Large Hunting Powder Flask With Medieval And Mythological Iconography

Alpine Germanic Area (Southern Germany / Austria / Switzerland) Late 18th century (circa 1770–1790) Important commissioned hunting powder flask, richly decorated with medieval and symbolic iconography, finely carved and mounted in gilt silver (vermeil). The deeply carved body features on one side a hagiographic scene depicting the legend of Saint Hubert, patron saint of hunters. The saint is shown at a hunting standstill, facing the stag bearing the luminous crucifix between its antlers, surrounded by his hounds frozen in the moment of revelation. The scene is set within a structured landscape, enlivened by medieval-inspired architecture (church, fortified buildings), lending it a clear narrative and strong symbolic weight. The other side is adorned with a mythological scene depicting a battle of fabulous creatures, pitting a dragon-serpent against a winged mythical animal with a head resembling a pterodactyl or a reptilian griffin and a scaly tail. This composition, drawn from the imagery of medieval bestiaries, introduces a symbolic register contrasting wild forces and chaos with the ordered and sanctified world of the hunt. The sides are richly decorated with vine tendrils sculpted in the round, blending bunches of grapes, tendrils, and deeply openwork foliage. This continuous decoration, displaying great technical virtuosity, testifies to a lengthy and entirely handcrafted process, characteristic of the large hunting commissions of the late 18th century. The upper mount, in finely chased and gilded silver, is adorned with stylized Gothic motifs (a frieze of pointed arches), oak leaves, and acorns. It is surmounted by a matching decorated stopper, attached by a small chain. The quality of the vermeil and the mastery of mercury gilding unambiguously date the mount to the late 18th century. This powder flask perfectly illustrates the erudite medievalism that pervaded aristocratic hunting circles at the end of the Ancien Régime. Materials: Boxwood – coconut – steel – gilded silver (vermeil) Dimensions: Height: 22.5 cm Width: 12 cm Attribution: Alpine Germanic work (Southern Germany / Austria / Switzerland) Estimate: €12,000 – €15,000