A Silver-Gilt Ciborium and Cover, Spanish or Spanish Colonial, Second Half 16th Century

Property from the Estate of Alexis Gregory, Sold to Benefit the Alexis Gregory Foundation

A Silver-Gilt Ciborium and Cover, Spanish or Spanish Colonial, Second Half 16th Century

the drum-shaped body cast with masks, fruit and strapwork on matted ground, the stepped domed cover chased with swags of fruit and applied with two cast turned heads alternating with two cast cherubs with twisted bodies holding emblems of the Passion, nail, and pincers, below a band of bosses and strapwork and a baluster finial, the vase-shaped stem cast and chased with four full-face masks suspending swags of fruit, the base chased with four cherub heads linked by swags holding scroll-backed skulls on a cloud ground, all within an outer border of applied cherub heads and scrolls

apparently unmarked except 19^th century French boar’s head control marks, the riveted outer rim of the foot probably added later

35 oz 10 dwt

1104 g

height 9 ⅞ in.

25 cm