Beaker with portrait medallion

The beaker shows a portrait of a Hungarian nobleman, “Heribert noble de Farkas”, and bears on its base the words: “Es lebe der Kaiser, mein Mädchen und ich, der Kaiser für alle, mein Mädchen für mich; ich aber für beide, dem Kaiser zum Dienste, dem Mädchen zur Freude” (“Long live the Emperor, my girl and I, the Emperor for all, my girl for me; but I for both, to serve my Emperor, to bring joy to my girl”). It must have taken an extraordinary amount of time and effort to produce this beaker. Two thin-sided beakers had to be made, fitting perfectly together, gilt, decorated and lacquered. Moreover, the artist cut an oval into the outer beaker and inserted the perfectly fitting medallion with the portrait into the convex gap. Johann Josef Mildner came from North Bohemia, but from 1787 at the latest until his death worked in Gutenbrunn in Lower Austria, where there was a Glass workshop. Mildner’s father and brothers also worked in Gutenbrunn as Glass engravers (and joiners) and may have supported him in taking this north Bohemian ‘Zwischengoldglas’ (‘gold between Glass’) technique to its artistic pinnacle. (Dedo von Kerssenbrock-Krosigk)