Pewter plate

Date1650-1670

Artist/Maker Thomas Haward

MediumPewter.

DimensionsDiam: 10 1/16"; W (rim): 2 1/4"

Credit LineMuseum Purchase

Object number1992-93

DescriptionPewter plate of broad-rim type. Broad flat rim with plain edge; short concave booge to shallow flat well in center. Engraved with the crest and the arms of descendants of Sir Francis Drake within separate crossed palm fronds opposite one another on face of rim.
Label TextThis fine plate is handsomely engraved on opposite sides of the rim with the arms and crest that Elizabeth I granted to Sir Francis Drake upon his return from circumnavigating the earth in 1581. They are particularly evocative. The crest depicts the arm of God reaching through the clouds to grasp lines attached to the bow of the Golden Hind to guide it in its voyage around the globe. A banner is aptly labeled "XILIO[AUXILIO] DIVINO" (By divine assistance). Likewise, the arms are divided in the middle by a fesse wavy or a serpentine bar, reminiscent of the ocean, with a large pole star above and below. Even though Sir Francis married twice without any descendants, the family continued to use these arms long after his death in 1596. The identity of the impaled arms has not been established. A small crescent moon cadency mark is included in the coat of arms, indicating that the arms are those of a second son in that generation of the Drake family.

Another plate from the same set was exhibited at the Museum of London in 1989/90 and is in the collection of David Little.

InscribedCrest and coat of arms of a descendent of Sir Francis Drake engraved within separate palm frond surrounds opposite one another on face of rim.
MarkingsTouch mark a heart with crown above and "T" to the left and "H: to the right within a beaded circle on underside of rim (Peal MPM 2214). Pseudo hallmarks (1) leopard's head within a serrated rectangle, (2) lion passant with two pellets above and below within a serrated rectangle, (3) buckle with two pellets above and one below within a shaped shield, and (4) "T"H" with crown above and heart below within a lozenge, on face of rim.
ProvenanceNorton Asner, Baltimore, Maryland (sold after his death at Weschler's, Washington, D.C., June 5, 1992).

Exhibition(s)