Description

Summary: Dating from the 15th century, the Lacock Cup is a silver-gilt drinking cup which has been owned by the Church of St. Cyriac in Lacock, Wiltshire, and thought to have been used by its congregation for over 400 years. It has been on loan to the British Museum since 1963 and until the 1980s continued to return to the church to be used as a chalice for certain religious festivals. In January 2013 the Church of St. Cyriac in Lacock offered the Lacock Cup for sale to the British Museum and a fund raising appeal allowed the joint acquisition with Wiltshire Museum to take place. The Lacock Cup is a stunning piece of craftsmanship with a unique history. In the medieval period the Cup was used for feasting and dining at table. The Cup is elegantly decorated, formed of hammered sheet silver, edged with gilded gothic motifs and twisted ropework. The sweeping lid and trumpet shaped foot would have drawn the attention of the viewer across the Lord’s hall, as it does today. In the post-Reformation era, the Cup became a sacred vessel: a chalice for communion wine in a Protestant church. This is a replica of the cup.