The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of March 29, 2024

Two-Handled Cup and Cover

Two-Handled Cup and Cover

1686

Did You Know?

The two female figures lift a crown on the front of this cup that closely resembles Saint Edward’s Crown, the heraldic emblem of the United Kingdom.

Description

Produced a year after the coronation of James II (1633–1701), this silver cup celebrates the monarchy and reflects the political and social alliances that underpinned the aristocracy during the 1600s. During their coronation, James II and his second wife Mary of Modena (1658–1718) were carried through the city of London under a silk canopy adorned with motifs inspired by European perceptions of Chinese art, known as chinoiserie. Following the procession, the thirty-two lords involved in the ceremony were each offered a portion of the cloth from the canopy as well as sixteen troy ounces of silver from the posts. At least two of them commissioned cups adorned with chinoiserie to be made from the silver. While it is unclear if this cup once belonged to one of the thirty-two peers, it was almost certainly created in response to the same motifs and social developments.
  • ?-1935
    Grace Anna Studebaker Fish [Mrs. Frederick S. Fish, 1862-1946], New York, NY, given to the Cleveland Museum of Art
    1935-
    The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
  • The Cleveland Museum of Art. The Cleveland Museum of Art Handbook. Cleveland: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1958. Mentioned and Reproduced: cat. 271. archive.org
    The Cleveland Museum of Art. Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art/1966. Cleveland: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1966. Reproduced: p. 128 archive.org
    The Cleveland Museum of Art. Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art/1969. Cleveland: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1969. Reproduced: p. 128 archive.org
    The Cleveland Museum of Art. Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art/1978. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1978. Reproduced: p. 170 archive.org
  • British Gallery Reinstallation (June 2020). The Cleveland Museum of Art (organizer).
    All That Glitters: Great Silver Vessels in Cleveland's Collection. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (November 23, 1994-January 8, 1995).
    Cathay Invoked: Chinoiserie, A Celestial Empire in the West. Fine Arts Museum of San Francisco, Legion of Honor, San Francisco, CA (organizer) (June 10-July 31, 1966).
    35th Anniversary Exhibition. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (June 20-September 30, 1951).
    The Silver Jubilee Exhibition. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (June 23-September 28, 1941).
    Chinoiserie in Textiles and Engravings, 18th-19th Centuries. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (February 28-April 7, 1940).
  • {{cite web|title=Two-Handled Cup and Cover|url=false|author=|year=1686|access-date=29 March 2024|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1935.145