bavarikon4UTucher jug, 1562
Museum Tucherschloss und Hirsvogelsaal, HI Kh 010
Wenzel Jamnitzer, Pierre Reymond: Jug from the Tucherservice, 1562
The ceremonial jug is the only secured part of the Tucher service, which originates from the hand of the famous Nuremberg goldsmith Wenzel Jamnitzer (active 1534-1585). His marks are located on the silver-gilt spout and handle.
The copper body of the vessel, made in Nuremberg, was covered with painter’s enamel in Limoges and then mounted, after a few technical difficulties, by arrangement of Herdegen, the son of the client Linhart Tucher. Inside the jug neck is marked "P.R." and "1562". Pierre Reymond’s full signature can be seen on the insert of the clasp, with the Tucher coat of arms on the front of the belly. The jug was intended to complement the enamelled basin from 1558, which was already in the possession of the Tucher family, to form a pouring set.
The figurative representations on the jug’s belly show a bear hunt and a deer hunt. Apart from the dramatic effect of the equestrian scenes and the representative character of the motif, after all hunting was considered a privilege of the upper classes, the subject matter can also be interpreted in a Christian and moralising way with regard to the entire Tucher service. The bear and deer already appear on the basin. Symbolically, the bear may stand for evil and the deer for Christ, i.e. the overcoming of evil.
Claudia Däubler-Hauschke, Helge Weingärtner