The Orpheus Cup

A gilded and enameled standing cup supported by a kneeling figure, its bowl painted with flowers and a pastoral roundel. A cluster of sculpted animals and figures crowns the lid, and small creatures populate the enameled base.

Look closer: Small animals and a tiny figure crawl across the green enameled mound of the base.

Artist

Jan Vermeyen

Date

1641–42, the jeweled elements on the lid in the form of animals, amorini holding bow and quiver, and the statuettes of Orpheus and Diana, Prague, ca.1600

Medium

Gold: cast, embossed, and engraved; enamel: ronde-bosse and painted; rubies

Source

The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Size

2945 × 4000 px

Credit (appreciated, not required for public-domain works): The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Purchase, Anna-Maria and Stephen Kellen Acquisitions Fund, 2020