Silver Cup

Joachim Michael Salecker

1723

This silver-gilt cup is decorated with representations of the biblical patriarch Jacob’s twelve sons, each standing in his own separate archway with his Hebrew name inscribed underneath. This cup was owned by Behrend Lehmann (1661–1731), an important figure in the courts of Elector Frederick III of Brandenburg and the Polish king, August the Strong of Saxony. Lehmann’s Jewish name—Issachar ben Judah ha-Levi—is hinted at in the placement of the likenesses of Issachar, Judah, and Levi alongside one another in the fraternal arrangement. The cup’s lid is engraved with astrological signs. The maker’s mark of the silversmith, Joachim Michael Salecker (active 1723–1752), is struck on the base.

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Credits

Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York. Gift of J. Pierpont Morgan, 1917.

Published in: The Posen Library of Jewish Culture and Civilization, vol. 5.

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Faience-tile mosaic of floral designs throughout, two lines of Hebrew text at the top, and three niches at bottom.
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Related Guide

Early Modern Visual and Material Culture

1500–1750

Early modern Jewish visual culture flourished, with illuminated manuscripts, ornate synagogues, and portraiture alongside increasing non-Jewish interest in Jewish customs and greater Jewish self-representation.

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