Silver Wedding Cup De Beuzec (finistère) - Brittany

Breton wedding cup in silver. Marked on one side J. Quéridie? in Beuzec and on the other Jean Kirisit in Beuzec. Circa 1820. Old man hallmark. Goldsmith undetermined.
The ornate bowls date from the 13th century and are closer to chalices than bowls, in terms of shape. They were reserved for the elite, i.e. princes and prelates, who also used shallow but wide bowls to consume liquids. If the habit of drinking from a cup was lost towards the end of the 17th century, it became customary, and remained so until the end of the 19th century, to offer the bride and groom a wedding cup. This cup is hemispherical and flattened, on a low base, with two vertical handles in volutes. Wedding goblets are very rarely decorated on the body but the edges of the foot can be. The outer rim of the wedding cup very often bears an engraved inscription: the most common one indicates the name of the bride or her initials, and the date of the wedding. Sometimes the name of the groom or his initials and the name of the village where the union was celebrated are found.