Modelli Artificiosi di Vasi diversi d'argento et altre Opere capriciozi (...) Parte prima (Plate 13)

Modelli Artificiosi di Vasi diversi d'argento et altre Opere capriciozi (...) Parte prima (Plate 13)

Theodor van Kessel

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

The monogram AV on the bottom left of this print identifies its maker as the Utrecht goldsmith Adam van Vianen. The print is part of the series Artful Models of Various Silver Vases and Other Capricious Work, consisting of 48 plates, published by his son Christiaen van Vianen. This specific print shows off Van Vianen’s ingenuity well, as it illustrates a number of different fanciful solutions to decorate the lid, spout and handle of a ewer or drinking vessel. In comparison to other designs in this style, the creatures emerge from the silver ground relatively far and can be identified with relative clarity.

Drawings and Prints

An exhibit at Metropolitan Museum of Art

Modelli Artificiosi di Vasi diversi d'argento et altre Opere capriciozi (...) Parte prima (Plate 13)Modelli Artificiosi di Vasi diversi d'argento et altre Opere capriciozi (...) Parte prima (Plate 13)Modelli Artificiosi di Vasi diversi d'argento et altre Opere capriciozi (...) Parte prima (Plate 13)Modelli Artificiosi di Vasi diversi d'argento et altre Opere capriciozi (...) Parte prima (Plate 13)Modelli Artificiosi di Vasi diversi d'argento et altre Opere capriciozi (...) Parte prima (Plate 13)

The Department’s vast collection of works on paper comprises approximately 21,000 drawings, 1.2 million prints, and 12,000 illustrated books created in Europe and the Americas from about 1400 to the present day. Since its foundation in 1916, the Department has been committed to collecting a wide range of works on paper, which includes both pieces that are incredibly rare and lauded for their aesthetic appeal, as well as material that is more popular, functional, and ephemeral. The broad scope of the department’s collecting encourages questions of connoisseurship as well as those pertaining to function and context, and demonstrates the vital role that prints, drawings, and illustrated books have played throughout history.