The Merry Wives of Windsor
Tile
ca.1964 (made), ca.1964 (painted)
ca.1964 (made), ca.1964 (painted)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
This tile was issued in 1964, probably as a souvenir of the 400th anniversary of William Shakespeare's birth. It follows a tradition of ceramic tiles printed with theatrical images which began in the late 18th century when the technique of transfer-printing on to ceramic tiles was introduced.
Although the tile bears the title The Merry Wives of Windsor, it appears to show a scene from the Henry IV plays, with the rogue Falstaff and his cronies sitting in the Boar's Head tavern in London's Eastcheap. Falstaff appears in both The Merry Wives and the two Henry IV plays. Tradition has it that Queen Elizabeth I so liked the character in Henry IV than she insisted that Shakespeare write another Falstaff play, and Shakespeare obliged with The Merry Wives of Windsor.
Although the tile bears the title The Merry Wives of Windsor, it appears to show a scene from the Henry IV plays, with the rogue Falstaff and his cronies sitting in the Boar's Head tavern in London's Eastcheap. Falstaff appears in both The Merry Wives and the two Henry IV plays. Tradition has it that Queen Elizabeth I so liked the character in Henry IV than she insisted that Shakespeare write another Falstaff play, and Shakespeare obliged with The Merry Wives of Windsor.
Object details
| Category | |
| Object type | |
| Title | The Merry Wives of Windsor (generic title) |
| Materials and techniques | Transfer printed ceramic, painted underglaze |
| Brief description | Tile illustrated with a scene from Shakespeare's play The Merry Wives of Windsor. Transfer print, hand-coloured, by Florian Studios, Saxmundham. Issued on the 400th anniversay of the birth of Shakespeare |
| Physical description | A tile painted with a scene from The Merry Wives of Windsor, showing Falstaff and cronies sitting at a tavern table. Mrs Quickly has a tankard in her right hand. The tile is painted in underglaze in blue, magenta, yellow, green and brown. 'The Merry Wives of Windsor' is written in the top right hand corner. |
| Dimensions |
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| Marks and inscriptions |
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| Credit line | Richard Vincent Hughes Bequest |
| Literary reference | The Merry Wives of Windsor |
| Summary | This tile was issued in 1964, probably as a souvenir of the 400th anniversary of William Shakespeare's birth. It follows a tradition of ceramic tiles printed with theatrical images which began in the late 18th century when the technique of transfer-printing on to ceramic tiles was introduced. Although the tile bears the title The Merry Wives of Windsor, it appears to show a scene from the Henry IV plays, with the rogue Falstaff and his cronies sitting in the Boar's Head tavern in London's Eastcheap. Falstaff appears in both The Merry Wives and the two Henry IV plays. Tradition has it that Queen Elizabeth I so liked the character in Henry IV than she insisted that Shakespeare write another Falstaff play, and Shakespeare obliged with The Merry Wives of Windsor. |
| Collection | |
| Accession number | S.317-1981 |
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| Record created | November 17, 2005 |
| Record URL |
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