Vase thumbnail 1
On display
Image of Gallery in South Kensington

Vase

ca. 1450-1500 (made)
Artist/Maker
Unknown
Place of origin
Manises (made)

In the 15th century the Spanish pottery industry was more highly developed than any other in Europe. Spanish potters knew the secret of making copper lustre decoration and used it in various ways. On this vase the potter has used it most effectively to complement the leaf decoration painted in cobalt blue.

Object details

Category
Ceramics
Object type
Vase
Materials and techniques
Tin-glazed earthenware
Earthenware
Tin Glaze
Glazing (Coating)
Brief description
Tin-glazed earthenware flower-vase, painted in lustre and cobalt-blue. Manises in Valencia, about 1440-1470.
Physical description
Tin-glazed earthenware flower-vase, painted in lustre and cobalt-blue.
Dimensions
  • Height: 52.7cm
  • Width: 36.2cm
  • Depth: 19.3cm
  • Weight: 3.84kg
Measured for the Medieval and Renaissance Galleries
Object history
Bought, Soulages Collection, for £ 80.-
Soulages Collection reports, 1856, p. 5, no 95 'Grand vase, moresque'
Historical context
Lustred Hispano-Moresque maiolica, often combined with cobalt-blue painting, was perhaps the most refined ceramic material of the 15th Century. This vase form is known, from its appearance in contemporary paintings, to have been used for cut flowers
Summary
In the 15th century the Spanish pottery industry was more highly developed than any other in Europe. Spanish potters knew the secret of making copper lustre decoration and used it in various ways. On this vase the potter has used it most effectively to complement the leaf decoration painted in cobalt blue.
Bibliographic references
  • Hildyard, Robin. European Ceramics. London : V&A Publications, 1999. 144 p., ill. ISBN 185177260X
  • Hunt, Tristram & Whitfield, Victoria. Art Treasures in Manchester: 150 years on. Manchester: Philip Wilson Publishers, 2007. 51p., ill ISBN 9780901673725
  • Ajmar-Wollheim, Marta and Flora Dennis, At Home in Renaissance Italy, London: V&A Publishing, 2006.
  • Mariam Rosser-Owen, Islamic Arts from Spain, London, 2010, p.98.
  • J. C. DAVILLIER. Histoire des faïences hispano-moresques a reflets metaliques, Paris, 1861, our vase (Soulages Collection no 95) is mentioned as one of the most beautiful examples of ceramics made in Malaga.
Collection
Ceramics Collection
Accession number
8968-1863

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Record createdNovember 19, 2002
Record URL
https://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O70406/vase-unknown/
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