Tobacco jar (‘tabakspot’)
Origin: Amsterdam
Date: 1732
Master: Jan Pont
Dimensions: 14 x 11,8 x 11,8 cm
Weight: 660 grams
Provenance: W.J.R. Dreesmann, Amsterdam; Frederik Muller & Cie, 1960-1962.
A very typical Dutch object is the tobacco jar, known as ‘tabakspot.’ There are no examples in Asian export porcelain, and they were not made and used outside the Dutch provinces – though they were very much so by the Dutch. There are tobacco jars in delft ceramic and in tin, but the most luxurious examples were made in silver, which served as symbols of status, wealth and good taste.
This particularly heavy tobacco jar was made by the master silversmith Jan Pont, who was among the best in his profession. The smooth jar is lavishly decorated with ornaments in the style of Daniël Marot. These decorations were partly cast in molds, which were sometimes passed on to other silversmiths. Tobacco jars identical to those by Pont are known by his colleague Hendrik Swierink.
An extremely similar tobacco jar is shown in the portrait of 1747 by Tibout Regters of Christiaan van Eeghen (1700-1747), a member of the leading Van Eeghen family of traders. It is possible that this tobacco jar was indeed part of his collection.
Literature
-Hans Breet, De Dordtse Roos, zilversmeedkunst in Dordrecht, 2022.
-Rudi Ekkart, Tibout Regters, 1710-1768, schilder van portretten en conversatiestukken, Leiden, 2006.
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