Set of silver 'apostle'
spoons
From London, England, AD
1536-37
The bowls of each engraved with the sacred
monogram 'IHS' for Jesus
The top of each handle is modelled with a
figure of one of Christ's Apostles. Sometimes the spoons
were made in sets of thirteen, one for each of the twelve apostles
and the thirteenth with the figure of Christ. This set has a figure
of the Virgin Mary on the thirteenth spoon. The Apostles are: St
Peter, St John, St James the Greater, St James the Less, St Thomas,
St Matthew, St Matthias, St Bartholomew, St Jude and St Paul. This
set is one of only two sets of early Tudor Apostle spoons made by a
single maker to have survived
complete.
In England in the
sixteenth century wealthy gentry and merchants could afford to have
silver items for their personal use. These would include domestic
pieces for dining, such as spoons, flagons and cups, as well as
items for religious use, such as chalices and patens. Some dining
silver was decorated with religious motifs and inscriptions;
Apostle spoons symbolize the Last Supper of Christ in the company
of the Apostles. Apostle spoons were especially popular in England,
but were also found in large numbers in
Germany.
T. Wilson, 'Spoons with a taste of history', British Museum Society Bulleti, 46 (July 1984), pp. 24-26