Wine cup 1659 - 1660

This wine cup was made in London by H.M. from silver. It is a vessel, yes, but we must also consider the role of these kinds of objects as status symbols. Consider the cultural meaning of silver. The cost of the material and the labor required to produce an object like this meant that it was only available to a certain sector of society. Silverware like this signaled one's membership in the upper classes. In Britain, the history of silver is tied to the guilds that regulated its production, sale, and use. To really understand an object like this we might delve into archival sources such as guild records, which would document the names of makers, the standards of production, and the patterns of consumption. These would help reveal how it operated within a tightly controlled economy of luxury goods.