Beaker (Humpen)

1612

On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 520

The enamel decoration on this beaker features four figures representing different social classes. Above each figure is a Latin inscription describing their role: priests pray, noblemen and knights fight, peasants labor, and merchants “devour all.” The antimerchant sentiment suggests that this work was made for the nobility, rather than a middle-class burgher market, and was likely used in one of the many drinking rituals central to social life in the 1600s.

Artwork Details

Overview

Signatures, Inscriptions, and Markings

Provenance

Title: Beaker (Humpen)
Date: 1612
Culture: Bohemian
Medium: Glass, enameled
Dimensions: Overall: 11 1/4 × 5 in. (28.6 × 12.7 cm)
Classification: Glass
Credit Line: Munsey Fund, 1927
Object Number: 27.185.15
Curatorial Department: European Sculpture and Decorative Arts

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