Skip to main content

Spoon: MAR.M.137-1912

An image of Spoon
View image details

Terms of use

The low-resolution images published on this Website are made available under a Creative Commons Attribution licence (CC BY-NC-ND). For more details: Fitzwilliam Terms of Use

This licence does not include any images of works that are still in copyright. Artistic copyright extends from the life of the artist to 70 years from the end of the calendar year in which the artist died.

Download this image

For further information on use of images or to license a high resolution version, please contact our image library who can discuss terms and fees.

Alternative views

An image of Spoon
Current Location: In storage

Maker(s)

Silversmith: Unidentified

Entities

Categories

Description

Silver; fig-shaped bowl engraved with foliage and a bird on a branch; on a curved cast handle with grosteque finial

Silver; the fig-shaped bowl has on the back a short ribbed rat-tail. The cast handle is curved and ribbed and terminates 'C'-shaped finial formed of leaves on the back, which partially enclose a grotesque figure on the front. The top of the bowl is engraved with stylised foliage, beneath which on the back is engraved (possibly later) a bird on a flowering branch. The back of the handle is inscribed 'TITUS AXEN'. The side is inscribed 'Gustav v. Kessel 24 Jan 1851'

Notes

History note: Not known before testator

Legal notes

C.B. Marlay Bequest

Measurements and weight

Length: 16.3 cm
Length: 6⅜ in
Weight: 55 g
Weight: 1:15 oz:dwt

Acquisition and important dates

Method of acquisition: Given (1912) by Marlay, Charles Brinsley

Dating

17th Century, Mid-Late
1640 CE - 1700 CE

Note

The spoon may have been made in Germany, although the maker's mark has not been identified. Titus Axen may have been Titus Axen (1602-1662) Bürgermeister (mayor) of Husum and Canon of Hamburg, and father of Peter Axen (1635-1707), a Schelswig-Holstein lawyer, humanist and diplomat.

Components of the work

Bowl
Decoration
Handle
Inscriptions

Materials used in production

Silver

Identification numbers

Accession number: MAR.M.137-1912
Primary reference Number: 163232

Audit data

Created: Saturday 6 August 2011 Updated: Monday 29 April 2024

Associated departments & institutions

Owner or interested party: The Fitzwilliam Museum
Associated department: Applied Arts

Citation for print

This record can be cited in the Harvard Bibliographic style using the text below:

The Fitzwilliam Museum (2025) "Spoon" Web page available at: https://collection.beta.fitz.ms/id/object/163232 Accessed: 2025-12-05 19:14:57

Citation for Wikipedia

To cite this record on Wikipedia you can use this code snippet:

{{cite web|url=https://collection.beta.fitz.ms/id/object/163232 |title=Spoon |author=The Fitzwilliam Museum|accessdate=2025-12-05 19:14:57|publisher=The University of Cambridge}}

API call for this record

To call these data via our API (remember this needs to be authenticated) you can use this code snippet:

https://collection.beta.fitz.ms/api/v1/objects/object-163232

Bootstrap HTML code for reuse

To use this as a simple code embed, copy this string:

<div class="text-center">
    <figure class="figure">
        <img src="https://data.fitzmuseum.cam.ac.uk/imagestore/aa/aa20/MAR_M_137_20_281_29.jpg"
        alt="Spoon"
        class="img-fluid" />
        <figcaption class="figure-caption text-info">Spoon</figcaption>
    </figure>
</div>

Sign up for updates

Updates about future exhibitions and displays, family activities, virtual events & news. You'll be the first to know...

University of Cambridge Museums logo
Cambridge City Council logo
Arts Council England Logo
Research England logo