Bonhams 1793 : A pair of Queen Anne silver communion cups for the High Church, Glasgow apparently unmarked, Glasgow circa 1704

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29 Aug 2012 14:00 BST Edinburgh
The Scottish Sale (Part II) - Silver
Back to auction 19868

A pair of Queen Anne silver communion cups for the High Church, Glasgow

apparently unmarked, Glasgow circa 1704
On domed foot extending to knopped baluster column, the plain flaring bowls with slightly everted rims, each engraved with the the deconstructed city emblem for Glasgow; namely the tree, the fish and the bell, contained within a square and bordered by the words 'Lord Let Glasgow Flourish through the preaching of thy word' above which engraved '1704', cased within wooden box, height 20.7cm & 21cm, weight 29.8oz.

Sold for £12,500 inc. premium

Footnotes

Illustrated and discussed in Burn, Old Scottish Communion Plate, 1892, page 371 where Burn notes that there are a set of four cups, all unmarked. A single cup from the group was previously sold by Bonhams, The Scottish Sale, Edinburgh, 24th August 2005, lot 65.

It is not known why the cups are unmarked and do not even bear a maker's mark. There can be little doubt however that they were made in Glasgow. Given the limited size of the town and of the Goldsmiths trade in Glasgow in the early 18th century, the cups were almost certainly made by one of five makers: James Stirling, Robert Brock, William Clerk, John Luke or Thomas Cumming.

Category: Decorative Arts / Silver

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