Spanish Metal Work.
During the Arab rule in Spain metal work was an important branch of the Moorish arts. The Arab rulers had in their train many accomplished Eastern artists in metal work, and such objects as caskets, jewellery, bracelets, rings, sword and dagger handles, and scabbards.
Fig. 143.—Sword of Boabdil, Madrid. (R.)
Fig. 144.—Spanish Monstrance, 1537. (S.K.M.)
The Moorish caskets are often made of wood, covered with silver or gold plates, the ornamentation being similar to that of the ivory carvings. The Arab or Saracenic metal work of Spain is executed in repoussé, or is chiselled niello work, filigree, or enamelled, and the ornament is usually mixed with the Arab laudatory inscriptions.
The treasure found at Guarrazar, already noticed, shows something of the early metal work of the Spanish Visigoths.
Moorish arms, such as sword sheaths and hilts, are very artistic, as may be seen in the illustration of the sword of Boabdil (Fig. 143), the last of the Moorish kings. The hilt of this sword is made of solid gold, and is enamelled in blue, white, and red. The axle is made of ivory, and is elaborately carved.
Triptychs, altars, processional crosses, and other church furniture were made in Spain in the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries, of Gothic design.
Fig. 145—Spanish Chalice. (R.)
In the fifteenth century there was an astonishing quantity of silversmiths’ work produced. This was owing to the discovery of America and the consequent power and wealth of Spain at this time. The silver throne of the King Don Martin de Aragon belongs to this period, which still exists in the Cathedral of Barcelona. It is covered with a chased ornamentation in the metal work, and has rich embroidered work of gold and precious stones. Many silversmiths came from Italy, Germany, Holland, and France at this period and settled in Spain owing to the great demand for their services. Riaño gives the names of Enrique de Arphe, Jacome Trezzo, Mateo Aleman, Hans Belta, and others who were employed at this time, besides many Spanish goldsmiths.
Fig. 146.—Spanish Pax. (R.)
Fig. 147.—Spanish Jewel; Seventeenth Century. (R.)
A special feature of church furniture of this period in Spain was the Monstrance, or Custodia, an object of architectural design made in gold, silver, or bronze-gilt metals, which has a central part—the lumule or viril—generally made of rock-crystal, in which the sacrament was exposed; sometimes a sun with rays is represented on the monstrance, and usually it is surmounted by a cross in gold and set with jewels (Fig. 144). The designs are in the Renaissance and sometimes in the Gothic style, and they are often eight feet in height. Some of them are carried in procession on Corpus Christi Days. Many works in gold and silver are in Spain that have been made in Mexico, but of Spanish design, in which forms of American flora and fauna are worked into the designs.
A Spanish chalice of Gothic outlines with some Renaissance details is shown at Fig. 145. A beautiful pax of Renaissance design in the Kensington Museum is shown at Fig. 146.
The pendant jewel of the seventeenth century shows the beginnings of the decadence in design (Fig. 147), and the silver dish (Fig. 148), though very rich in effect, is a pronounced step in the direction of unrestrained space-covering that characterizes the design of the late seventeenth century in Spain as well as in other European countries.
Fig. 148.—Spanish Silver Dish; Seventeenth Century. (R.)
Fig. 149.—Moorish Lamp, Bronze; Fourteenth Century. (R.)
Bronze-casting was practised in Spain by the Moors as well as the Spanish themselves. The Moorish hanging lamp (Fig. 149) is a beautiful specimen of bronze-working in pierced open-work. It bears the date of the Hegira, 705 (A.D. 1305). Important works in bronze of the Renaissance period, such as candelabra, monstrances, &c., are still preserved in many of the churches.
From the earliest historic times Spain has been celebrated for the excellent quality of its iron and steel arms and armour. The Romans patronised the Spanish armourers extensively for their swords and other arms after the Carthaginian War. The best swords were made at Bilbilis or Calatayud in Aragon, and were short and wide, with double edges—about 15 to 19 inches in length. A sickle-shaped sword was also made 22 inches in length.
Toledo blades were proverbial for their excellent tempering, and were famous as early as the days of the Romans. Seville was also noted for the excellence of its steel blades, and the Arabs, as we have seen, were highly skilled in metal working, and especially in the making of all kinds of arms and armour, including its ornamentation.
The celebrated sword of Boabdil had a Toledo blade, and including the hilt was 39 inches in length.
The Spanish warriors of the eleventh century had dresses, arms, and armour not unlike the Normans, as represented on the Bayeux Tapestry, which were in imitation of or borrowed from the military habits of the Saracens.
The sword manufactory at Toledo was in its most flourishing state during the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries; it was re-established in the last century, and is in existence at the present day.
Fig. 150.—Spanish Rapiers. (S.K.M.)
Two rapiers of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries are represented at Fig. 150.
Muskets, crossbows, saddles, coats of mail, knives, scissors, and many other objects in steel have been made in Spain from the earliest periods, and many Spanish goods in manufactured steel even at the present day still preserve the Moorish forms.
Metal Work in Italy, Germany, France, and England.
In Italy during the eleventh century an endeavour was made to revive the art of the goldsmith, and many objects of Byzantine workmanship were brought from Constantinople, and also many articles for church uses were made within the walls of the great Benedictine monasteries throughout Italy. An important Romanesque example of metal work of the time of the Emperor Henry II. (1003-24) is now in the Cluny Museum. It is a golden altar front (Fig. 151) that was given by this Emperor to the cathedral of Bâsle, and is nearly 6 feet in width. Figures of the Saviour, three archangels, and a figure of St. Benedict, are in relief of beaten gold and stand each under Romanesque arches.
In England we read of reliquaries being made in the eleventh century having images of gold, the work of Richard, an abbot of St. Albans. Brithnodus, an abbot of Ely, Leo, and Elsinus are names of others who made reliquaries and objects in metal.
Hildesheim in Hanover was a centre of great activity in metal work in the eleventh century, and in the Cathedral of Hildesheim there are candlesticks, crucifixes, and chalices of this period.
At this time in Germany were made great coronas or crowns of light that sometimes spanned the nave of the churches, like that made by Bishop Bernaward (992-1022), and his successor Hezilo for the Cathedral of Hildesheim, a cast of which is now in the Kensington Museum.
The twelfth century was very fertile in important works in gold, silver, bronze, and copper. Metal work was carried to a high degree of elaborate finish and intricacy of design.
Fig. 151.—Golden Altar Front; from Bâsle. Cluny Museum. Eleventh Century.
Some wonderful achievements in casting, plating, and gilding of metals have been performed during this prolific period. The celebrated Gloucester candlestick, now in the Kensington Museum, is a good example of the elaborate style of the twelfth-century metal work (Fig. 152). This is one of the most elaborate and intricate examples of ornamentation that could well be seen in the metal work of any period. Nothing could exceed the fanciful ingenuity of its design: it would, perhaps, have been better if some parts of the design had been left plainer, as a foil for the others. The material of its composition is a kind of white bronze, with a good proportion of silver in the alloy.
Fig. 152.—Gloucester Candlestick;
Twelfth Century.
The churches of this century were, as a rule, furnished with large standing candlesticks or coronas for holding lights, many of which were of good design, were made of silver, and sometimes enamelled. The large seven-branched candlestick of the Cathedral of Milan—before mentioned—is an important work of this period, a copy of which is in the Kensington Museum. The material is gilt bronze, and the candlestick is over 14 feet in height; the design is extremely rich (Fig. 153), the base being composed of four winged dragons with voluted tails; the spaces between the dragons are filled with elaborate scroll-work, and symbolic subjects fill the volutes (Fig. 154). The lower boss is richly ornamented, but the other five are plain. Three pairs of graceful branches spring from the central stem to hold the lights.
The whole design is a reminiscence of the Jewish seven-branched candlestick. One smaller in size is in the Brunswick Cathedral, and another one is at Essen.
Censers, reliquaries, and shrines were made at this period in the shape of little churches (Fig. 155). The reliquaries contained the bones of saints or other precious relics. Sometimes they were made in the form of a human head, with a band or ribbon around it set with gems. This kind of reliquary was called a “chef”; one of this description is in the Cathedral at Bâsle.
Fig. 153—Seven-Branched Candlestick in Milan Cathedral.
The bronze censer (Fig. 156) of the twelfth century is a good specimen of the architectural design in the Romanesque metal work of this time. The reliquaries are usually of copper-gilt and enamelled, or are occasionally in gold. These objects have been noticed in the chapter on enamels. The larger coffer-shaped ones with sloping roofs are called châsses, some of which are six and seven feet in length. Most of them are of copper-gilt and enamelled, and are German work, made for the most part at Cologne and in the Rhenish Provinces, and were generally of Romanesque or Gothic design even up to the sixteenth century.
Fig. 154.—Lower Boss of the Milan Candlestick; Twelfth Century.
Fig. 155.—Shrine or Reliquary, Copper Gilt; Twelfth Century.
The shrine of St. Sebaldus by Peter Vischer already mentioned is a curious mixture of Gothic and Italian forms. The celebrated shrine or silver reliquary of the Church of Orvieto is made to represent the church itself; it is said to weigh 600 pounds, and is enriched with panels of translucent enamel and small statuettes. It is the finest work of the Italian goldsmith’s art of the fourteenth century, and was made by Ugolino (1338), an artist of Siena. Heads of the croziers and bishops’ pastoral staffs were often designed in elaborate architectural compositions, and generally speaking Gothic ornamentation is enthralled by architectural forms even to the smallest details when the plan of the object to be decorated is architectural, which happens in most cases; when, however, the plan is not so, the freedom and fancy of the designer revelled in the beauty of the curving, twisting, foliage, and grotesque work, as may be seen in the metal work of the eleventh and twelfth centuries. The Gloucester and Milan candlesticks will afford examples of this.
In the twelfth century Limoges was very active in the making of articles for secular purposes as well as for religious uses. Common jewellery of enamelled bronze was exported to all parts, such as brooches or morses, buckles, armour decoration, and monumental plates with effigies, one of the latter being that of Aylmer de Valence in Westminster Abbey, made at Limoges and brought to England.
The monastic establishments were the schools and workshops of all the art produced in the Middle Ages, and not only splendid examples of metal work, but manuscript illuminations, wood and stone carving, and many other kinds of works were produced within their walls. After the beginning of the thirteenth century the arts were passing into the hands of the laymen, and artists were at the same time beginning to receive greater encouragement from the patronage of wealthy persons.
Fig. 156.—Censer; Twelfth Century.
Almost every kind of article was now made in gold, silver, and bronze, such as cups, jugs, bowls, standing cups, mazer and wassail bowls, articles for the table, such as salt-cellars, ewers, basins, and nefs, etc.
Fig. 157.—Mazer Bowl; 1450; Ironmongers’ Hall.
The Nef was a kind of table ornament or sweetmeat dish in the form of a fully-rigged ship, and was sometimes mounted on wheels: the modern épergne corresponds to the nef. A mazer bowl was so called because it was made usually of maple wood—masere being the old word for maple.
Fig. 158.—Hour-glass Salt, given 1493, at New College, Oxford.
These bowls have usually a silver or gold rim, and were often lined with silver, but the name is wrongly applied to bowls made entirely of metal, as it sometimes is. Fig. 157 is an illustration of a mazer bowl of the fifteenth century belonging to the Ironmongers’ Company of London. Salt-cellars were also important table decorations. The salt was put on the table in such a position as to mark the dividing line between the guests of different rank. There is a salt in the form of a giant, a work of the fifteenth century, at All Souls’ College, Oxford, and some other salts of this period and earlier were often made in form of hour-glasses (Fig. 158).
Very few specimens of household plate have come down to us from the thirteenth or fourteenth centuries, although we have many records of the great quantities of jewels and plate that belonged to the kings and feudal lords.
Spoons and knives were made and used at a very early period of the world’s history, but forks do not seem to have come into general use until some time in the fourteenth century. Sacramental cups and chalices, and all kinds of drinking cups, were made at this time. The beautiful cup of Gothic design with translucent enamels, now in the Kensington Museum, is probably a work of the fourteenth century, and of Burgundian origin. (See Fig. [103].)
Three sacramental chalices are illustrated at Fig. 159, and belonging to the fourteenth century, and two at Figs. 160 and 161, of the fifteenth century, all of which are Gothic in design; two also are given of the sixteenth century (Figs. 162 and 163), the latter being of Spanish origin designed in the style of the Renaissance, which is interesting as showing the development of the standing cup from the chalice, this example being in the transitional stage.
Fig. 159.—Gothic Chalices; Fourteenth Century.
The difference between the Gothic and Renaissance cups is very marked, the foot of the former being either trefoil, or more often hexagonal in plan (Fig. 164), with the distinctive central knot or boss on the plain upright stem for grasping purposes, while the Renaissance cups are usually round in the plan of the foot, or sometimes octagonal, and have a horizontal character which is obtained by the use of mouldings cutting the cup into parts. (See Spanish chalice, Fig. 163.)
Fig. 160.—Chalice; Fifteenth Century.
Fig. 161.—Chalice; Fifteenth Century.
This upright character of the Gothic cup is well emphasized in the beautiful enamelled cup belonging to the corporation of King’s Lynn (Fig. 166), and the horizontal features in the foot, stem, and bowl may be seen in the standing cup of Renaissance design in the Corpus Christi College, Cambridge (Fig. 165).
Fig. 162.—German Chalice, with Paten; 1520.
Fig. 163.—Spanish Chalice; 1549.
The base of the Gothic cup splays outwards from the knot downwards, while the Renaissance base mouldings may be enclosed by a line of the opposite curvature, forming a dome of a semicircular section; and lastly the calyx of the bowl of the latter cups is always a richly ornamented feature, in opposition to the plain or almost plain bowl and calyx of the Gothic varieties. Many Gothic cups and hanaps show decided architectural constructions, as may be noticed in some of the illustrations, and some have quite a landscape treatment, as in the curious gilt metal hanap (Fig. 167), which is probably of Nuremberg manufacture.
Fig. 164.—English Chalice, Corpus Christi College, Oxford; 1507. (C.)
Clocks were also objects which received a pronounced architectural treatment. A favourite design was a church tower, or a fortified tower, embattled, and having a spreading base, in which were open archways.
Fig. 165.—Standing Cup, Corpus
Christi College, Cambridge;
1599. (C.)
Fig. 166.—Enamelled Cup at King’s
Lynn; 1350. (C.)
The goldsmiths of Italy in the sixteenth century were painters and architects as well, and a decided architectural construction is clearly seen in most of the gold and silver-smithery of this period. The monstrance (Fig. 168) is a good illustration of this, and another is the pax (Fig. 169). The church altar furniture and silver plate of the period also partook of the prevailing architectural features.
Fig. 167.—Hanap; German. (S.K.M.)
Benvenuto Cellini (1500-71) is the greatest name among the many great ones of the sixteenth century in the art of the goldsmith. Some of his work has already been noticed in the chapter on enamels. Cellini represents the art of the Italian goldsmith and enameller at its best period. He was famous for his designs in jewellery, in which he set precious stones in cartouche work combined with griffins, masks, and well-modelled little figures (Fig. 170). Many cups made in lapis-lazuli, sardonyx, and rock-crystal are attributed to him. He was also a successful worker in bronze, the best of his works in this metal being the statue group of Perseus and Medusa, and the colossal bas-relief of the Nymph of Fontainebleau, copies of which may be seen in Kensington Museum. A graphic and very interesting account of the casting of the Perseus group is given in his autobiography. A fine shield in damascene work by Cellini is in Windsor Castle. His smaller works in gold and jewellery probably exist in greater numbers than can be verified owing to the absence of his signature or other identifying marks. According to his own account, when besieged with the Pope, Clement VII., in the Castle of Angelo, by the Spanish, he unset the precious stones and jewellery, and melted down at the command of the Pope about two hundredweight of gold and silver crowns, tiaras, cups, and reliquaries of ancient workmanship in order to convert them into money and medals as required by the Pope. This gives us a good idea of how the fine treasures of the Middle Ages must have been destroyed under similar circumstances, and excites our wonder how any valuable piece of goldsmith’s work has escaped the melting-pot, which was generally the sequel to the pillaging of conquering troops or the exigencies of war. Cellini’s visit to France and his work in that country gave a great impulse to the style of the Renaissance, and his countryman, Primaticcio the sculptor, spread the style still further in France.
Fig. 168.—Monstrance; Italian; Fifteenth Century. (S.K.M.)
Some names of Italian goldsmiths about or immediately after Cellini’s time are—Luca Agnolo, Valerio Vicentino, Pilote, Piero di Mino, Vincenzo Dati, Girolamo del Prato. The latter was a native of Lombardy. Benedict Ramel, François Desjardins, Delahaie, and François Briot are names of French goldsmiths of the sixteenth century. Many models of vases, ewers, plates, cups, and tankards were made by Briot in pewter that are still in existence. These pewter models were usually made by goldsmiths, no doubt, as models for their gold and silver work, or in some cases were casts taken from the finished works, and kept as mementos or as replicas in design of their more costly works, and were also sold to those whose means would not permit them to indulge in the more costly gold and silver plate. Briot’s pewter models are among the best examples of design and workmanship in metal of the sixteenth century.
In Germany the art of the metal worker flourished in the sixteenth century in its greatest perfection at Nuremberg and Augsburg.
The German goldsmiths’ work, especially at the end of the century, was almost identical with that of the Italian school. The similarity is seen in the details of the ornamentation, the masks and figures; the difference may be noted in the extraordinary development of the cartouche and strap-work of the German work, more especially in that of the Netherlands.
Many German artists of this time, who were chiefly engravers, designed for the goldsmiths and produced engravings from which goldsmiths’ work and enamel paintings on metal were executed.
Fig. 169.—Pax; Italian; Sixteenth Century. (S.K.M.)
Fig. 170.—Pendant, attributed to Cellini, in the Library at Paris.
Virgil Solis, of Nuremberg, Theodor de Bry, of Liége, the Collaerts—father and son—of Antwerp, are some of the principal engravers who designed very largely for jewellery and other goldsmiths’ work.
These German engravers and designers of ornament went under the designation of the “Little Masters,” but in point of fact some of their work would compare favourably with the compositions of many of the so-called “Great Masters.” Generally speaking, they were pupils or followers of Albert Dürer.
As a designer and engraver of figure work, Hans Sebald Beham must be placed first in the rank of the “Little Masters,” and for ornament purely the name of Heinrich Aldegrever must head the list.
Albert Dürer, whose great name overshadows all German art, though he tried his gifted hand at ornament, as in the car of the “Triumph” and in the “Book of the Hours,” designed for the Emperor Maximilian, was not altogether successful in the matter of ornament, for his work in this line is much too loose and florid, with much unrestrained and naturalistic flourishing.
Hans Burgkmair, of Nuremberg, his contemporary, was better at ornament than Dürer, and was the chief artist of that great work, the “Triumph of Maximilian,” in which he strove to unite the Gothic and the style of the Renaissance. His work generally takes the form of elaborate heraldry.
Hans Holbein, as well as being a great painter, was also a famous designer for goldsmiths’ work, and was a master in ornament, especially in the application of the figure to ornamental purposes. He was in some measure a pupil of Hans Burgkmair, and was thoroughly imbued with the spirit of the Renaissance. Holbein the elder—his father—was a well-known artist, who worked in the old German Gothic style.
The younger Holbein began his artistic career as a goldsmith, and his designs of sword and dagger handles, in which the figure forms so admirably follow the lines of the composition in a remarkable degree of ornamental fitness, reveal his fine sense and feeling for ornament.
In Italy the sculptor, Luca Signorelli, employed the figure and animal forms with an equal degree of skill, and with the same feeling for ornament. Both artists thoroughly understood the correct laws of ornamental composition, which was not by any means a universal gift with the artists of the Renaissance period.
Holbein designed many cups, one of which was a rich example of a standing cup and cover which was designed for Jane Seymour, one of the wives of Henry VIII. of England. The drawing for this cup is preserved in the British Museum.
During the sixteenth century the art of metal working in Germany, especially at Nuremberg, Swabian Augsburg, and Lübeck, reached a high state of perfection under the great patronage of wealthy families, such as the Fugger family, of Augsburg, and others. Holbein, and other German, Dutch, and Flemish artists, worked in England, and besides much German and Flemish Renaissance work found its way into England, and influenced in a great degree the style of the metal work of this country.
In addition to the gold and silver plate of the kings’ palaces and of private families, corporations and colleges accumulated great quantities of plate, and before banks were properly established, gold and silver plate and jewellery were the chief store of wealth that could, when necessary, be easily converted into money.
King Henry VII. had a service of plate valued at twenty thousand pounds. This monarch employed the Italian sculptor and goldsmith, Torrigiano, and other foreign artists.
Henry VIII. also employed many Italian and German artists and goldsmiths, and it is believed that Cellini executed some of his finest jewellery for this king.
Not only Henry VIII., but his great lords and ministers, had extensive collections of plate. Cardinal Wolsey had a large safe or cupboard, barred all round for protection, in which was displayed a goodly show of gold cups and other sumptuous vessels for use at his table.
Fig. 171.—Apostle Spoons; 1566; at Corpus Christi College, Cambridge. (C.)
“Apostle spoons” were made at this and subsequent periods, and were so called from their having little figures of the Apostles modelled on the tops of the handles (Fig. 171).
Fig. 172—Silver-gilt German Cup; Sixteenth Century.
The silver, gold, and bronze work in Queen Elizabeth’s time in England was made in the style of the Renaissance, like that of Germany. Italian and German work at this time was almost identical (Figs. 172 and 173); and even when the Rococo decadence was prevalent in architecture, both on the Continent and in England, goldsmiths’ work was the last industry that fell under its influence, especially when we compare it with the contemporary pottery, furniture, and other decorative art. Of course, at the latter end of the seventeenth and during the eighteenth century, the design in metal work in France, and also in England, was sacrificed to display and ostentation; but at the same time a comparative purity of style is seen in much of the plate made in the reigns of William and Mary, James II., and Queen Anne, of English manufacture. The silver and gold plate of the “Queen Anne” period (1702-14) is highly prized for its beauty of design and massive character, some examples of which will be noticed presently.
Fig. 173.—Bronze Candlestick; Italian; Sixteenth Century.
In the metal work, especially in gold and silver of the seventeenth century, towards the middle of the century a certain heaviness of design gradually crept in; although a good deal of fine work was still produced by the artists who belonged to the older schools, and, as a matter of course, the best work belonged to the earlier part of the century.
A fine freedom of line and handling is seen in the Flemish salver (Fig. 174) of Renaissance design. The French example of a silver-gilt cup and cover is unusually simple for French work of this century (Fig. 175), and an English silver casket of the same date (Fig. 176) shows a similarity of style: the serpent handles and covers are almost identical.
About the middle of the seventeenth century silversmiths’ work in Germany began to assume a bulbous or lobed character, and gradually became more florid in design (Fig. 177). This bulbous or gadrooned work was carried out to a greater degree in English work of this period, of which the gold cup rat Exeter College (Fig. 178) is a good example. The decoration of metal work in England at this time consisted of flowers and foliage chased on the repoussé surfaces, and often large rich acanthus-leaves were used, especially on the vases and silver furniture of Charles II.’s time. The lobed panel work of Germany was developed in England into lozenge and pine-shaped raised surfaces, and the details of the French Louis Quatorze were added as decoration.
Fig. 174.—Flemish Salver; Seventeenth Century. (S.K.M.)
Tankards were made in silver, or sometimes in pottery richly mounted in silver or pewter. The tankard has a wide base, the body narrowing towards the mouth, and has usually a cover (Fig. 179), while the beaker or drinking cup is the reverse in shape—narrow in the base, and widening towards the mouth, and is without a handle or cover.
Fig. 175.—Cup with Cover, Silver-gilt; French; Seventeenth Century. (J.)
The English silver tankards were straight-sided, with naturalistic decoration. Modern tankards for beer-drinking uses are made in pewter or Britannia metal.
Fig. 176.—Silver Casket; Seventeenth Century.
Fig. 177.—Nuremberg Tankard.
In the Rhine Provinces, in Germany, and in Switzerland stoneware tankards with metal covers and mountings are still in use. Tankards in the seventeenth century were made with pegs inserted in the sides at regulated distances, so that each drinker might quaff his measured portion when the vessel was handed round.
Fig. 178.—Cup of Gold, circa 1660-70, at Exeter College, Oxford. (C.)
In the reign of James I. many sumptuous objects in services and toilet furniture were made in gold and silver. The baronial halls in England were extremely rich in large pieces of plate: huge salvers, vases, basins, jugs, cups, toilet services, and even tables, chairs, mirror-frames, and fire-dogs were made in silver.
Fig. 179.—English Tankard; Seventeenth Century.
In France, during the reign of Louis XIV., similar gold and silver vessels and sumptuous furniture were made in the rich and massive style of the period. Balin and Delaunay are mentioned among others who were skilful goldsmiths to that monarch, and who worked under the directions of the chief painter and tapestry designer, Lebrun.
England not only made a good deal of this silver furniture, but also imported it largely from France; most of it, however, was melted down to pay for the wars of Charles I.
A few remaining examples are still at Knole Park, in Kent, consisting of silver tables, mirror-frames, fire-dogs, &c. (Fig. 180). Similar objects of this period are now at Windsor Castle (Fig. 181), of which copies in electrotype are in the Kensington Museum.
Some of the gold plate preserved in the Tower of London with the regalia is of this period.
After the date of 1660 gold and silver-smithery becomes fluted and less florid in decoration, but some of it still keeps the gadrooned and bulbous character.
Fig. 180.—Silver Fire-Dog at Knole Park.
Towards the end of the century, in the time of William III., the flutings were less in number, and consequently became larger in scale, and in the early part of the eighteenth century the metal work in England became plainer, depending more on the lines of its contour for effect than on its decoration (Fig. 182). Mouldings were plainer, and broad spaces of convex and concave shapes producing a massive and, in many cases, an elegant appearance (Figs. 182, 183), which gave to the Queen Anne plate a mark of great distinction.
Fig. 181.—Silver Table at Windsor Castle.
About 1750 the forms in silver work partook, in many instances, of the prevailing fashion in the chinaware of that date, though without the extravagance in the decoration. From 1770, and for about ten years later, the designs became more attenuated, and were peculiar in having the dividing lines of the design composed of fillets of beads (Figs. 185 and 187). The beaded style of silversmiths’ work and in all metal work, pottery, and furniture of this period was due to the development of classic design that took place in France and in England consequent on the discovery of the buried city of Pompeii in 1770.
The brothers Adam in England designed a good deal of silversmiths’ work, of which the three illustrations given are examples of their style. Light wreaths, medallions, fillets of beads, festoons, masks, feet and legs of animals composed the decoration of the Adams’ style.
The brothers John and Robert Adam had travelled in Italy, and had brought with them pronounced classic ideas which not only influenced their own and other contemporary work in architecture and furniture designs, but in silversmiths’ work also their influence was widely felt (Fig. 188).
Fig. 182.—Wine Fountain; 1710. (C.)
In France the classic ideas were also very prevalent about this period in silversmiths’ work. The “Louis-Seize” candlestick (Fig. 189) is one of a pair from the Jones Collection in the South Kensington Museum, and is an admirable example of the style; though it is said to have been made at Turin in Italy in 1783, it is certainly of French design. It has the square base so peculiar to French work of this period, with the wreaths and medallions so characteristic of the style in question, that of Louis XVI.
Fig. 183.—Candelabrum, Haberdashers’ Hall, London. (C.)
Another candlestick (Fig. 190) from the Jones Collection is probably Italian in style and manufacture, and belongs to the early part of the eighteenth century.
Fig. 184.—Eighteenth-Century Bowl. (S.K.M.)
Fig. 185.—Tureen at Windsor Castle, 1773.
Fig. 187.—Silver Vase; 1770.
Fig. 186.—Chocolate Pot; 1777. (C.)
Fig. 188.—Vase by Adam.
At the time of the Revolution, and immediately after, the style of the silver work deteriorated in France. Vast quantities of plate were seized and sent off to the Mint by the Revolutionary army, and naturally an art like the goldsmith’s, that ministered to the needs of luxury, was in those times at a low ebb.
Fig. 189.—Candlestick, Silver-gilt; Louis Seize. (S.K.M.)
Fig. 190.—Candlestick, Silver-gilt; Italian; Eighteenth Century. (S.K.M.)
In England in the early part of the nineteenth century some good work was executed from the designs of Flaxman and Stothard, chiefly in the classic style; the Wellington Shield may be mentioned as an example; but about the middle of this century gold and silver work was characterized by even a greater degree of naturalism in design than that of the French debased style from which it was copied. Nothing could exceed the vulgarity and bad taste in the design of silversmiths’ work made about fifty or forty years ago. All architectural principles that should guide the design of relief modelling and construction were thrown to the winds, and naturalism unnaturally applied and mixed in any heterogeneous way was quite fashionable. For instance, we have huge épergnes where stags and other animals from the Highlands of Scotland or the Welsh mountains are decorating silver rock-work from which the tropical palms of Africa are seen to grow out of their clefts, affording grateful shade to the natives of the British moorland. The art of the silversmith in England about this period had suffered more than any other artistic industry, and in the matter of design it seemed to have reached the twilight state of semi-insanity, and was utterly devoid of any artistic merit.
A great improvement is, however, to be seen in the work of respectable firms and in that of many private craftsmen of to-day, but many shop windows are still filled with costly work in the precious metals that are worthless from an artistic point of view.