A Fine German Silver Parcel Gilt Tankard with Biblical Scene

This present tankard is decorated with open worked coating, an acanthus leaf on the base and lid bulge.
On the sides of the wall, the biblical scene of Rebecca and Eliezer can be observed(I Moses, 24, 15-22), with an acanthus leaf decoration in the background. Rebecca and Eliezer are depicted in a variety of different scenes one being in a plastic, frieze-like way. This Biblical subject, taken from Genesis, prefigures the Annunciation: Eliezer, a servant of Abraham, was given the task of finding a wife for his son Isaac, and the picture shows the moment when he meets Rebecca drawing water from a well for her father’s herds to drink. It seems as if the  maker was familiar with the famous painting which also contained the same subject made by Nicolas Poussin in 1648 for the banker Jean Pointel (today at the Louvre, Paris) Rebecca and Eliezer at the Fountain.
On the lid, flying putti and putti heads, once again also in open worked coating, complete the devout character of the Biblical scene on the corpus.
The thumb rest has a wide V-form and the side handle is formed like a mermaid, made with many details. The tankard is gilt inside, while on its exterior, it is partly gilt on the ring underneath the lid and on the foot.

Halle presents a collection of tankards which are characteristically evident for this city. August Hosse has exercised a strong influence of important weight, wide diameter and impressive proportions. The open worked decoration was preferred, in order to show scenes originating from the bible or referring to myths.

Maker: August Hosse (1657-1732) was a public master craftsman and council Member of the city of Halle. On the 2nd September 1784 he was entered into the citizen’s book of Halle.