The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of March 22, 2023

Powder Flask with Standing figures of a Man and Woman

1570

Germany, 16th century

Elk horn, steel mounts

Overall: 23.4 x 11.8 cm (9 3/16 x 4 5/8 in.)

Gift of Mr. and Mrs. John L. Severance 1916.37

Location

210A Armor Court

Fun Fact

The year 1570 can be seen below the standing male and female who may represent the original owners.

Description

Powder flasks are small, portable containers designed to hold gunpowder. From the 1400s to the 1800s, powder flasks were indispensable for charging and priming firearms of all types. Without powder flasks firearms were of little use to their owners. Many highly decorated flasks rank as works of art. During the 1500s, they were frequently decorated with images of famous historical figures.

Provenance
-1916
Frank Gair Macomber (1849-1941), Boston, MA, Sold to the Cleveland Museum of Art
1916-
The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
Citations
Catalogue of Arms and Armour. Vol. 3, 16th century. [Boston, Massachusetts]: [Frank Gair Macomber], [1900-1915]. Mentioned and Reproduced: No. (177) 181 archive.org
Gilchrist, Helen Ives. A Catalogue of the Collection of Arms & Armor Presented to the Cleveland Museum of Art by Mr. and Mrs. John Long Severance; 1916-1923. Cleveland: Cleveland Museum of Art, 1924. Mention: p. 154, F31 archive.org
Fliegel, Stephen N. Arms and Armor: The Cleveland Museum of Art. [Cleveland, Ohio]: The Museum, 1998. p. 175, cat. no. 242
Fliegel, Stephen N. Arms & Armor: The Cleveland Museum of Art. [Cleveland, Ohio]: Cleveland Museum of Art, 2007. p. 195, cat. no. 247
Exhibition history

What in the World. University Museum, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA (organizer) (March 1-October 1, 1960).

European Arms and Armor from the Cleveland Museum of Art (Long-term Loan). Birmingham Museum of Art (organizer) (July 1, 1993-July 1, 1995).

Armor Court Reinstallation. The Cleveland Museum of Art (organizer).

Source URL: https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1916.37