Precious tableware of Old Rus
Beaker: stakan

Drinking cups with wide mouths were widespread in the Old Russian everyday life as useful tableware for serving different beverages. They were made of tin, copper, glass and silver, and were skillfully decorated by Russian makers. From the beginning of the XVIth century tall, bell-mounted beakers were depicted in Russian miniatures as a part of the official garnish. In the second half of the XVIIth century vessels of this type were finished with a combination of niello work and engraving.

The surface of the silver stakan of the late XVIIth century (img. 6) is covered with delicate nielloed grasses on a lustrous damascened ground of long undulating stems with magnificent leaves and flowers. In contrast with ornamentation of the previous centuries Russian foliate designs began to lose their stylized character and became more natural and detailed. The ornament on the sides of the beaker presents birds sitting on branches; dynamic figures of animals are representative of the Baroque style.