The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of December 18, 2025

Beaker

c. late 600s–early 700s

Central Asia or Tibet

(Sogdiana)
silver with gilding
Diameter: 10.2 cm (4 in.); Overall: 10.2 cm (4 in.);
The Severance and Greta Millikin Purchase Fund 1988.67.2
Location: Not on view

Did You Know?

This cup depicts two lions and a lionlike animal with horns!

Description

The circular shapes of the cup’s handle feature a flat edge on which the user rested their thumb for better grip, a design characteristic of silver objects made during the 700s by Sogdian artists, who traveled from Central Asia along international trade routes. An ownership inscription in Tibetan script on the underside of the cup identifies the vessel as a personal possession. The circles and lines carved below this inscription are likely measurements recording the weight of the silver used for the cup.
  • ?–1988
    (David Tremayne, Ltd., London, United Kingdom, sold to the Cleveland Museum of Art)
    1988–
    The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
  • “The Year in Review for 1988.” The Bulletin of the Cleveland Museum of Art 76, no. 2 (February 1989): 30–75. Mentioned: cat. no. 231–233, p. 75; Reproduced: cat. no. 231–233, p. 51 www.jstor.org
    Czuma, Stan. "Museum Acquisitions and Notes." Bulletin of the Asia Institute vol. 5 (1991), 190. Mentioned and Reproduced: p. 190
    “Recent Acquisitions at the Cleveland Museum of Art II: Departments of Asian Art: Supplement.” The Burlington Magazine 133, no. 1059 (June 1991): 417–424. Reproduced: p. 419, fig. VIII www.jstor.org
    Czuma, Stanislaw J. "Some Tibetan and Tibet-Related Acquisitions of the Cleveland Museum of Art." Oriental Art, winter 1992/3, vol. 38, no. 4. Mentioned: p. 231; Reproduced: p. 232.
    Czuma, Stan. "Tibetan Silver Vessels." The Bulletin of the Cleveland Museum of Art 80, no. 4 (April 1993): 131–135. Reproduced: p. 134; Mentioned: pp. 131–135 www.jstor.org
    Carter, Martha L. "Three Silver Vessels from Tibet's Earliest Historical Era: A Preliminary Study." Cleveland Studies in the History of Art 3 (1998) 22-47. Mentioned and Reproduced: pp. 22-31, figs. 1-9c www.jstor.org
    Heller, Amy. Tibetan Art: Tracing the Development of Spiritual Ideals and Art in Tibet, 600-2000 A.D. Milano, Italy; Woodbridge, England: Jaca Book; Antique Collectors’ Club, 1999. Mentioned and Reproduced: pp. 8 and 11, pls. 3, 4, 13, and 14.
    Christman, Bruce. "Three Gilded Tibetan Vessels." In Gilded Metals: History, Technology and Conservation. Terry Drayman-Weisser, ed. London: Archetype Publications Ltd. in association with the American Institute of Conservation of Historic and Artistic Works, 2000. Reproduced: fig. 10.1, p. 169; fig. 10.3, p. 172
    "Silk Road Art and Archaeology." Silk Road art and archaeology: journal of the Institute of Silk Road Studies, Kamakura, vol. 9 (2003). Reproduced: fig. 17, p. 224
    Huo, Wei. “A Study of Ancient Tibetan Gold and Silver Ware.” Chinese Archaeology 12, no. 1 (November 2012): 165–74. doi:10.1515/char-2012-0020.
    Heller, Amy. “Tibetan Inscriptions on Ancient silver and gold Vessels and Artefacts.” Journal of the International Association for Bon Research, vol 1. (2013). Mentioned: footnote 38, p. 274; pp. 276–8. Reproduced: p. 277.
    Cleveland Museum of Art. The CMA Companion: A Guide to the Cleveland Museum of Art. Cleveland: Cleveland Museum of Art, 2014. Mentioned and reproduced: P. 216
    Kosmin, Paul. "Banqueting on the Move." In Animal-Shaped Vessels from the Ancient World: Feasting with Gods, Heroes, and Kings. Susanne Ebbinghaus, ed., 310-341. Cambridge, MA: Harvard Art Museums, 2018. Mentioned: p. 338, p. 384, cat. no. 62
    Debreczeny, Karl. Faith and Empire: Art and Politics in Tibetan Buddhism. New York, NY: Rubin Museum of Art, 2019. Reproduced: fig. 3.5, pp. 8-9 and p. 76
    Pritzker, David Thomas and Wang Xudong 王旭东, editors. Cultural Exchange along the Silk Road: Masterpieces of the Tubo Period (7th-9th Century) = 丝绸之路上的文化交流 : 吐蕃时期艺术珍品. Beijing: 中国藏学出版社 [China Tibetology Publishing House], 2020. Reproduced: p. 15, p. 31 (vase only)
    Heller, Amy. “Silver Jug: Ceremonial Banquet Vessels in Silver and Gold,” Project Himalayan Art, Rubin Museum of Art, 2023, https://rubinmuseum.org/projecthimalayanart/essays/silver-jug/. rubinmuseum.org
    Heller, Amy. “Silver Jug: Ceremonial Banquet Vessels in Silver and Gold.” Project Himalayan Art, Rubin Museum of Art, 2023. Reproduced: fig. 5 and fig. 6 (cup only) rubinmuseum.org
  • A Moveable Feast: Food Cultures in China. Hong Kong Palace Museum Limited, Hong Kong, Hong Kong (organizer) (March 19-June 18, 2025).
    Faith and Empire: Art and Politics in Tibetan Buddhism. Rubin Museum of Art, New York, NY (organizer) (February 1-July 15, 2019).
    Selections from the Tibetan Collection (Galleries 103–104). The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (1993).
    Object Lessons: Cleveland Creates an Art Museum. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (June 7-September 8, 1991).
    The Year in Review for 1988. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (March 1-May 14, 1989).
  • {{cite web|title=Beaker|url=false|author=|year=c. late 600s–early 700s|access-date=18 December 2025|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1988.67.2