Design for a Silver- gilt Flask Decorated with Strapwork, Masks, Moresques
16th century
Medium
Pen and black ink, brush and gray and yellow wash over black chalk
Dimensions
16 7/16 x 11 7/16 in. (41.7 x 29 cm)
Classification
Drawings
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Bequest of Harry G. Sperling, 1971
Accession Number
1975.131.70
Tags
Art Historical Context
This exquisite 16th-century drawing Erasmus Hornick (or attributed anonymously) showcases a virtuoso design for a silver-gilt flask, adorned with intricate strapwork, theatrical masks, and flowing moresques—ornate, Moorish-inspired arabesques popular in Renaissance decorative arts. Created as a preparatory sketch, it captures the opulence of luxury metalwork destined for elite patrons, where gleaming silver-gilt surfaces would amplify these bold motifs evoking ancient grotesques rediscovered in Roman ruins. Executed in pen and black ink with brush and gray and yellow wash over black chalk, th...