Design for a Chalice
Medium
Pen and black ink, brush and blue wash, heightened with white, over graphite
Dimensions
sheet: 12 1/2 x 10 in. (31.7 x 25.4 cm)
Classification
Drawings
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
The Elisha Whittelsey Collection, The Elisha Whittelsey Fund, 1962
Accession Number
62.659.78
Tags
Art Historical Context
This delicate *Design for a Chalice created anonymously by a French artist in 185, offers a glimpse into the meticulous world of 19th decorative arts. Rendered on a sheet measuring 12½ x 10 inches, drawing depicts an ornate chalice, likely for liturgical or ceremonial use, adorned with ornamentation and insignia. Such designs were essential preparatory works, bridging the gap between artistic conception and craftsmanship in goldsmithing or silversmithing workshops during France's Second Empire era, a time of renewed interest in opulent religious artifacts amid Gothic Revival influences. The m...
About the Artist
Anonymous, French, 19th century · 1800–1900
**Anonymous, French, 19th Century (ca. 1800–1900)** The artist cataloged as Anonymous, French, 19th century embodies the enigmatic yet essential contributions of unidentified creators to France's vibrant 19th-century art world. Active roughly between 1800 and 1900, this figure—or potentially collective workshop—produced a diverse array of works amid the nation's transition from Neoclassicism thro...