__NOTOC__ A nef is an extravagant table ornament and container used in the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire and ...

and

Renaissance The Renaissance ( , ) is a Periodization, period of history and a European cultural movement covering the 15th and 16th centuries. It marked the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and was characterized by an effort to revive and sur ...

, made of

precious metal Precious metals are rare, naturally occurring metallic chemical elements of high Value (economics), economic value. Precious metals, particularly the noble metals, are more corrosion resistant and less reactivity (chemistry), chemically reac ...

s in the shape of a ship – ''nef'' was another word for a

carrack A carrack (; ; ) is a three- or four- masted ocean-going sailing ship that was developed in the 14th to 15th centuries in Europe, most notably in Portugal and Spain. Evolving from the single-masted cog, the carrack was first used for Europea ...

in French. If not just used for decoration, it could hold

salt In common usage, salt is a mineral composed primarily of sodium chloride (NaCl). When used in food, especially in granulated form, it is more formally called table salt. In the form of a natural crystalline mineral, salt is also known as r ...

spice In the culinary arts, a spice is any seed, fruit, root, Bark (botany), bark, or other plant substance in a form primarily used for flavoring or coloring food. Spices are distinguished from herbs, which are the leaves, flowers, or stems of pl ...

s (the latter being very expensive in the Middle Ages), or cutlery, or even

napkin A napkin, serviette or face towelette is a square of cloth or paper tissue used at the table for wiping the mouth and fingers while eating. It is also sometimes used as a bib by tucking it into a shirt collar. It is usually small and folded, s ...

s. The large nef depicted in the well-known calendar miniature for January from the ''

Très Riches Heures du Duc de Berry The (; ), or , is an illuminated manuscript that was created between and 1416. It is a book of hours, which is a Christians, Christian devotional book and a collection of prayers said at canonical hours. The manuscript was created for John, ...

'' is being used to hold, and perhaps wash, gilt dishes from the table service. Nefs are recorded in France as early as 1239, initially consisting of just the hull, and perhaps initially used to drink from; by the 14th century the most elaborate had masts, sails and even crew, and had become too crowded with such details to be used as containers for anything. The so-called Mechanical Galleon 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 ...

is a late 16th-century German nef which was also a clock and

automaton An automaton (; : automata or automatons) is a relatively self-operating machine, or control mechanism designed to automatically follow a sequence of operations, or respond to predetermined instructions. Some automata, such as bellstrikers i ...

, with moving figures and music. A nef was usually made of

silver Silver is a chemical element; it has Symbol (chemistry), symbol Ag () and atomic number 47. A soft, whitish-gray, lustrous transition metal, it exhibits the highest electrical conductivity, thermal conductivity, and reflectivity of any metal. ...

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 ...

gold Gold is a chemical element; it has chemical symbol Au (from Latin ) and atomic number 79. In its pure form, it is a brightness, bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile metal. Chemically, gold is a transition metal ...

, often further embellished with enamel and jewels. A nautilus shell often formed the hull of the ship, as in the Burghley Nef (illustrated). Some nefs had wheels to allow them to be rolled from one end of the table to the other, but most had legs or pedestals. The nef was placed in front of the most important person at table as a mark of their status. The equivalent in religious plate is a ''navicula'', Latin for small ship, and also a term in English for a boat-shaped

incense Incense is an aromatic biotic material that releases fragrant smoke when burnt. The term is used for either the material or the aroma. Incense is used for aesthetic reasons, religious worship, aromatherapy, meditation, and ceremonial reasons. It ...

-holder. OED, "Navicula. 3"

Gallery of decorative nefs

File:1503 Schlüsselfelder Schiff anagoria.JPG, Schlüsselfelder Ship, Germany c. 1503 File:Burghley nef.jpg, The Burghley Nef,

(with sections ungilded), and nautilus shell, 1527–28, France, V&A Museum File:Ship Clock at British Museum cropped.jpg, Detail from the so-called Mechanical Galleon in the

, Germany c. 1585

Notes

References

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External links

{{Commons category, Nefs (metalwork)
Nefs in the Middle Ages and Renaissance
Links to nefs in museums, as well as medieval illustrations of nefs, demonstrating the range of uses for pre-17th century nefs. Serving and dining Silver objects Silver-gilt objects Marine art Medieval European metalwork objects Edible salt

Gallery of decorative nefs

See also

Notes

References

Further reading

External links