A green glass bottle with silver mounts

A green glass bottle with silver mounts

A bottle of green glass on an plain silver base rim, the upper half of the body is covered by a mount that is connected to the base rim ring with three bands. The intricate silver openwork floral and foliate mount is also decorated with bunches of grapes. Around the top of the bottleneck a silver chain with a cork stopper. The stop itself is topped by a figure of Bacchus leaning against a wine barrel and holding a glass in his hand.

These types of carafes were not only given a place in an art cabinet to flaunt one’s fortune and good taste; they were also used to serve wine, which was tapped from a large barrel in the cellar. The silver Bacchus on the cork stopper is a reference to its function. The bottles were commonly used on a regular basis in a well-to-do household. This probably explains why so few of them have survived the hands of time.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                In the Netherlands, Adriaen van Hoecke was the specialist of silver-mounted bottles. Of the fourteen examples of this type of carafe that are still known today, ten were made by Van Hoecke. All of these bottles were created in the 1660s and none of them are identical in their decoration. Apparently, the mounted carafe was a passing fashion phenomenon in court circles, as examples of a later date are unknown to us.

Van Hoecke was apprenticed to Hans Coenraad Breghtel (1609-1675). This silversmith from Nuremberg was purveyor to the Dutch royal household as well as the States General. He was a master in elaborately working open silver with drills and various files. One mounted bottle is known by Breghtel’s hand. Adriaen van Hoecke married Breghtel’s daughter in 1659. Their first son was born a year later. Van Hoecke was able to benefit from the success of his father-in-law and received commissions from the same circles. The silversmith also worked for the States General. A document dated 1689 is known in which he requested overdue payment for the delivery of medals and chains supplied to the States General. He remained their supplier of medals until 1691, after which his son Johannes took over this commission.