Chalice thumbnail 1
Image of Gallery in South Kensington
On display at V&A South Kensington
Sacred Silver & Stained Glass, Room 83, The Whiteley Galleries

Chalice

1683-1684 (made)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

A chalice and paten were used during Holy Communion to serve the consecrated wine and bread. In the Cromwellian period Protestant services were usually conducted with little ritual and only a few pieces of simple silverware. It was not until the restoration of the monarchy in 1660 that churches could again use a Gothic chalice and celebrate the Eucharist with an elaborately chased and decorated communion set.

These pieces were presented to the fashionable London church of St James, designed by Sir Christopher Wren and consecrated in 1683. Their elaborate decoration, with embossed cherubs and fruit swags, complements the richness of Wren’s interior. Although such decoration was already in use in the 1670s it was encouraged by the arrival of Huguenot silversmiths in London in the early 1680s.


Object details

Categories
Object type
Materials and techniques
Silver-gilt
Brief description
A silver-gilt chalice and paten supplied by Ralph Leake for use in the service of communion at St James Piccadilly in 1683
Physical description
One of a set of four, rounded bowl on a baluster stem with a circular raised foot embossed with floral swags and cherub heads.
Dimensions
  • Height: 27.3cm
  • Diameter: 14.6cm
Marks and inscriptions
Date letter for 1683; maker's mark RL with a fleur de lys below in a scalloped shield
Gallery label
Chalice and Paten A chalice and paten were used during Holy Communion to serve the consecrated wine and bread. In the Cromwellian period Protestant services were usually conducted with little ritual and only a few pieces of simple silverware. It was not until the restoration of the monarchy in 1660 that churches could again use a Gothic chalice and celebrate the Eucharist with an elaborately chased and decorated communion set. These pieces were presented to the fashionable London church of St James, designed by Sir Christopher Wren and consecrated in 1683. Their elaborate decoration, with embossed cherubs and fruit swags, complements the richness of Wren’s interior. Although such decoration was already in use in the 1670s it was encouraged by the arrival of Huguenot silversmiths in London in the early 1680s. London, England, 1683–4; by Ralph Leake (active 1664–1714) Silver gilt Lent by the Vicar and Churchwardens of St James, Piccadilly(22/11/2005)
Credit line
Lent by the Rector and Churchwardens of St James's, Piccadilly, London
Object history
This communion chalice was presented in 1683 to the newly built London church of St. James's, Piccadilly designed by Sir Christopher Wren. It is part of a set of plate presented to the fashionable church of St. James's Piccadilly on its consecration in 1683. The choice or ornament- cherubs and swags of fruit - is similar to that on the Easton Maudit flagon, made ten years earlier. Such elaborately chased and decorated communion silver was only used after the Restoration of the monarchy in 1660.

Historical significance: The communion chalice displays a decorative style typical of the late 17th century, with the use of high relief. Although such decoration was already in use in the 1670s it was encouraged by the arrival of Huguenot silversmiths in London in the early 1680s.
Historical context
The Anglican Church
In 1633 William Laud became Archbishop of Canterbury. Like his contemporary Bishop Lancelot Andrewes, he regarded the Anglican church as a purified form of traditional Catholicism. Together they set out to restore the ceremonial that had been abolished with the Reformation of the previous century, including the high altar and the use of candles and incense.

Laud's intentions, however, were seen by Parliament as an attempt to overthrow the Protestant religion and in 1645 he was beheaded. It was not until the restoration of the monarchy in 1660 that churches could again use a Gothic chalice and celebrate the Eucharist with an elaborately chased and decorated communion set.
Summary
A chalice and paten were used during Holy Communion to serve the consecrated wine and bread. In the Cromwellian period Protestant services were usually conducted with little ritual and only a few pieces of simple silverware. It was not until the restoration of the monarchy in 1660 that churches could again use a Gothic chalice and celebrate the Eucharist with an elaborately chased and decorated communion set.

These pieces were presented to the fashionable London church of St James, designed by Sir Christopher Wren and consecrated in 1683. Their elaborate decoration, with embossed cherubs and fruit swags, complements the richness of Wren’s interior. Although such decoration was already in use in the 1670s it was encouraged by the arrival of Huguenot silversmiths in London in the early 1680s.
Bibliographic references
  • Freshfield, Edwin. The Communion Plate of the Parish Churches in the County of London. London: Rixon and Arnold, 1895.
  • Mitchell, David M. Silversmiths in Elizabethan and Stuart London. Their Lives and Marks. Woodbridge, Suffolk: The Boydell Press, 2017. ISBN 1783272384 9781783272389
Collection
Accession number
LOAN:PICCADILLY.1

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Record createdFebruary 18, 2005
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