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Two-Handled Cup
From the collection of Cleveland Museum of Art. Free to download, adapt and use — no permission needed.
About this work
Due to its size and ornament, this vessel may have functioned as a caudle-cup, containing a mixture of ale or wine and bread, oatmeal, eggs, sugar, and spices that was given to women after childbirth to help them regain their strength. The scrolling foliage and exotic birds along the exterior of this cup were likely based on prints circulating in the 1600s. The reclining female figures capping the handles and the acanthus bud finial on the accompanying lid recall common architectural motifs.
Cleveland Museum of Art’s own descriptionCredit lineTwo-Handled Cup, 1677. England, London, 17th century (Charles II). Silver and silver gilt; overall: 17.2 x 11.5 cm (6 3/4 x 4 1/2 in.). The Cleveland Museum of Art, Gift of Mrs. Eugene R. Miles in honor of William Mathewson Milliken in appreciation of his interests in Cleveland artists, 1958.422.a
