Finest 16th to 18th Century German Powder Flasks - a Unique Collection!

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On top a fine forked staghorn flask, the etching and fire gilding both typical of the Augsburg style but the body engraved with characteristic Nuremberg foliage, ca. 1580.
Again, this highly decorated piece of artwork carries on the basic style of earlier and plainer Landsknecht's antler flasks that are known from dating specimens and sources of contemporary period works of illustration, with dates ranging from 1532 to ca. 1580. The latest dated samples seem to be a series of flasks, their obverse all engraved with Nuremberg style foliage and a stylized coat of arms resembling those of the Princes of Hohenzollern; some of them bear the date 1572.
Again, the religious scene of the carving is very usual in the 1560's, also known from etched armor and stone epitaphs, and was definitely outdated by ca. 1580.
Especially remarkable is the fact that the reverse of the body is deocrated as well, not carved but engraved. On more than 90 per cent of even profusely ornamented flasks of this type, the reverse side of the body is left showing its natural rough surface.

The horizontal cutoff lever for dosing the gun powder is missing from the base plate of the top mount, and so is the reverse belt hook, with only its upper remains retained.


For close comparison, attached next is a 19th century Historismus/Victorian period copy of the mid 16th century style of ornamentation, datable to ca. 1860-80. The reverse, unlike most original 16th c. flasks, is engraved and the spurious date "1591" added, but the style of the cyphers, especially the shape of the numeral "1", is definitely not correct enough to mislead an expert eye.
The obverse is carved with Abel slaying Cain his Brother.
Sadly, the description does not provide a hint at its actual period of manufacture.

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One more detail of the 19th c. Historismus period flask, and for contrast another, similar flask but carved in the characteristic manner of the 1830's to 1840's, and carried out at a Thuringian workshop.

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Another very special flask is this circular specimen carved by the famous artisan Michael Maucher in Schwäbisch Gmünd, and decorated with engraved and fire-gilt strips of copper; ca. 1680.
Maucher also adorned gun stocks employing his unparalleld characteristic gift of craftsmanship.
This receptacle for gunpowder is wrought bipartite horizontally, and its diameter is only 11 cm.


Best,
Michael

[bkp747]

These are truly magnificent pieces... simply amazing, Michael.

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Thank you, Barry,

Yes, they doubtlessly are; those seem to be some of the ideal moments when arts actually met crafts ...
I also feel that the tiny little details of those splendid and profusely decorated small items of accouterment are worth all the toil it took me to both detect and detract those close-ups.
They now allow ideal studies; you can view and search them for minutes or even hours - and still make out spots not noticed yet ...

Best,
Michael

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Two fine and rare Nürnberg made flasks.

The first of hemispheric shape and often associated with those used by the Trabanten-Leibgarde of the Electors of Saxony, ca. 1590-1600, and the embossed and gilt lion leads charcateristic of the Saxon style.
The second of very rare type and highly unususal in its flat, symmetrically figured form, also often termed "Saxon, ca. 1600". This specimen, dated 1570, proves the author's thesis that those powder containers shaped like leather frogs for caliverman's flasks actually are older than most experts used to think.

For comparison, photos of two very rare leather frogs in The Michael Trömner Collection and another, together with a Saxon caliverman's flask, are added.

Best,
Michael

The images of the flasks from Pinterest, the photos of the leather frogs copyrighted by the author.

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Another gilt flask, also Nürnberg, and dated 1568.

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