Attributed to the workshop of Samuel Halvorsen Fanden, Norwegian, mid-17th century

the scrolls above the heads of the Virtues inscribed: VERITAS, FIDES, SPES, CHARITAS and IVSTITIA

Overall the condition of the wood is good. There is some wear and dirt to the surface consistent with age with some particular wear to the underside of the feet. There is minor worming throughout the object consistent with material. There are a few minor nicks to the edges of the wood. Two of the feet were possibly reattached.
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This finely carved burr birch tankard can be closely compared to a group attributed to the Norwegian carver Halvor Fanden and his son Samuel Halvorsen Fanden dating to the mid-17th century, who ran a workshop producing the best of Norwegian baroque sculpture.  Compare the present piece with the tankard dating to 1663 and monogrammed SHS illustrated by Gjaerder (op.cit. fig.708), in particular the laurel framed cartouches framed by scrollwork.  The kingdom of Norway was at this time jointly ruled with Denmark and the first archival mention of this workshop is in the 1674 inventory of the Royal Kunstkammer in Copenhagen with a fuller descriptive cataloguing in the 1710 Museum Regium where Halvor Fanden is listed as working  near the town of Bragernaes in the environs of Christiania (present day Oslo). According to Kavli (op.cit.) only three tankards and two covered cups are undisputably by his hand. It is known that he had a substantial workshop employing various members of his extended family.

RELATED LITERATURE
G.Kavli, 'Fanden og Ølkannene', in: Aarbok for Kunstindustrimuseet 1950-58, Oslo, pp. 31-49; P. Gjaerder, Norske drikkekar av tre, Oslo, 1982, pp. 399, fig. 706