Peg tankard 1812

Curator: This extraordinary object is a silver peg tankard, crafted in 1812 by Isack Andersen Feldthus. It’s currently residing here at the Metropolitan Museum. Editor: Oh, it’s giving me real fairytale vibes! So shiny, very Little Red Riding Hood goes to a fancy feast. I love how weighty and substantial it appears, somehow both austere and whimsical at the same time. Curator: I think "fairytale" hits the mark wonderfully! The term "peg tankard" comes from a series of pegs or pins inside the vessel—historically, these markers regulated the amount of drink each person could consume, during communal drinking sessions, kind of a social lubricant turned rationing system. Editor: Ah, enforced moderation. Always such a crowd-pleaser. Seriously, though, thinking about it now, there is something very community-minded in these drinking rituals. Almost utopian. But back to the visuals – I love the garland decorations and those stylized flowers; their form and arrangement is giving me baroque theatre backdrop. Curator: Definitely! The craftsmanship is exceptional; see the detail on those little lion feet that act as supports? And the lion finial grasping the ball! The whole object subtly asserts status, tradition, perhaps even nationhood through the symbols it employs. Feldthus’s piece reflects the burgeoning wealth of its era and the artistic skill of the silversmithing workshops. The metal itself becomes a canvas to express not just utility but aspirations. Editor: The use of animals as status symbols, while often deployed innocently or aesthetically, also harkens back to centuries of oppression and social hierarchy—in many Western societies it reflects how the aristocracy projected power using visual markers borrowed from, or analogous to, the animal world. Curator: True enough. It is a vessel pregnant with meanings isn't it, and thinking about what one might drink from such a fabulous cup, that, too, offers such fertile potential for contemplation and flights of fancy. Editor: Exactly! Gazing upon this artwork helps us understand material culture and artistic vision, a shiny vessel overflowing with complex stories. Curator: A shimmering piece of history ready to be poured, savored and pondered.