Victorian silver wine or water goblet

Handsome antique Victorian silver wine goblet decorated around the bowl with well defined, hand-chased, floral work and foliate decorations, and the interior is gilded. The body of the goblet is mounted on a tapering spreading circular stem and stepped base.

With its flat base, thin stem and conical bowl, the basic goblet shape has remained almost entirely unchanged in its form for centuries.

In the mid-fifteenth century the gentry owned goblets crafted in silver. Superstitious drinkers in the seventeenth century believed that precious metals promoted better health, and so the demand for silver goblets increased. The arrival of silver plate in the mid 1800s meant that more people could afford to introduce a bit of luxury into their lifestyle.