A GERMAN BEAKER.

OF THE FIFTEENTH CENTURY. IN THE POSSESSION OF
HENRY BEVAN, ESQ^

EAKER, a term by some supposed to be derived from
the Greek word Βικος, an earthen vase with handles.
It belongs to that class of words which has for its
root the old teutonic word Bak, or Bac, iignifying
any substance hollowed out, particularly a vessel for
holding wine, or any other liquid—whence in the
glossary of Isidorus we have bacchia, vas potato-
rium : see also Schilter, Glostarium Teutonicum, sub voce Bac.

This exquiiite specimen of Goldsmith’s work may be coniidered as be-
longing to the fifteenth century, though the form of the windows, and
the charadler of their tracery are evidently copied from types belonging
to the preceding one. The bowl, and also the covers, have each three
windows filled with transsucid enamel, with broad bands passing from
one to the other enriched with the same brilliant material, arranged in the
form of ssowers and scrolls. The wonderful delicacy of the gold plates
dividing the lights and tracery of the windows, as well as the various
colours employed in the bands, ihows an amount of manipulative ikill
in the execution of this beautiful work of art truly astoniihing. These
plates, although scarcely thicker than the finest hair line, are worked to
the form of the various curves with the greatest accuracy. The minute
and delicate scrolls, passing completely through the enamel, are calculated
to perplex those unacquainted with the process by which they were im-
bedded in that material. It was thus ; the gold plates were first worked
into the requisite forms in a mould. They were then filled with the vari-
ous coloured enamels in a powdered state, and exposed by means of a
blow-pipe to a sufficient degree of heat to melt the enamel without af-
fedting the metal, and then ground to the requisite thickness and poliihed.

In this kind of enamel, gold was always used to divide the various
colours, no other metal being sufficiently ssexible for that purpose. The
bottom of the cup is inlaid with enamel similar to the bands. As the
small circles round the base and the cover are perforated, it is not im-
probable that they were originally filled with pearls.