Tumbler 1825 - 1830

This glass tumbler, crafted by Bakewell, Page & Bakewell, presents a study in refracted light. The vertical cuts, reminiscent of ancient fluted columns, aren't merely decorative; they speak to a lineage of form stretching back to antiquity. These lines— consider their recurrence. From the sun rays emanating from classical depictions of Apollo to the folds of drapery in Renaissance paintings, such patterns denote energy, eminence, and a certain divine order. Yet, here, they are grounded in the everyday, a subtle elevation of the mundane. The act of drinking, a ritual performed since time immemorial, connects us to our ancestors. In psychoanalytic terms, this glass becomes a vessel of memory, each sip a communion with the past. Do we not, in raising it, echo gestures of libation, of offering, of simple sustenance? The tumbler, thus, is not just a container but a conduit, channeling echoes of history into the present moment.