Dish

Cast pewter
Nuremberg, Germany, 1569 engraved in mould
Signed in the mould 'BI' (unidentified); made by Albrecht Preissensin (active 1564-98)
Owner's initials 'FS' on back and arms of Nuremberg

Nuremberg was a great centre of the finest pewter. The master-pewterer Albrecht Preissensin cast this dish in an etched (rather than engraved) mould creating a low-relief woodcut effect. The design depicts the Judgement of Paris after an engraving by Hans Brosamer and the Virtues after engravings by Virgil Solis, both well-known 16th-century printmakers.