Dutch Engraved Light Baluster Goblet c1755

Description

Heading : Dutch Armorial Engraved Light Baluster Goblet
Period : c1755
Origin : The generally ‘received’ wisdom is that glasses such as this were made in England and then engraved in Amsterdam
Colour : Clear
Bowl : Round funnel engraved with the coat of arms of Gelderland. Two lions supporting a shield with a crown as the crest. The lions stand over floral rococo scrolls and tassels; faint pucella marks and touch-points present
Stem : A pair of medial and somewhat flattened ball knops sit between inverted and true baluster knops. with abbreviated plain-stem sections at the collar and base of the stem
Foot : High conical
Pontil : Snapped
Glass Type : Lead (see notes below)
Size :  Height 18.9 cm. bowl 8.5 cm diameter and foot 8.6 cm diameter
Condition : Excellent; no chips. cracks or flakes; sporadic bubble inclusions including a small burst bubble to the foot. and one within the inverted baluster knop; also some tiny mineral inclusions to the bowl
Restoration : None
Weight: 216 grams

Notes :

The coat of arms – as with many other such examples – reflects the twists and turns of history; the two lions – each wearing a ducal crown –  on the ‘internal’ shield are the symbols of the Duchies of Guelders and Jülich – the constituent parts of the province – united under a common leader. Duke William. in 1393. Centuries of strife were to follow – including the annexation of land including the capital of the region. Geldern. by Prussia in 1713; it was never recovered by the Dutch. and remains part of Germany to this day. The supporting lions are those of the Dutch Republic. of which Gelderland became a founding member in 1579.

Lead glass was being produced in Holland and Wallonia by the mid 18th century and in Norway within another decade. Quite why the enterprising merchants of the Provinces of The Netherlands would not prefer more locally sourced glassware for their artisans to engrave than that imported from England fails the common sense test.

It is also worth noting that Dutch engraved light balusters have a propensity to be made from brighter glass than the equivalents being produced in England during the same period.