Object Description
A Scandinavian Silver Tankard, Norwegian or Danish, maker’s mark only I intersecting S, perhaps Johan Schluter of Bergen, c.1650 on three pomegranate feet, chased with scroll foliage on a matted ground, the lid with contemporary accolle arms, inscription and date within a wreath, bud thumbpiece, scroll handle, base engraved with initials HASM / AMCH 14.5cm high, 357gr. (11oz)
The inscription reads: Mit Hob Til Gud Alenne 1651 (My Hope is God Alone)
It is rare to see such scroll foliate decoration on a Scandinavian piece of this date. It has been suggested that the design probably derived from French ornament engravings, such as in the Livre de Toutes Sorte de Feuilles Pour Servir a L’Art d’Orfeburie, by Jacques Caillard, published by Isaac Briot in 1627 (see Un Temps d’Exuberance: Les Arts Decoratifs sous Louis XIII et Anne d’Autriche, Daniel Alcouffe, Paris, 2002, nos.30-32, pp.95-98)