Existing comment:
Ewer and Basin with Life Casts
ca. 1550
Peter Kuster
In the Kunstkammer, wonders of art and of nature competed for the prince's attention. Perfect imitation of plants and animals was a marvelous feat, and no technique came closer than life casting. Creatures cast from molds taken of live models were so lifelike they could replace the real thing, allowing princes to examine elusive natural marvels. Wenzel Jamnitzer perfected the technique, but the procedure may have been stolen by Peter Kuster to produce objects like this splendid ewer and basin set (never before exhibited in the United States). When this piece entered the Dubrovnik Cathedral Treasury in 1779, it was adapted into a reliquary. |