The Maynard Dish
Paul de Lamerie (1688-1751)
London, England
1736–37
Silver
LOAN: The Cahn family foundation

The extraordinary border of this dish, with figures representing Earth, Air, Fire and Water, is the first appearance of the work of the so-called 'Maynard Master', the artistic personality responsible for de Lamerie's most ambitious commissions. He was probably trained as a chaser, and modelled the original plaques in copper, from which moulds were taken to make the silver casts. This object will be on display at the V&A from 23 May 2009 onwards.