Museum class item.
Chalice with a set of coins of the November Uprising by one of the most prominent, Cracow goldsmiths - Stanislaw Westwalewicz. The class of this goldsmith is evidenced by the fact that he became the elder of the guild in 1836. His workshop operated from 1821 to 1842, with the presented chalice made closer to the end of the workshop's operation, probably in 1840-1842.
Intricately crafted using the techniques of dripping, forging, engraving and casting. Made of 13-gauge silver, which is the equivalent of sterling 812, and gilded on the inside. Decorated with floral motifs.
Five coins from the November Uprising were soldered into the chalice, and three eagles were placed at the base, indicating a clear message. This is a patriotic chalice, probably made for the 10th anniversary of the start or end of the uprising. The Free City of Kraków, as a creation with some freedom and moderate internal autonomy, allowed such items to be made as patriotic mementos.
Notable among the coins is the insurrection ducat. It is clearly a rarer variety with a dot behind the torch. According to a search done on the TPZN forum, ducats with a dot behind are only 17% of the population.
The item is hallmarked with the punch of the Probation Office of the Free City of Cracow, dated 1843, the namesakes of the assayer, the numeral 13, and the maker's name. There was a mistake here on the part of the assay office, which erroneously scored the probationary punch with the designation of 12-ounce silver. This was a fairly common mistake at the time, where the goldsmith was obliged to stamp the '13' punch in order to avoid the office's mistake. As you can see, this process did not always work correctly.
A chalice bearing a later engraving: "On the name day of Konstantin Mankowski by the kind friends of the University Printing House 1868."
Konstanty Mankowski was a native of 1835, an official of the C. K. Dyrekcyi Skarbowa, Administrator of the University Printing House, an ensign of the Krakow Volunteer Fire Brigade and a holder of the Golden Cross of Merit. He died after a short illness on March 16, 1878.
Exceptional value.
Height: 21 cm.
Diameter of the filler: 6.5 cm.
Weight: 346.9 g.
