver gilt cup and cover
With lobed scalloped base supporting a baluster form shaft with four scroll motifs designed as stylised seahorses. The tall, slightly waisted cup with embossed lobes engraved with foliate décor alternating with a row of engraved flowers in hexagonal reserves. The lobes of the upper section engraved with 25 names dated between 1648 and 1861. The last engraving reads "Frederic H. Betts", dated 1892. The domed lid with conforming décor and crowned by a figure of Justitia. Engraved below the base with a collector’s inscription “Nuremberg Hanap Purchased at Copenhagen Denmark July 1892". H 46.3 cm, weight 858 g.
Attributed to Nienburg, maker's mark HGT or GHT, c. 1640.
Prof. Dr. Ernst-Ludwig Richter writes in the results of his research (excerpt): “Since the majority of the names listed on the goblet relate directly to the town of Nienburg an der Weser, it is plausible to assume that the piece was housed in Nienburg between 1648 and 1861. It is interesting to note that the majority of people named, in as far as can be identified, originate from the “better ranks” of society. Three council members and senators are named, and Marcus Toyte was even mayor of Nienburg. We also find wealthy merchants and high-ranking officials with titles such as “Oberfaktor” and “Schatzeinnehmer”. This list of representatives from higher ranking professions and local officials hardly indicates that the goblet was used by a marksman's or trade guild, but that it was more likely once housed in the Nienburg city hall. Like most major towns at the time, Nienburg would surely also have housed a certain amount of silver.
Together with the inscription on the underside, the latest name to be engraved on the goblet indicates that it was purchased by an English-speaking collector on a trip to Copenhagen in 1892. He then erroneously attributed it to Nuremberg and had his name and the date engraved on the goblet.
Certificate
This lot includes documentation by Prof. Dr. Ernst-Ludwig Richter, Freudental, from September 2015 with exhaustive research on all of the people mentioned in the engravings.