Blessing box; Augsburg, last quarter S. XVI.

Blessing box; Augsburg, last quarter S. XVI.
Carved and polished ebony wood; chiseled and embossed silver.
Attached study by Dr. Rosario Coppel.
Measurements: 52 x 32 x 12 cm.
The blessing box is composed of an ebony wood frame in the shape of a Greek temple with Solomonic columns flanking a central silver relief where the "Adoration of the Shepherds" takes place. It has, in turn, different ornaments in this material: a relief with the bust of God the Father in the top of the split pediment and, on both sides, two allegorical recumbent feminine figures. The basin is located in the lower part, between the aforementioned columns -whose Corinthian capitals and bases are worked in silver-, with a cherub's head on garlands surrounded by pomegranates and acanthus leaves in its deposit. It also has a series of openwork applications in the stylobate and frieze.
The iconography, the formal characteristics and the richness of the materials suggest that it must have been originally created for the private oratory of an important client. The main figures of the central relief have been represented with great care, and have characteristics of great particularity, such as the sunken cheeks of the male figures, the hands with long fingers, the movement of the clothes and the expressiveness of the faces. The figures in the background and the bust of God the Father, on the other hand, are more sketched.
The relief scene may have been inspired by a print, while the structure and models, some naturalistic and others idealized, are reminiscent of the work of Guglielmo della Porta (1515 - 1577). The female figures can be found among the drawings made by the sculptor, as well as in some of his works, as can the angels or the cherub's head. The general composition also appears in pyxides, reliquaries and other devotional elements created by the sculptor and by the silversmiths who assisted him in his workshop.

The blessing box, although it is related to the work of Guglielmo della Porta, has certain formal elements that invite us to place it among the German productions of the city of Augsburg, an outstanding center for the production of metalwork. The elegant combination of silver and ebony is characteristic of the region, and there are many known examples, such as those produced by Matthäus Walbaum (1554 - 1632). The decorative motifs in silver, such as flowers, leaves or cornice-like moldings on an ebony structure, are reminiscent of those on pieces such as the altar of the "Reiche Kapelle" in Munich, by Hans Scheibel and Jakob Anthoni. 1600), in the "Pomeranian Cabinet" (c. 1610), creation, precisely, of Matthäus Walbaum or the portable altar of Jeremias Flicker (c. 1647), whose relief is a copy of the one represented in the "Calvary" of El Escorial, work of Antonio Gentile after a model of Guglielmo della Porta. Moreover, the style used for the relief of the blessing box is very close to the so-called "Master GP", a silversmith who worked in Augsburg during the last quarter of the 16th century. The "Adoration of the Shepherds", a silver relief that can be found in the Museum "für Kunst und Gewerbe" in Hamburg, is similar to the one studied, not only with regard to the models of the figures, but also with regard to the construction of the background and, above all, with regard to the group of angels in the upper third who, on a semicircle of clouds, hold a phylactery that reads: GLORIA IN EXCELSIS DEO. PAX HOMINIBVS". Both pieces share a bold drawing, with sure but schematic strokes, the figures being represented in great detail, revealing the texture of the materials.