Georgian Chalice, Luke Chapter 22

Engraved inscriptions can add character and social context to pieces of silver and this Georgian communion cup is a good example of where this is true.

The front of the cup bears the "IHS" Christogram for "Jesus Hominum Salvator" and "Havant Church 1762", which is the name of the original owners with date of presentation.

The inscription to the other side which was engraved over 100 years later is perhaps more interesting. By 1881, the chalice appears to have been given to the "Primitive Methodist Chapel Ropley" which is 25 miles north of Havant and near Alresford, Hampshire - it opened in 1869. A section of the Bible taken from St Lukes Gospel chapter 22 verses 17 to 20 is engraved thus:

“Take this and divide it among yourselves"

"This cup is the new covenant in my blood" 

"Even that which is poured out for you". 

Luke 22 commences in the days just before the Passover or Feast of Unleavened Bread and records the plot to kill Jesus Christ, the institution of the Lord's Supper, Jesus' arrest and his trial before the Sanhedrin. The section quoted on this cup is considered to be part of his farewell address.

This good-sized cup has a most attractive form and the original hand-raising hammer marks can still be seen to the interior. It has a good hefty weight and a great set of hallmarks for the largeworker Francis Crump. It further benefits from being in excellent condition. It is a fine piece of silver in its own right that is enriched by the powerful message written on it.