Shells from the sea mollusc Nautilus pompilius that lived in the Pacific and Indian oceans were valued for their rarity and beauty. It is a primitive creature whose form has remained unchanged for millions of years. They have up to ninety tentacles but no suckers. The shell has an outer matte white layer with dark stripes on the upper side, and an inner lustrous layer. A taste for mounted nautilus cups flourished in Northern Europe from the 14th century. Shells were highly prized as exotic and rare objects as well as for their ‘magical’ properties. Either in their natural state, or worked into elaborate objects, they were often found in the ‘cabinets of curiosities’ that contained the small treasures of a princely collection. Nautilus cups would only appear on the table on special occasions. They were particularly popular in Germany and The Netherlands, but they gradually became fashionable in England, many of them being made by foreign goldsmiths based in London. The decoration of nautilus cups often contains subject matter that refers to the marine origins of the shell. |  |  | | Figure 1. An unusual nautilus cup in the form of an ostrich. The spiral-shaped core of the shell has been cut off and is covered with the bird’s tail. The upper part of the body and legs are made of gilt silver. An amethyst has been worked into the head and the eyes of the bird are made of ivory, with the pupils painted in black. The shell itself is painted with garlands and birds flapping into ascent. (Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam) | Figure 2. This spectacular nautilus cup bears the mark of Nikolaus Schmidt, a Nuremberg goldsmith, and has been dated to around 1600. The outer layer of this shell has been stripped away to reveal the nacreous surface below and the heel has been elaborately carved. The marine origins of the nautilus are echoed in the supporting figures of Neptune, mermaids and seahorses. It has been suggested that the cup may have belonged to the wealthy Peller family, whose Nuremberg house, built in 1610, had a gable decorated, like this cup, with a figure of Jupiter. (Royal Collection)
|  |  | | Figure 3. A German nautilus cup from around 1620 with silver gilt mount. This shell is in its natural state, displaying the matte white outer layer rather than being stripped to reveal the inner ‘pearlised’ layer, as is the case with the previous two examples. The stripes can vary in shade from deep brown to bright orange and they only appear on the upper side, which provides camouflage when viewed in the sea from above. The underside is white, providing a similar camouflage effect in the sea when viewed from below. (Art Gallery of Ontario, Thomson Collection) | Figure 4. A German nautilus cup with silver gilt mount, bearing the maker’s mark of Ulrich Ment (1570-1634). Augsburg hallmark, circa 1620-1625. This one has had the outer layer of the shell removed to reveal the lustrous inner layer. (Galerie J. Kugel, Paris) | | Although there are exotic variations, such as the ostrich form in figure 1, most nautilus cups have a standard construction with the shell being supported within four decorated arms or straps on an elaborate base and having the opening covered with an equally ornate lid. The lids of nautilus cups are usually detachable, as is the case with other forms of covered ceremonial drinking cups. |
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