Item ref: 5234
Private collection, France
The abundance of stag’s antlers throughout northern and central Europe provided a ready, inexpensive and robust material for the manufacturing of flasks in which to safely carry gunpowder. The value and status of this type of flask, parallel to the wheel-lock and matchlock sporting firearms they accompanied, would have naturally been determined by the quality of the graphic workmanship involved.
Within the south German production of staghorn flasks, their decoration ranged from a rustic ‘folk’ quality to sophisticated engraving and superior relief carving. For the most part the designs involved figural subjects, typically following themes from classical mythology, from the bible, and the genre of traditional German moral tales (Volkesmärchen).
The reproduction of all of these subjects was invariably inspired by the published woodcut and etched prints of the so-called ‘Small Masters’, active within the 16th century late Northern Renaissance (Albrecht Dürer, Albrecht Altdorfer, Hans Sebald Beham, Virgil Solis and Hans Jacob Plepp, to name but some).
Closely descended from this influence were the works of the numerous draughtsmen book illustrators, whose detailed prints were popularly disseminated among the decorators of armour and weapons in the established centres of production, such as Nuremberg.
Perhaps the most widely received of these illustrators was Jost Amman (1539-91), an émigré to Nuremberg. Much of his prolific output of works involved carefully studied late 16th century dress, with understandable attention to the fashions of the patrician classes, his patrons. Amman published his Kunst- Lehrbüchlein plates first in 1580, followed by his more egalitarian Stammbüchlein series of graphic plates in 1589. Working in a related manner, Hans Weigel was another Nuremberg fashion and costume chronicler of note, whose Trachtenbuche (costume book) was published in 1577, comprising 219 single-page woodcut illustrations.
The figures central to the carving on the present flask are shown dressed in the German patrician taste of approximately 1560-85, the costume closely related to illustrations published by Amman and Weigel respectively.
Closer, however, to the graphics of Amman and Solis, the figures themselves are the subjects of amusing characterisation in the spirit of the traditional moral tale. The male is represented as an older and obviously wealthy man in his finery. Distracted from his elegant pose he glances warily over his shoulder at a clearly younger woman, probably his wife. She is apparently attending to the hem of his cloak from her crouched position behind him. A luxurious cushion is placed above the young woman, a visual symbol of comfort, wealth and ease, the life of her aspirations and the reward of her unequal marriage. Typical of other examples of carved flasks belonging to this stylistic group, a winged putto mask overlooks the figures.
Conventional to its type, the present flask body is constructed from a triangular section of antler, inverted so that the bottom is formed as two truncated branches. The inner face is left in its natural textured state, while the outer face is polished and forms a recessed panel carved in low relief and displaying careful detail and artistic flair.
The branches of the flask are capped by iron mounts matching the flask top. The latter is fitted with a tall standing nozzle with lever closure and a pivoted spring cut-off at its base, the nozzle also acting as a charge measure.
Retaining its original iron belt hook fitted at the rear, together with a pair of loops for suspension cords. The flask is preserved in fine and unrestored condition throughout.