Object Description
Large antique Victorian silver loving cup and cover
English, 1881
Height 40cm, width 13.5cm, depth 13.5cm
This large antique cup and cover is a traditional ‘loving cup’, an ornamental drinking vessel used to mark significant events. Typically made of silver, the history of the loving cup dates to the Saxon era, later becoming a hallmark of weddings, banquets, and other ceremonies to symbolise the future possibilities of its drinker. The cups are often passed down through generations as family heirlooms, sometimes engraved with personal messages.
The history of this cup from the Mayfair Gallery collection can be garnered from an inscribed panel on the squared base, which indicates that this cup commemorates a young girl’s christening. The text reads ‘To Louise Angela Eunice De Winton. This loving cup in future remembrance from her godmother Angela Baroness Burdett Coutts 1881. May childhood’s early grace develop to womanhood’s full perfection and may she grasp the Christian Cross with a hand as gentle as her mother’s and fearless as her father’s.’ This text imbues the cup with a personal sentimentality that adds to the charm of the piece. The base also features two floral engraved panels, as well as a portrait of an unidentified gentleman within an oval reserve.
At the top of the cup sits its domed removable cover, which is surmounted by an impressive armorial finial including a crown and a family crest. A moulded lion and stag rear up as triumphant handles, with a small swan sitting just above the crest on the obverse side.
Further decorative elements adorn the main body of the cup. Four square chased panels can be seen, which variously depict soldiers with a cannon, a sailing ship, horses pulling a sleigh, and figures collecting bread. The friezes are crafted with immense detail even on the minute scale, showing the remarkable skill of the cup’s maker. Below the main body sits the stem, which is decorated with sheaves of corn that aptly symbolise fertility and new life. An engraved corn band also decorates the domed lid.
The cup is signed ‘HUNT & ROSKELL LATE STORR & MORTIMER 8115’ on the underside. Founded in 1843 as the successor to the celebrated silversmith Paul Storr, Hunt & Roskell was a renowned silversmiths and jewellers on Bond Street in London, who held the Royal Warrant of Queen Victoria for many years.
This superb piece is filled with historical details alongside impressive decorative elements, making it a fine piece for any collection of antiques.
The total weight of both pieces is approximately 2kg 12g.