Drug Vase
1550 to 1650 (made)
| Place of origin |
This large jar may have been used to store dry goods, possibly medicaments used to treat ailments. We know from contemporary illustrations that jars of this size and shape were used by pharmacists to store drugs on shelves in their premises.
The heavily carved decoration on this drug pot was executed using tools with straight and curved edges, revealing a great deal of the red clay body underneath. The decoration has been enhanced with painted oxides in blue, green and amber.
Potters in northern Italy combined fine incising with heavy carving to produce a distinctive foreground and background. In this they were inspired by Middle Eastern designs. Sgraffito is an Italian word meaning 'scratched'. It refers to the technique of scratching through an upper layer of one material to reveal a ground of different colour beneath.
The heavily carved decoration on this drug pot was executed using tools with straight and curved edges, revealing a great deal of the red clay body underneath. The decoration has been enhanced with painted oxides in blue, green and amber.
Potters in northern Italy combined fine incising with heavy carving to produce a distinctive foreground and background. In this they were inspired by Middle Eastern designs. Sgraffito is an Italian word meaning 'scratched'. It refers to the technique of scratching through an upper layer of one material to reveal a ground of different colour beneath.
Object details
| Category | |
| Object type | |
| Materials and techniques | Red earthenware covered with white slip and with incised decoration |
| Brief description | Drug vase of red earthenware, covered with a white slip, and with incised decoration painted in colours and glazed. Italian, probably Emilia- Romagna, 1550 to 1650 |
| Physical description | The decoration of the outsde consists of four bands; three of them are filled with wavy stems forming compartments, which are occupied by leaves and fruit. The lowest band has flat ornament resembling gadroons. The two handles are each composed of two stems bound together by double cords. |
| Dimensions |
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| Gallery label |
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| Credit line | Bought from the Bardini Collection |
| Object history | Bought from the Bardini Collection for £32; Christie's, 5 June 1899, lot no.186. In the sale catalogue, it was described as "Vase of Pavia faience". Rackham lists it as of 'uncertain origin'. |
| Summary | This large jar may have been used to store dry goods, possibly medicaments used to treat ailments. We know from contemporary illustrations that jars of this size and shape were used by pharmacists to store drugs on shelves in their premises. The heavily carved decoration on this drug pot was executed using tools with straight and curved edges, revealing a great deal of the red clay body underneath. The decoration has been enhanced with painted oxides in blue, green and amber. Potters in northern Italy combined fine incising with heavy carving to produce a distinctive foreground and background. In this they were inspired by Middle Eastern designs. Sgraffito is an Italian word meaning 'scratched'. It refers to the technique of scratching through an upper layer of one material to reveal a ground of different colour beneath. |
| Bibliographic references |
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| Collection | |
| Accession number | 475-1899 |
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| Record created | January 24, 2008 |
| Record URL |
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