A mazer is a special type of wooden drinking vessel, a wide cup or shallow bowl without handles, with a broad flat foot and a knob or boss in the centre of the inside, known technically as the "print" or "boss". Mazers vary from simple pieces all in wood to those ornamented with metalwork, often in silver or

silver-gilt Silver-gilt or gilded/gilt silver, sometimes known in American English by the French language, French term vermeil, is silver (either pure or sterling silver, sterling) which has been gilding, gilded. Most large objects made in goldsmithing tha ...

. They use dense impervious woods such as

maple ''Acer'' is a genus of trees and shrubs commonly known as maples. The genus is placed in the soapberry family Sapindaceae.Stevens, P. F. (2001 onwards). Angiosperm Phylogeny Website. Version 9, June 2008 nd more or less continuously updated si ...

("mazer" is an obsolete name for the maple tree),

beech Beech (genus ''Fagus'') is a genus of deciduous trees in the family Fagaceae, native to subtropical (accessory forest element) and temperate (as dominant element of Mesophyte, mesophytic forests) Eurasia and North America. There are 14 accepted ...

and

walnut A walnut is the edible seed of any tree of the genus '' Juglans'' (family Juglandaceae), particularly the Persian or English walnut, '' Juglans regia''. They are accessory fruit because the outer covering of the fruit is technically an i ...

.Taylor, 78 They represent a north European medieval tradition, and mostly date from the 11th (or earlier) to the 16th centuries.Campbell

Etymology

A form of the word ''mazer'' may have existed in

Old English Old English ( or , or ), or Anglo-Saxon, is the earliest recorded form of the English language, spoken in England and southern and eastern Scotland in the Early Middle Ages. It developed from the languages brought to Great Britain by Anglo-S ...

, but the evidence for this is slight. (The ''Oxford English Dictionary'' records speculation, for example, that the word occurs in the place-name '' Maserfield'' whose etymology is, however, uncertain.) The modern English word instead derived from

Middle English Middle English (abbreviated to ME) is a form of the English language that was spoken after the Norman Conquest of 1066, until the late 15th century. The English language underwent distinct variations and developments following the Old English pe ...

''mazer'' (and its variant spellings); this word was borrowed from Anglo-Norman, a dialect of

Old French Old French (, , ; ) was the language spoken in most of the northern half of France approximately between the late 8th Welsh, as ''masarn'' ('maple, sycamore') and ''dysgl masarn'' ('mazer bowl').mazer, n.1.
, ''Oxford English Dictionary Online'', 3rd edn (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2001). The Old French word ''mazre'' and its variants in turn derive from German, and it is clear that the word must have existed in Common Germanic, where it can be reconstructed as *''masuraz''. In the West Germanic languages it is found as Old Saxon language, Old Saxon ''masur'' ('swelling') and Old High German language, Old High German ''masar'' ('knot or swelling of a tree'), and later in the Middle Ages as

Middle Dutch Middle Dutch is a collective name for a number of closely related West Germanic dialects whose ancestor was Old Dutch. It was spoken and written between 1150 and 1500. Until the advent of Modern Dutch after 1500 or , there was no overarching sta ...

''māser'' ('knot or swelling of a tree', especially a maple),

Middle Low German Middle Low German is a developmental stage of Low German. It developed from the Old Saxon language in the Middle Ages and has been documented in writing since about 1225–34 (). During the Hanseatic period (from about 1300 to about 1600), Mid ...

''māser'' ('curly-grained wood'),

Middle High German Middle High German (MHG; or ; , shortened as ''Mhdt.'' or ''Mhd.'') is the term for the form of High German, High German language, German spoken in the High Middle Ages. It is conventionally dated between 1050 and 1350, developing from Old High ...

''maser'' ('curly-grained wood, excrescence on the maple and other trees, drinking cup made of curly-grained wood'). In the

North Germanic languages The North Germanic languages make up one of the three branches of the Germanic languages—a sub-family of the Indo-European languages—along with the West Germanic languages and the extinct East Germanic languages. The language group is also r ...

it appears as Old Icelandic ''mǫsurr'' ('maple tree, veined wood')—including in the form ''mǫsurr skál'' ('maplewood vessel')—and Swedish ''masur'' ('curly-grained wood'). The Germanic word *''masuraz'' is thought to share its base with Old High German ''māsa'' ('spot, scar') and English ''measles'', a base which may also have influenced the word ''maple''. Whether this word has cognates elsewhere in the

Indo-European languages The Indo-European languages are a language family native to the northern Indian subcontinent, most of Europe, and the Iranian plateau with additional native branches found in regions such as Sri Lanka, the Maldives, parts of Central Asia (e. ...

is, however, uncertain.

Description

The examples that have been preserved above ground are generally of the most expensive kind, with large mounts in silver, but some archaeological sites have produced quantities of plain wood mazers, which were no doubt the most common at the time. The wreck of the ''

Mary Rose The ''Mary Rose'' was a carrack in the English Tudor navy of Henry VIII of England, King Henry VIII. She was launched in 1511 and served for 34 years in several wars against France, Scotland, and Brittany. After being substantially rebuilt in ...

'' is one example of a group find, and the Nanteos Cup a single survival. They are typically between five and eleven inches in diameter. Ornamented types usually have a rim or "band" of precious metal, generally of silver or silver gilt; the foot and the print being also of metal. There are examples with wooden covers, sometimes with a metal handle, such as the Bute Mazer or Flemish and German mazers in the

British Museum The British Museum is a Museum, public museum dedicated to human history, art and culture located in the Bloomsbury area of London. Its permanent collection of eight million works is the largest in the world. It documents the story of human cu ...

. On the outside, but generally not the inside of the metal band there is often an inscription, religious, or convivial, and the print was also often decorated with a sculpted or engraved plate, and sometimes a gem. The Bute Mazer is one of the most elaborate to survive, with a three-dimensional reclining lion rising from the base, and enamelled coats of arms in a circle around it. Saints, the religious monogram ''

IHS IHS may refer to: Religious * Christogram#IHS, Christogram IHS or ΙΗΣ, a monogram symbolizing Jesus Christ * ''In hoc signo'', used by Roman emperor Constantine the Great Organizations * Indian Health Service, an operating division of the US D ...

'', and animals, often no doubt with heraldic significance, are other common decorations of the boss. Many metal pieces that appear to be mazer bosses have been excavated. An example from York Minster grants an

indulgence In the teaching of the Catholic Church, an indulgence (, from , 'permit') is "a way to reduce the amount of punishment one has to undergo for (forgiven) sins". The ''Catechism of the Catholic Church'' describes an indulgence as "a remission bef ...

of 40 days remission from

Purgatory In Christianity, Purgatory (, borrowed into English language, English via Anglo-Norman language, Anglo-Norman and Old French) is a passing Intermediate state (Christianity), intermediate state after physical death for purifying or purging a soul ...

for all who drink from it.St. John Hope, 133 Later examples may be raised on a stem, perhaps copying the style of covered cups; some from about 1550 onwards are effectively tazzas that are partly in wood. The later mazers sometimes had metal straps between the rim and the foot, as were added to the Bute Mazer. Examples continued to be produced after the main period ended in the 16th century, perhaps with a deliberate sense of traditionalism. Some modern woodturners and silversmiths have continued to produce examples, especially Omar Ramsden. Mounted examples are turned very finely, often from burr maple from the field maple. Both the wood and the vessels made of it were known as "mazer", so in contemporary accounts sometimes they are referred to as ciphis de mazer (drinking bowl of burr maple wood), and sometimes simply as a "mazer". The best mazers had silver or silver gilt rims added. Commonly prints were also added (a decorated disc in the base of the bowl), and occasionally, normally on later mazers, a silver or gilt foot was also added.

Use

The size of wooden mazers was restricted by the relatively small size of the trees that gave the best dense and grained wood. The addition of a metal band might double the capacity of a mazer. Large ornamented mazers were probably passed around the table for toasts and the like, as some covered cups were, but more ordinary ones may have been regarded as personal within a group such as a household, ship or monastery, with the finer examples likely being reserved for the leading figures. Evidence from inventories suggests many mazers were given names. A record of customs at a monastic community in Durham records that each monk has his own mazer "edged with silver double gilt", but also an especially large one called the "Grace cup" was passed around the table after Grace. Another such, called the "Judas cup", was only ever used on

Maundy Thursday Maundy Thursday, also referred to as Holy Thursday, or Thursday of the Lord's Supper, among other names,The day is also known as Great and Holy Thursday, Holy and Great Thursday, Covenant Thursday, Sheer Thursday, and Thursday of Mysteries. is ...

. Parish churches might be bequeathed mazers, and use them at " church ales" and other parish occasions. Decorated mazers are often included and briefly described in wills and inventories. In 1395 John de Scardeburgh, rector of Tichmarsh, left twelve mazers, two more than were recorded in an inventory of the treasure of

Henry IV of England Henry IV ( – 20 March 1413), also known as Henry Bolingbroke, was King of England from 1399 to 1413. Henry was the son of John of Gaunt, Duke of Lancaster (a son of King Edward III), and Blanche of Lancaster. Henry was involved in the 1388 ...

four years later. But monastic inventories could include dozens, including an exceptional 132 in an inventory of 1328 at

Christ Church, Canterbury Canterbury Cathedral is the cathedral of the archbishop of Canterbury, the spiritual leader of the Church of England and symbolic leader of the worldwide Anglican Communion. Located in Canterbury, Kent, it is one of the oldest Christianity, Ch ...

. In inventories, normally in

medieval Latin Medieval Latin was the form of Literary Latin used in Roman Catholic Church, Roman Catholic Western Europe during the Middle Ages. It was also the administrative language in the former Western Roman Empire, Roman Provinces of Mauretania, Numidi ...

, they are called by a variety of names (all the plural forms): "''ciphi'' or ''cuppae de mazero'' or ''de murra, mazeri, cyphi murrae, mazerei'', or ''hanaps de mazer'' (French).

Surviving examples

Over 60 British medieval mazers are known to survive. Many of the English survivals were preserved in

Oxbridge Oxbridge is a portmanteau of the University of Oxford, Universities of Oxford and University of Cambridge, Cambridge, the two oldest, wealthiest, and most prestigious universities in the United Kingdom. The term is used to refer to them collect ...

colleges A college (Latin: ''collegium'') may be a tertiary education, tertiary educational institution (sometimes awarding academic degree, degrees), part of a collegiate university, an institution offering vocational education, a further educatio ...

livery companies A livery company is a type of guild or professional association that originated in medieval times in London, England. Livery companies comprise London's ancient and modern trade associations and guilds, almost all of which are Style (form of a ...

hospital A hospital is a healthcare institution providing patient treatment with specialized Medical Science, health science and auxiliary healthcare staff and medical equipment. The best-known type of hospital is the general hospital, which typically ...

s and other institutions going back to the Middle Ages. Relatively few have been passed down in wealthy families, though all such at the time would have owned them; the Bute Mazer is an exception here. A mazer still belonging to

All Souls College, Oxford All Souls College (official name: The College of All Souls of the Faithful Departed, of Oxford) is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. Unique to All Souls, all of its members automatically become fellows (i.e., full me ...

, but on loan to the

Ashmolean Museum The Ashmolean Museum of Art and Archaeology () on Beaumont Street in Oxford, England, is Britain's first public museum. Its first building was erected in 1678–1683 to house the cabinet of curiosities that Elias Ashmole gave to the University ...

, was donated to the college in 1437, at the time of its foundation by Thomas Ballard, a landowner in

Kent Kent is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Essex across the Thames Estuary to the north, the Strait of Dover to the south-east, East Sussex to the south-west, Surrey to the west, and Gr ...

. Another example in a college is the late 14th-century Swan Mazer of

Corpus Christi College, Cambridge Corpus Christi College (full name: "The College of Corpus Christi and the Blessed Virgin Mary", often shortened to "Corpus") is a Colleges of the University of Cambridge, constituent college of the University of Cambridge. From the late 14th c ...

, where a swan surmounts a thin column rising from the boss. If the mazer is filled too full, liquid runs down the column and out of the foot, no doubt a trick played on unwary first-timers dining at the college. Over the late Middle Ages there is a movement from deep bowls with narrow rims to shallower bowls and much wider rims. In the 13th and 14th century rims tend to be simple and plain, only about 1 cm deep without lettering, 15th and 16th century rims are very characteristic with a very deep (3–4 cm moulded form) often with lettering. One exception to this rule is the mazer which

Samuel Pepys Samuel Pepys ( ; 23 February 1633 – 26 May 1703) was an English writer and Tories (British political party), Tory politician. He served as an official in the Navy Board and Member of Parliament (England), Member of Parliament, but is most r ...

drank from in 1660 (on display in the

), the rim of this mazer is hallmarked 1507/8 but it is of the earlier simple form. A good display is at the Museum of Canterbury, where ten 13th and 14th century mazers are shown. A very fine example in the British Museum, from France or Flanders, probably in the early 15th century, has a very thin wooden bowl, and silver mountings of excellent quality, including enamels, but neither the cup nor the cover have metal on the rim, or ever seem to have done so. The cuir-bouilli travelling-case also survives.
The Watson Mazer
is the earliest in the sequence of Scottish standing mazers, featuring the coat of arms for David Watson of Saughton. Chemical analysis places it in the early 16th century. It is constructed of a maplewood bowl with a silver-gilt band, resting on a silver stem and an inscribed trumpet-shaped foot. Possibly the work of Adam Leys, today it is part of the Silver Treasury, level 5 of the Scotland Galleries in Edinburgh."The Watson Mazer" Insperata Floruit
/ref> File:BLW The Robert Chalker Mazer, around 1490.jpg, The "Robert Chalker Mazer", Britain 1480–1500,

Victoria and Albert Museum The Victoria and Albert Museum (abbreviated V&A) in London is the world's largest museum of applied arts, decorative arts and design, housing a permanent collection of over 2.8 million objects. It was founded in 1852 and named after Queen ...

. Maplewood with silver-gilt rim and boss. The boss is engraved with the Trinity, originally enamelled, an unidentified

merchant's mark A merchant's mark is an emblem or device adopted by a merchant, and placed on goods or products sold by him in order to keep track of them, or as a sign of authentication. It may also be used as a mark of identity in other contexts. History ...

and the inscription ROBERT CHALKER IESUS. File:Drinking Bowl MET sf1991-411s1.jpg, Britain, 15th-century,

The Cloisters The Cloisters, also known as the Met Cloisters, is a museum in the Washington Heights, Manhattan, Washington Heights neighborhood of Upper Manhattan, New York City. The museum, situated in Fort Tryon Park, specializes in European medieval art ...

File:Drinking Bowl MET sf1991-411s2.jpg, Side view of the same File:Mazer with cover MET 193170.jpg, The silver dog handle late 17th-century File:Mazer robinwood.JPG, Modern

rowan The rowans ( or ) or mountain-ashes are shrubs or trees in the genus ''Sorbus'' of the rose family, Rosaceae. They are native throughout the cool temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere, with the highest species diversity in the Himalaya ...

and silver mazer by Robin Wood File:The Watson Mazer.jpg, The Watson Mazer is the earliest in a series of Scottish Standing Mazers from the early 16th Century.

Notes

References

*Campbell, Gordon, "Mazer",

Grove Art Online ''Grove Art Online'' is the online edition of ''The Dictionary of Art'', often referred to as the ''Grove Dictionary of Art'', and part of Oxford Art Online, an internet gateway to online art reference publications of Oxford University Press, ...

, Oxford Art Online, Oxford University Press, accessed October 11, 2017
subscription required
*Cherry, John, in: Marks, Richard and Williamson, Paul, eds. ''Gothic: Art for England 1400–1547'', 2003, V&A Publications, London, *Glenn, Virginia, ''Romanesque and Gothic: Decorative Metalwork and Ivory Carvings in the Museum of Scotland'', 2003, National Museums of Scotland, * St. John Hope, W.H.,
On the English Medieval Drinking Bowls Called Mazers
Archaeologia 50 (1887), pp. 129–193 * *Taylor, Gerald, ''Silver'', 1963 (2nd edition), Penguin *

External links

* {{cite web, last=Eichhorn, first=Markus, title=The Maple Tree, url=http://www.test-tube.org.uk/trees/video_maple.htm, work=Test Tube, publisher=

Brady Haran Brady John Haran (born 18 June 1976) is an Australian-British independent filmmaker and video journalist who produces educational videos and documentary films for his YouTube channels, the most notable being ''Computerphile'' and ''Numberph ...

for the

University of Nottingham The University of Nottingham is a public research university in Nottingham, England. It was founded as University College Nottingham in 1881, and was granted a royal charter in 1948. Nottingham's main campus (University Park Campus, Nottingh ...

, date=November 2011
The Watson Mazer
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