Image of Gallery in South Kensington
On display at V&A South Kensington
Ceramics, Room 140, Factory Ceramics

Vase

1957 (modelled)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

Royal Copenhagen was founded in 1755 under the patronage of Frederick V, and became one of Denmark’s leading porcelain factories. The factory began to produce stonewares in the early 20th century under technical manager Patrick Nordström. Axel Salto joined Royal Copenhagen in 1933. He remained there for the rest of his career, developing a reputation as one of the factory’s most skilled stoneware modellers.

The rich glaze on this piece was developed in the 1930s under the direction of Royal Copenhagen’s chemical engineer Hans A. Madslund. Named ‘Solfatara’ for the metallic oxide it contains, firing under special conditions will turn the glaze bright yellow or black, and can produce mottled variations in between.


Object details

Categories
Object type
Materials and techniques
Stoneware with modelled decoration and 'Solfatara' glaze
Brief description
Vase, stoneware with 'Solfatara glaze', designed by Axel Salto, manufactured by Royal Copenhagen, Denmark, 1957.
Physical description
Stoneware vase with deeply modelled decoration and green/yellow 'Solfatara' glazes.
Dimensions
  • Height: 13cm
Marks and inscriptions
  • 'ROYAL COPENHAGEN DENMARK' and a crown (Printed in green)
  • 'SALTO' (Incised)
  • '21441' and three wavy lines (Painted in blue)
Gallery label
Vase 'Solfatara glaze' Designed by Axel Salto, made by Royal Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark the original modelled 1957 Marks: 'Royal Copenhagen Denmark' and a crown printed in green 'Salto' incised, '21441' and three wavy lines painted in blue Stoneware C.89-1987(16/07/2008)
Production
The original modelled 1957.
Summary
Royal Copenhagen was founded in 1755 under the patronage of Frederick V, and became one of Denmark’s leading porcelain factories. The factory began to produce stonewares in the early 20th century under technical manager Patrick Nordström. Axel Salto joined Royal Copenhagen in 1933. He remained there for the rest of his career, developing a reputation as one of the factory’s most skilled stoneware modellers.

The rich glaze on this piece was developed in the 1930s under the direction of Royal Copenhagen’s chemical engineer Hans A. Madslund. Named ‘Solfatara’ for the metallic oxide it contains, firing under special conditions will turn the glaze bright yellow or black, and can produce mottled variations in between.
Bibliographic reference
Opie, Jennifer Hawkins. Scandinavia: ceramics & glass in the twentieth century. London: V&A Publications, 1989. 44 p. ill. ISBN 1851770712.
Collection
Accession number
C.89-1987

About this object record

Explore the Collections contains over a million catalogue records, and over half a million images. It is a working database that includes information compiled over the life of the museum. Some of our records may contain offensive and discriminatory language, or reflect outdated ideas, practice and analysis. We are committed to addressing these issues, and to review and update our records accordingly.

You can write to us to suggest improvements to the record.

Suggest feedback

Record createdJuly 16, 2008
Record URL
Download as: JSON