Cup with cover, 1742
Paul de Lamerie (British, 1688–1751)
Silver
The Karl and Esther Hoblitzelle Collection, gift of the Hoblitzelle Foundation, 1987.186.1.a–b

The superb quality of this covered cup reveals that Paul de Lamerie was one of Europe’s finest 18th-century silversmiths. Unlike many English smiths, who were conservative in their design aesthetic, de Lamerie was trained in the French rococo taste by his Huguenot father. As a result, many of England’s elite who wanted rococo-style silver patronized de Lamerie’s shop.

One such client was Algernon Coote, 6th Earl of Mountrath (1684–1744), for whom de Lamerie made this piece. Engraved on the bottom of the basket (also in the Dallas Museum of Art’s collections), and cast on the side of the cup are Coote’s arms, which are surmounted by an earl’s coronet and carry the motto Vincit Veritas (Truth Conquers). In ordering such elaborate silver for display in his town and country houses, Coote was not only telling his peers that he was extremely wealthy but also that he was knowledgeable about current French taste.