Vessel in the form of a dragon

anonymous, c. 1625 - c. 1650

The dragon shape of this vessel alludes to the special powers ascribed to rock crystal: it was thought to change colour or crack when it came into contact with poison. Dragon blood was considered the deadliest substance known to man. The dragon, which now somewhat resembles a crocodile, originally had wings.

Artwork typedecoratief object
Object numberBK-17121
Dimensionswidth 25 cm x depth 13 cm, height 19 cm x width 60.5 cm x depth 14.5 cm

Identification

Title(s)
Vessel in the form of a dragon
Object type
Object number
BK-17121
Description
Beeld van bergkristal met een montuur van goud met email en robijnen, voorstellende een draak. Het dier ligt op zijn vier poten met opengesperde bek. De vleugels ontbreken.

Creation

Creation
- maker: anonymous, Italy
- maker: anonymous, France
Dating
c. 1625 - c. 1650
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Material and technique

Dimensions
- width 25 cm x depth 13 cm
- height 19 cm x width 60.5 cm x depth 14.5 cm

This work is about

Subject

Acquisition and rights

Copyright
Public domain
Provenance
…; collection Hermitage, Petersburg, 1915;{Note RMA; Starye Gody December 1915, image after p. 10.}…; collection Dr Fritz Mannheimer (1890-1939) Amsterdam and Paris, 1936;{Von Falke 1936, p. 56, no. K.109.} purchased from his estate, en bloc, by the Dienststelle Mühlmann, The Hague, for Adolf Hitler's Führermuseum, Linz, 1940;{Korthals Altes 1974, pp. 21-22.} war recuperation, SNK, 1945;{HNA, SNK Archive, 2.08.42, inv. no. 548.} on loan, with 1,702 other objects, from the DRVK to the museum, 1952;{Note RMA.} transferred to the museum, 1960
Remarks
Please note that this provenance was formulated with a special focus on provenance research for the years 1933-45 and could therefore be incomplete. There may be more (mostly earlier) provenance information known in the museum. In case this item has an uncertain or incomplete provenance for the years 1933-45, the Rijksmuseum welcomes information and assistance in the investigation and clarification of the provenance of all works during that era.

Documentation

Persistent URL

To refer to this object, please use the following persistent URL:
https://id.rijksmuseum.nl/20033521