Schuttersvogel van zilver
c. 1600 - c. 1615
Medium
silver (metal)
Dimensions
8; 78; 12.3
About this artwork
Schuttersvogel, papegaai, van zilver. De losse kop is gekroond, om de hals draagt hij een band waaraan een Hollandse duit hangt.
Art Historical Context
### Schuttersvogel Zilver (Silver Marksman's Bird) Crafted anonymously around 1600–1615 the Dutch Golden Age, this petite silver parrot—standing just 8 high, 12.3 cm long, and weighing 78—served as a *schuttersvogel*, coveted target in civic guard competitions. These *schutterijen volunteer militias in the Netherlands held festive shooting contests that blended military training with community revelry. The bird's detachable crowned head likely fell when struck, signaling a perfect shot and awarding prestige to the marksman. Silversmiths employed skilled chasing and engraving techniques to sh...
About the Artist
anonymous
In the vast tapestry of art history, "Anonymous" stands not as a singular individual but as a collective designation for countless unidentified creators whose works have endured across millennia. These artists, spanning prehistoric cave painters to medieval illuminators and folk craftsmen, produced the foundational layers of human visual culture. Prior to the Renaissance, when individual fame emer...