Beautiful Gilt Silver Chalice with Enamels. Demarquet. France, Circa 1880

Beautiful gilt silver chalice with enamels by Demarquet brothers, made in France circa 1880 and really fine looking. The chalice comes with a paten, also made of silver and with a great enamel in the center depicting the Lamb of God. Both pieces bear hallmarks of the Demarquet Brothers (Demarquet Fréres), French goldsmiths and silversmiths who kept their business between 1868 and 1890. We can also see the mark for antique French silver pieces. The chalice has a lobed foot divided in six sections. Six of them have enameled medallions with scenes of the Viacrucis, painted with exquisite attention to detail the Crucifixion, the Flagellation and the Imposition of the Cloak, the Scepter and the Crown of Thorns. The rest of the sections are adorned with embedded turquoises. The foot is also decorated with fine gorgeous silver filigrees, shaped as symmetrical curves and trimmed with bunches of grapes. The main node has six carved stones of different colors: burgundy, blue and violet. The subcup is made of silver filigrees too, just like the decoration of the foot, and bears similar turquoises. The cup has an engraved and enameled blue inscription reading HIC EST ENIM CALIX SÁNGUINIS MEI (This is the Chalice of My Blood). The blue enamel of the cup has some restoration that is barely noticeable, mainly in the areas where there are two dots between the words. Actually under photographic flashes they are somewhat noticeable, but in person they are barely noticeable. The artistic enamels on the base and paten are perfect.This beautiful gilt silver chalice with enamels by Demarquet is a unique piece with a great aesthetic and material value, nearly 150 years old.Dimensions: Chalice: Foots Width: 6 in / 15.4 cm. Cups Width: 3.62 in / 9.2 cm. Height: 9.17 in / 23.3 cm. Weight: 432 g. Paten: Diameter: 5.91 in / 15 cm. Weight: 135 g. Total Weight: 567 g.