Arrabona - Múzeumi közlemények 37/1-2. (Győr, 1999)

Tanulmányok – Közelmények - Domonkos Ottó: Molnár avatópohár

TANULMÁNYOK - KÖZLEMÉNYEK ARRABONA 37.1999. OTTÓ DOMONKOS: A Miller Initiatory Cup There were some remarkable, joyful events of guild life such as the initiation ceremonies after the years of apprenticeship as well as the welcomings of the itinerant journey-men at the time of their arrival or departure. The "initiatory cups" and "toasting cups"served for those celebrations. The Hungarian and the international literature let us know several amusing, tricky and artful versions (Willkombecher, Schekgefasse, Wexirpokal, Scherbecher etc.

..). Our initiatory cup belongs to the Storno collection in the Museum of Sopron. It is a silver goldsmith's work from the end of the 17

th century. It is classed among the so-called "bridal cups". The full cup could not be placed to the table until it had been emptied

. The joke was even heightened by a task which was to move the sails of the small silver windmill by blowing air through the tube next to the stairs. This custom is revealed by the descriptions of a similar goblet, "Trinkspiel" "Wind Mühle", kept in Dresden. In that case only its superstucture is made of silver while the bowl itself is made of glass. Around 1720 the cup was in the possession of August the Strong (Augustus Rex), a Saxon prince and the king of Poland. The humorous and tricky jugs made of glass, tin or ceramics were popular throughout Europe. We know a couple of 18- andl9- century versions from bourgeois and peasant circles, for instance the "csalikancsó" ("tricky jug") and the "sörcsizma" ("beer boot"). 1. Molnár avatópohár, 17. század vége. 2. A benyomott P jegy a malomház Benyomott P jegy. zsindelyén. 157