Pot
ca. 1530-1550 (made)
Artist/Maker | |
Place of origin |
Mounted ceramics imported from Rhenish potteries, particularly Cologne, were extremely fashionable in England in the 16th century. In this case, the stoneware is from Germany whilst the mounts are English. The high price of mounting inexpensive stoneware objects in costly silver transformed such commonplace vessels into relative luxuries. Objects with a mottled brown glaze, like this example, were known as 'tigerware'.
This piece is an example of 16th century domestic silver. Such silver was both functional and ornamental. Objects for dining and drinking took elegant forms and were decorated in the latest styles. Beautifully crafted items intended only for display often adopted functional forms such as cups and dishes. Domestic silver was not confined to the most wealthy. Many people owned silver spoons or mounted vessels, items which often became treasured possessions.
Sir Arthur and Rosalinde Gilbert began collecting in the 1960s and over a period of 40 years formed one of the world’s great private collections of decorative arts. The collection consists of over 800 objects from the fields of European gold and silver, Italian mosaics and hardstone, portrait enamels and gold boxes. Sir Arthur Gilbert donated his extraordinary collection to Britain in 1996 to be housed at Somerset House, London, having previously been displayed at Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA). In 2008 the collection was moved to dedicated galleries in the V&A, where a selection has been on permanent display ever since.
This piece is an example of 16th century domestic silver. Such silver was both functional and ornamental. Objects for dining and drinking took elegant forms and were decorated in the latest styles. Beautifully crafted items intended only for display often adopted functional forms such as cups and dishes. Domestic silver was not confined to the most wealthy. Many people owned silver spoons or mounted vessels, items which often became treasured possessions.
Sir Arthur and Rosalinde Gilbert began collecting in the 1960s and over a period of 40 years formed one of the world’s great private collections of decorative arts. The collection consists of over 800 objects from the fields of European gold and silver, Italian mosaics and hardstone, portrait enamels and gold boxes. Sir Arthur Gilbert donated his extraordinary collection to Britain in 1996 to be housed at Somerset House, London, having previously been displayed at Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA). In 2008 the collection was moved to dedicated galleries in the V&A, where a selection has been on permanent display ever since.
Object details
Categories | |
Object type | |
Materials and techniques | Glazed earthenware with stamped, soldered silver-gilt |
Brief description | Earthenware with silver-gilt mounts, England and Germany, 1530-1550 |
Physical description | Bulbous earthenware pot with a cylindrical neck and C-scroll handle is covered in a mottled brown glaze. The mount on the foot is stamped with a band of dentils and has an engrailed border; the mount on the lip is stamped with a band of scrolling foliate motifs. |
Dimensions |
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Gallery label | (Gallery 70, case 1)
10–14. Mounted wares
Inexpensive objects of turned wood and stoneware, and more costly glass vessels were transformed by the addition of silver, pewter
or gold mounts. These metal bands, often decorated in the latest fashion, protected and enhanced the objects.
13. Jug with gilded silver mounts, 1530–50
German glazed stoneware, with English mounts
Museum no. Loan:Gilbert.582-2008(16/11/2016) |
Credit line | The Rosalinde and Arthur Gilbert Collection on loan to the Victoria and Albert Museum, London |
Object history | Provenance Acquired by Arthur Gilbert from S.J. Phillips Ltd, London, 1984. |
Historical context | Stoneware vessels with a mottled brown glaze were imported into England from the Rhenish potteries, particularly Cologne, in large quantities during the sixteenth and early seventeenth centuries and were frequently furnished with silver mounts. |
Production | The shape of this pot and the character of the mounts both indicate a date around the mid-century. Similarly stamped mounts, hallmarked for 1548 are on a 'facon de Venise' glass jug in the British Museum (Tait, 1979, cat. no. 81, pl.11). |
Summary | Mounted ceramics imported from Rhenish potteries, particularly Cologne, were extremely fashionable in England in the 16th century. In this case, the stoneware is from Germany whilst the mounts are English. The high price of mounting inexpensive stoneware objects in costly silver transformed such commonplace vessels into relative luxuries. Objects with a mottled brown glaze, like this example, were known as 'tigerware'. This piece is an example of 16th century domestic silver. Such silver was both functional and ornamental. Objects for dining and drinking took elegant forms and were decorated in the latest styles. Beautifully crafted items intended only for display often adopted functional forms such as cups and dishes. Domestic silver was not confined to the most wealthy. Many people owned silver spoons or mounted vessels, items which often became treasured possessions. Sir Arthur and Rosalinde Gilbert began collecting in the 1960s and over a period of 40 years formed one of the world’s great private collections of decorative arts. The collection consists of over 800 objects from the fields of European gold and silver, Italian mosaics and hardstone, portrait enamels and gold boxes. Sir Arthur Gilbert donated his extraordinary collection to Britain in 1996 to be housed at Somerset House, London, having previously been displayed at Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA). In 2008 the collection was moved to dedicated galleries in the V&A, where a selection has been on permanent display ever since. |
Bibliographic reference | Schroder, Timothy. The Gilbert collection of gold and silver. Los Angeles (Los Angeles County Museum of Art) 1988, cat. no.3, pp. 38-39. ISBN.0875871445 |
Other numbers |
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Collection | |
Accession number | LOAN:GILBERT.582-2008 |
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Record created | June 19, 2008 |
Record URL |
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