Vase
ca. 1750 (made)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
The fashion for porcelain in the mid eighteenth century became almost an obsession with some European rulers. Charles III, (1716–88), who was King of Spain (1759–88) and of Naples and Sicily (1735–59), established the Capodimonte porcelain factory in the city of Naples in 1743, to produce porcelain solely for his own use. The King was married to Maria Amalia of Saxony, daughter of Augustus the Strong, Elector of Saxony and King of Poland. Augustus the Strong was the owner of the premier porcelain factory in Europe, Meissen, and this may have further fuelled Charles's interest in porcelain.
The early products of the Capodimonte factory were strongly influenced by Meissen, although they soon developed a wide range of shapes and subject matter, painted in a very fine stipple technique characteristic of Capodimonte. This vase is in fact a Meissen shape, based on a Chinese original, and the decoration has been copied from a print of a Biblical scene depicting the Queen of Sheba visiting King Solomon in his tent. The historical subject matter with large figures is very unusual for the factory, and would seem to link it to the long tradition of istoriato painting on maiolica, still being carried out at the potteries in Castelli at this time. It was possibly decorated by a painter who came from there.
The Capodimonte factory only existed for a short time as when Charles became the King of Spain in 1759 it closed. The King left Italy with his court to take up residence in Madrid and likewise his personal porcelain factory was relocated to Spain and re-established just outside the capital at Buen Retiro.
The early products of the Capodimonte factory were strongly influenced by Meissen, although they soon developed a wide range of shapes and subject matter, painted in a very fine stipple technique characteristic of Capodimonte. This vase is in fact a Meissen shape, based on a Chinese original, and the decoration has been copied from a print of a Biblical scene depicting the Queen of Sheba visiting King Solomon in his tent. The historical subject matter with large figures is very unusual for the factory, and would seem to link it to the long tradition of istoriato painting on maiolica, still being carried out at the potteries in Castelli at this time. It was possibly decorated by a painter who came from there.
The Capodimonte factory only existed for a short time as when Charles became the King of Spain in 1759 it closed. The King left Italy with his court to take up residence in Madrid and likewise his personal porcelain factory was relocated to Spain and re-established just outside the capital at Buen Retiro.
Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Materials and techniques | Soft-paste porcelain painted with enamels |
| Brief description | Vase of soft-paste porcelain, Capodimonte porcelain factory, Capo di Monte, ca. 1750. |
| Physical description | Vase of soft-paste porcelain painted with enamels. Inverted pear-shaped with a flat shoulder and short cylindrical neck. Painted with a scene of the visit of the Queen of Sheba to Solomon in a tent. Attended by musicians, soldiers and camels. Ruins and mountains in background. |
| Dimensions |
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| Marks and inscriptions | A fleur-de-lys (In underglaze blue) |
| Gallery label |
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| Credit line | Purchased with the assistance of the Murray Bequest |
| Object history | Mottola Molfino (see below) suggests in her caption that this vase dates to ca. 1745. She highlights how far removed the decoration is from the Meissen-inspired schemes of much of the factory's products and that the vase has clearly been decorated in the Italian maiolica tradition of istoriato painting still in use at the nearby centre of Castelli in Abruzzo. Items decorated a figure grandi, a istoriati coloriti feature in the records from 1744. The slightly asymetrical form of this vase, the experimental paste and the muted palette, all suggest that it is a very early example of the factory's work. Two painters were recorded as having painted figuri grandi in this early period: Giuseppe Della Torre in 1744, and in 1745 Carlo Coccorese, the latter being also known at Castelli. |
| Subjects depicted | |
| Summary | The fashion for porcelain in the mid eighteenth century became almost an obsession with some European rulers. Charles III, (1716–88), who was King of Spain (1759–88) and of Naples and Sicily (1735–59), established the Capodimonte porcelain factory in the city of Naples in 1743, to produce porcelain solely for his own use. The King was married to Maria Amalia of Saxony, daughter of Augustus the Strong, Elector of Saxony and King of Poland. Augustus the Strong was the owner of the premier porcelain factory in Europe, Meissen, and this may have further fuelled Charles's interest in porcelain. The early products of the Capodimonte factory were strongly influenced by Meissen, although they soon developed a wide range of shapes and subject matter, painted in a very fine stipple technique characteristic of Capodimonte. This vase is in fact a Meissen shape, based on a Chinese original, and the decoration has been copied from a print of a Biblical scene depicting the Queen of Sheba visiting King Solomon in his tent. The historical subject matter with large figures is very unusual for the factory, and would seem to link it to the long tradition of istoriato painting on maiolica, still being carried out at the potteries in Castelli at this time. It was possibly decorated by a painter who came from there. The Capodimonte factory only existed for a short time as when Charles became the King of Spain in 1759 it closed. The King left Italy with his court to take up residence in Madrid and likewise his personal porcelain factory was relocated to Spain and re-established just outside the capital at Buen Retiro. |
| Bibliographic references |
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| Collection | |
| Accession number | C.38-1943 |
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| Record created | June 24, 2009 |
| Record URL |
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