Thepainted pottery of Italy, ever since its introduction into that country in the 15th century, has been called by the Italians themselvesMaiolica. In England it was in the 18th century calledRaphael ware, on account of an impression which existed that Raphael himself condescended to paint on some of the ware. The idea probably originated from the fact that many designs were reproduced on maiolica by the keramic artists from engravings of Raphael and other great masters. The best period of this pottery was, however, subsequent to his death, which took place in 1520.
The termmaiolicaappears to be derived or rather corrupted from Maiorca, one of the Balearic Islands, noted for its pottery from a very early period. It was in the 16th century calledMaiorica, and subsequentlyMaiolica.
Urbino was one of the most celebrated of all the Italianfabriques, and must have had by far the mosttrade, although no doubt many of the specimens now attributed to this city were the works of other manufactories; there are, however, a considerable number of signed and dated pieces, and the style and touch of the principal artists engaged there may easily be detected. The best known of all the keramic artists of Urbino was Francesco Xanto Avelli da Rovigo, whose works are now so highly appreciated; he usually painted after the designs and engravings of Raphael and other great masters, but seldom adhered strictly to the grouping of the originals; he also painted subjects from Virgil, Ovid, and other poets. The marks which he placed upon his works consisted of one or more initial letters of his name, F.X.A.R., but usually the X. only, or sometimes Xanto, with the date. (See Fig. 1.)
Fig. 1.—Plateau. Marriage of Alexander and Roxana.After Raphael. Signed and dated“Xanto, 1533.”
Fig. 2.—Plateau, with Leda and the Swan in Centre.16th Century.
Another celebrated artist of Urbino, who flourished in the middle of the 16th century, was Orazio Fontana, whose family name was Pellipario; Fontana being a name taken in consequence of several of the family being manufacturers of vases as well as artists.
Fig. 3.—Plateau. By Alfonso Patanazzi, 1606.
The family of Patanazzi worked in the early part of the 17th century. Alfonso Patanazzi signed his pieces of the years 1606 and 1607 in full, as well as Alf. P. and A. P. (See Fig. 3.)
Fig. 4.—Vase. Apollo and Daphne.Circa1580.
Fig. 5.—Cruet.About1570.
Gubbio, in the Duchy of Urbino, is known principally by the works of Maestro Giorgio Andreoli, who seems to have monopolised the secret of the ruby and yellow metallic lustre, with which he enriched not only his own productions but put the finishing touches in lustre on the plates of Xanto and other artists from Urbino, as well as from Castel Durante. There is no doubt that the painting of the piece and the application of the metallic lustre colours were two distinct operations, and that it was painted and the colours fixed in the muffle kiln some months before it was touched with the lustre pigments, and again subjected to another baking. Giorgio was a statuary as well as a painter of maiolica, several of his sculptures in marble being yet extant.
Fig. 6.—Plate. “Stream of Life.”16th Century.Signed byMoGiorgio. Diam. 7¾ in.
Fig. 7.—Vase. By MoGiorgio.H. 10½ in.16th Century.
Another painter in lustre, of the school of MoGiorgio, has signed his pieces with the letter N., which is supposed by some to be a monogram of Vincenzio, the son of MoGiorgio; and a painter named Perestino, of Gubbio, produced some very beautiful pieces, dated 1533 and 1536.
Guido Ubaldo II. della Rovere, who became Duke of Urbino in 1538, was a patron of thefabriqueof Pesaro. The maiolica with yellow lustre, blue outlines and imbricated borders, which are assigned to Pesaro, belong to the first part of the 16th century; many of these have portraits and scrolls inscribed with the name of the person to whom they were dedicated. When Passeri visited the town in 1718, there was only one potter, making ordinary vessels. Some years after, in 1757, he sent potters from Urbania and recommenced the manufacture.
According to M. A. Jacquemart, two artists of Lodi—Filippo Antonio Callegari and Antonio Casali—were also established here about the middle of the 18th century. The bowl and cover and dish, Fig. 9, painted and gilt with flowers, are signed by them with their initials. There was anotherfabrique,established by Giuseppe Bertolucci of Urbania in 1757; Pietro Lei, a painter of Sassuolo, was engaged there.
Fig. 8.—Drug Vase.17th Century.
Fig. 9.—Bowl, Cover, and Dish.18th Century.
Castel Durante, a small town near Urbino, had a very extensive manufactory of maiolica; most of its early productions of the beginning of the 15th century are often confounded with those of Urbino, but there is evidence enough to show the beautiful character of the decorations employed there. Piccolpassi, director of abottegafor maiolica, at CastelDurante,circa1550, wrote a treatise on the art of making and decorating it, whilst under the patronage of Guidobaldo II. The manuscript is in the Art Library of the Victoria and Albert Museum. This interesting work is illustrated with pen-and-ink sketches of all the details of manufacture and patterns of the ware, and the prices at which they were to be obtained; allusions are also made in it to other towns celebrated for the same industry; and the principal forms of the vessels are described by name.
Fig. 10.—Vase.About1560.
Fig. 11.—Plate.About1530.
In the year 1635 the name of thefabriquewaschanged toUrbaniain compliment to Pope Urban VIII.; and in 1722 it was the only one which remained in the Duchy of Urbino, where articles of utility alone were made.
A great trade was carried on in pharmacy vases or Vasi da Spezieria, covered with grotesque heads, cornucopiæ, &c., designed and shaded with light blue, touched with yellow, orange, brown and green, the patterns being mostly in a bold style.
If not the most ancient, Faenza was one of the most celebrated of the manufactories of maiolica inItaly. It was this town that gave to the French the name by which they have to the present day distinguished their enamelled pottery, as Spain had previously supplied the name to Italy. Thus in Italy it was calledmaiolicafrom Maiorca, and in France,faïencefrom Faenza. The earliest dated piece now extant is probably a plate in the Musée de Cluny, dated 1475, made by Nicolaus de Ragnolis. Another specimen, in the Sèvres Museum, is inscribed “Nicolaus Orsini, 1477”; and in the same collection is a plate, signed “Don Giorgio, 1485,” probably by Maestro Giorgio.
Fig. 12.—Plaque. “Andrea di Bono, 1491.”
Fig. 13.—Plate. With an Emblem of Two Hearts piercedwith Arrows and the Motto “En Piu.”15th Century.
The products of thisfabriqueretained for a long time a special character by which they are easily identified; at first the outlines of the figures were very simple and formal; the yellow lustre does not appear to have been adopted.
Fig. 14.—Plaque. Joseph sold by his Brethren.16th Century.
In the 16th century a favourite decoration was grotesques and arabesques in bluecamaïeuon yellow ground, or alternately on the two colours (see Fig. 15).The reverses of the Faenza plates are frequently light blue, with concentric circles or a spiral line in a darker colour; when white, with imbrications or zones alternately blue and yellow. Another peculiarity by which the Faenza ware is known, is the presence of red.
Fig. 15.—Plate. Arms and Arabesques.16th Century.
Many of the lustred pieces of maiolica, with light yellow lustre edged with blue, which were attributed formerly to Pesaro, have been now classed among the wares made at Diruta, from the circumstance of a plate in the Pourtalès Collection—subject, one of Ovid’s Metamorphoses, being similarly decorated with the yellow lustre, and signed by El Frate of Diruta, 1541. Some specimens have “In Deruta” inscribed at length; others have simply the letter D with a bar through it; and early pieces have the signature of the painter, El Frate, but without the yellow lustre.
Fig. 16.—Plate. Blue and White.16th Century.
Fig. 17.—Plate. Inscribed “Sura Fiore.”About1520.
According to Passeri there werefabriquesof maiolica at Forlì in the 14th century. Its contiguity to Faenza exercised a great influence on the decoration of the ware, and the patterns on the obverses and reverses are similar. Fig. 18 has on the back “In la botega di Mo. Jeronimo da Forli.”
Fig. 18.—Plate. Christ amongst the Doctors.Diam. 14 in.16th Century.
Riminiis only known by a few specimens, which are actually signed, and by the mention made of itsfabriquesby Piccolpassi. The pieces are dated 1535, and as late as 1635.
There were manufactories at these three places in the 16th century, but few specimens of their productions now exist. (See Chaffers’Marks and Monograms, p. 112.) The first named is illustrated (Fig. 19) by a plateau; a man at the bottom holds a scroll inscribed “VITERBO DIOMED, 1544.”
Fig. 19.—Plateau. Diana and Actæon.Dated1544.
Thisfabrique, established towards the end of the 15th century, became very important, lasting probably throughout the 16th century. The name is spelt in different ways, such as Chaffagiuolo, but Cafaggiolo is the general form.
Fig. 20.—Plateau. St. George.Circa1520.
Among the ornaments on this ware are frequently tablets with SPQR and SPQF (Florentinus), and on several the motto “Semper,” adopted by Pietro de’ Medici in 1470, and continued by Lorenzo il Magnifico. The device of a triangle and the word “Glovis,” meaning when read backwards “si volge” (it turns), was used by Giuliano de’ Medici in 1516, alluding to his change of fortune.
Another characteristic of thisfabriqueis the dark blue background of many of the pieces, and the method in which it was coarsely applied by the brush.
Fig. 20 represents the St. George of Donatello, from the bronze statue in the church of Or San Michele, at Florence.
The earliest specimens known of this important manufactory are some wall or floor tiles of the commencement of the 16th century. They are of maiolica, ornamented with polychrome designs of chimeræ, dragons, amorini, masks, birds, &c., beautifully painted in brilliant colours, especially orange and yellow on a black ground. They vary in shape, being triangular, pentagonal, or square, to suit the geometrical designs of the wall or floor they covered;the average diameter is 5 inches. The plate in bluecamaïeuon white ground, in the accompanying illustration (Fig. 21) is signed on the reverse “fata in Siena da Mo. Benedetto.”
Fig. 21.—Plate. By Mo. Benedetto.About1520.
After a long interval, the name of the town again appears on maiolica of a very characteristic description, accompanied by the names of the artists: Bartolomeo Terenze (or Terchi) Romano in 1727, and Ferdinando Maria Campani, 1733 to 1747, the subjects being taken from Raphael, Annibale Caracci, and other masters (see Figs. 22-24).
Fig. 22.—Plateau. Woman and Peacocks.18th Century.
Fig. 23.—Plate. Vintage.SignedFerdinando MaCampani, Siena, 1747.
Fig. 24.—Plate. Galatea.AfterAnnibale Caracci.Early 18th Century.
This city was, about the middle of the 16th century, the centre of a considerable trade in the exportation of Italian fayence into Spain, and especially to Valencia, in exchange for the golden metallic lustre ware of that country. Antonio Beuter, a traveller, about 1550, praises the fayence of Pisa as well as those of Pesaro and Castelli. A specimenbearing the name “PISA,” a large vase of fine form, covered with arabesques on white ground, was in the collection of the late Baron Alphonse de Rothschild.
Little is known respecting the Venetian maiolica of the 16th and 17th centuries, but numerous pieces exist bearing marks with Venice recorded on them. These are specimens of the 17th century with a mark of a fishhook, and from the long intervals between its use, it evidently belongs to afabriqueand not a painter. As an example of Venetian maiolica,circa1700, see Fig. 25, a plate painted with an architectural subject.
Fig. 25.—Plate.Circa1700.
In 1753, the Senate of Venice conceded to the brothers Bertolini the establishment at Murano of a kiln for making fayence. But it did not succeed so well as the promoters anticipated, and it was probably discontinued about 1760, as the concession was annulled by a decree of April 1763.
In 1728, Giovanni Battista Antonibon established in the village of Nove, near Bassano, a manufactory of earthenware, and in 1732 he opened a shop in Venice for the sale of his wares. In 1741 the factory was still in a prosperous state, and carried on by his son, Pasqual Antonibon. In 1766 Pasqual took his son, Giovanni Battista Antonibon, into partnership, and in 1781 Sig. Parolini joined the concern, continuing the fabrication with great success until 1802, when they leased the premises to Giovanni Baroni, and the business was carried on under the name ofFabbrica Baroni Nove. It was prosperous for a short time, and some beautiful examples were produced.
Fig. 26.—Tureen and Cover.18th Century.
Maiolica finaor fayence only is still continued to be made, the manufacture of porcelain, for which at one time the works were so famed, not having been revived.
Of the early maiolica made here little is known, but fayence of the 18th century is occasionally met with, marked with the letter F or Fl.
Fig. 27.—Cup and Saucer.
In a street which still retains the name ofBoccaleri(makers of vases) were discovered traces of ancient potters’ kilns, and some triangular wall tiles, of blue and white maiolica alternately, of the end of the 15thor beginning of the 16th century. Among these was a plaque, 20 in. in diameter, of the Virgin and Child between two saints, surrounded by angels. The subject is taken from a cartoon by Nicolo Pizzolo, a painter of Padua and a pupil of Squarcione; on the summit of the throne is writtenNicoleti, the name he usually adopted. The plaque is now preserved in the Museum of that city.
Fig. 28.—Plate. Myrrha fleeing from her Father.
Fig. 28, a plate, painted on grey ground, is inscribed on the reverse with the name of the place and the date 1548.
The manufactory of Castelli, a small town in the Abruzzi, north of the city of Naples, was still flourishing towards the end of the 17th century. FrancescoSaverio Grue, a man of letters and science, became about this time director of this Neapolitan maiolicafabrique. The ware was boldly ornamented with subjects, correctly designed and well painted; sometimes the landscapes were delicately heightened with gold. His sons and brothers continued to add lustre to his name for nearly a century. Francesco Antonio Grue’s works, which have dates, range from 1677 to 1722, the subjects being principally scriptural and mythological. Luigi Grue, about 1720-1740, painted landscapes and figures. Ioanes Grue or Grua painted scriptural subjects from about 1730 to 1750. Saverio Grue was the re-inventor of gilding on fayence; some of his pieces are dated 1749 and 1753. His earliest paintings are without gold, consisting of classical subjects and mottoes on plaques. C. A. Grue was a painter about the same time.
Fig. 29.—Bowl and Cover.18th Century.
Fig. 30.—Ewer and Basin.18th Century.
Fig. 29, a bowl and cover, painted with nude figures after Annibale Caracci; and filled in with fruit, foliage, and cartouches, is signed “Liborius Grue P.”
Maiolica was made in the city of Naples in the 17th century, but little is known respecting it. Examples of the fayence of the 18th century are frequently met with, signed FDV—F. del Vecchio; Giustiniani; the letter N crowned, and sometimes the letters H.F.
The plates and dishes of coarse heavy earthenware, rudely painted with large caricature figures of soldiers and men in curious Italian costumes of the 17th and 18th centuries, in menacing and warlike attitudes, striding across the plates, holding swords, spears, and other weapons, are usually attributed to Monte Lupo, near Florence. The manufactory is still in existence.
Fig. 31, is signed on the back “Raffaello Girolamo fecit Monte Lupo 1639.”
Fig. 31.—Plate. Three Cavaliers.
No specimens can be identified of an earlier date than the 18th century. The fayence is usually painted with grotesque figures, but sometimes with flowers and scrolls in relief, also with Watteau or Chinese subjects. (See Fig. 33.)
Some pieces, apparently of a later date, are from the manufactory of Pasquale Rubati, and usually signed with his initials.
Fig. 32.—Écuelle and Dish.18th Century.
Fig. 33.—Ewer and Dish.18th Century.
Fig. 34.—Cup and Plate.18th Century.
That there was a manufactory of maiolica at Turin in the 16th century is proved by a dish with pierced border, painted on the inside with a boy carrying two birds on a long pole; it is marked underneath—Fatta in Torino adi 12 di Setēbre 1577 (see Fig. 35). The manufactory was in existence in the first half of the 18th century and was under Royal patronage, as a large dish which was in the collection of the Marquis D’Azeglio is inscribed on the back of the rim: “Fabrica Reale di Torino GR 1737.” In the centre of the reverse is a monogram composed of F. R. T. (Fabbrica Reale Torino).
Fig. 35.—Dish.Dated1577.
Alfonso I., Duke of Ferrara, himself occasionally worked in a room attached to his palace, and is said to have discovered a fine white colour, which was adopted by thefabriquesof Urbino. He died in 1534. His successor, Duke Alfonso II., summoned Camillo Fontana (son of the celebrated Orazio Fontana of Urbino) in 1567 to give new life to the manufactory. All the well-known pieces bearing theimpresaof the Duke, a flame of fire and the motto “ARDET ETERNUM,” were produced at thisfabrique, about 1579. At a much later period, probably late in the 17th century, there was still a manufactory here.
Fig. 36.—Plateau. The Triumph of Bacchus.First Half of the 18th Century.
Afabrique(according to V. Lazori) was founded here about 1540, by Simone Marinoni, but it is not known how long it lasted. Later pieces of the 17th century bear a certain resemblance to the Castelli ware. In 1728, a manufactory of maiolica was set on foot by the sisters Manardi, which was continued in 1735 by Giovanni Antonio Caffo; and some time after, but previous to 1753, another was carried on by Giovanni Maria Salmazzo.
Piccolpassi speaks of Genoa as a great mart for maiolica about the year 1540. He tells us the patterns painted—arabesques, leaves, landscapes, &c.—and the prices charged, but no specimens of this early date have hitherto been identified. The fayence of the 18th century, however, is of frequent occurrence; its decoration is much the same as that of Savona, viz. rude and hasty sketches in bluecamaïeu, sometimes with small caricature figures in the style of Callot.In consequence of Genoa’s maritime position, the mark selected for this ware was a beacon, by some erroneously called a lighthouse, from which some object is suspended on a pole.
Fig. 37.—Bottle.18th Century.
Fig. 37, a bottle, painted in blue with birds and scroll ornaments, has this mark.
The manufactory of Savona was founded in the 17th century at the village of Albissola, situated on the coast, near Savona. The ware is generally ornamented in blue on white ground, the designs are roughly executed, and the mark, consisting of a shield of arms of the town, is often seen on the reverse. There are some other marks attributed to Savona: a double triangle with the letter S, called the “knot of Solomon” (Salomone), the sun with G.S., the falcon mark, the tower mark, and the anchor mark, so called from these emblems being depicted on the ware. Fig. 38, a basket, perforated and with two handles, is rudely painted with scrolls in yellow, blue, and green; in the centre is a cartouche with the letters S.A.G.S.
Fig. 38.—Basket.18th Century.
Although Santa Casa at Loreto is not strictly speaking afabriqueof maiolica, yet maiolica is actually made within the precincts of the sanctuary. Bowls are made of clay, mixed with the dust shaken from the dress of the Virgin and walls of the sanctuary, and in this form are preserved by the faithful as tokens of their visit to the shrine.
Fig. 39.—Two Bowls.
The earthenware vessels with stanniferous enamel, called in Italysgraffiatoware, have been attributed toCittà di Castello. They are engraved in outline and decorateden engobe—that is, the object before being glazed is covered with a second coating of coloured slip orengobe, on which is graved the ornament or design after it has been merely dried by the air, leaving a sort ofchamp levé, and afterwards baked in the kiln. These fayence vases are generally enamelled in yellow, green, and brown. Fig. 40, a bowl, is decorated with foliage, on the stem are three lions seated, in full relief; round the bowl runs a wreath of yellow flowers; and within is a man wrestling with a dragon, surrounded by a wreath. There was a manufactory of thissgraffiatoware atLa Fratta, near Perugia, which was continued down to a late period. Fig. 42, a basket-shaped pot, has ornaments in relief. Similar ware was also made atPaviain the 17th century.
Fig. 40.—Bowl of Incised Ware.About1460.
Fig. 41.—Plate.Diam., 11½ in.About1540.
Fig. 42.—Red Glazed Earthenware Basket.19th Century.
Hispano-Moresque
Fig. 43.—Vase.Height 20¾ in.15th Century.
Theexact date of the introduction of enamelled pottery with lustre-pigment into Spain is unknown, but the existence of manufactures of “golden” pottery at Calatayud, in Aragon, is testified to by the Mohammedan geographer Edrisi in the 12th century.
Fig. 44.—Azulejo.
The Hispano-Moresque period, which is best known to us from the numerous specimens preserved to our time, commences with the 14th century,when the Alhambra of Granada was erected by the Moors.
The earlier pieces of the 14th and 15th centuries may be distinguished by a golden yellow metallic lustre, and blue enamel on a white ground. The designs are Moorish, consisting of diaper patterns, foliage, fantastic and other animals, shields of arms of Spanish princes, &c., and sometimes Arabic inscriptions, transformed into ornamental designs.
Fig. 43, a vase, is decorated with leaves and conventional flowers, in reddish yellow lustre and blue.
Theazulejosor enamelled tiles of the Alhambra, bearing passages from the Koran, shields and other devices, are well known; they date from the beginning of the 14th century (see Fig. 44).
Malaga.The principal as well as the earliest centre for the manufacture of fayence was in this city, and the finest known specimen of Moorish fayence is the celebrated vase of the Alhambra, which is supposed to be as early as the palace itself, viz. the 14th century, and was probably made here. The colours of the decoration are a pure blue enamel, surrounded or heightened with a yellow lustre on white ground.
Figs. 45 and 46 are other specimens of the Spanish lustre ware, with shields of arms, of the 15th or 16th century.
Majorcawas the next in importance as regards its ancient manufacture, but it must also have had a very extensive trade in fayence, for it was exported to almost every part of the globe. Giovanni de’Bernardi da Uzzano, writing in 1442 about the productions of the Balearic Isles, says “the fayence of Majorca has a very extensive sale in Italy.”
Fig. 45.—Plateau.
As the keramic art in Spain declined, the Arabic inscriptions, which were perfect on the early vases like that of the Alhambra, were copied, but the painter, not knowing their signification, employed them as ornaments, until at last they became altogether confused and illegible. The arabesques were no longer in such elegant taste, and large coats of arms entirely filled the centres of vases and plates.
Valenciawas also celebrated for its fayence, which may be traced back to Roman times, for Saguntum, now Murviedro, is mentioned by Pliny and others as noted for its jasper red pottery. It is impossible to discover the origin of thelustredpottery of Valencia, but it probably dates from the beginning of the 15th century, when it became the most important in Spain. The pieces attributed to this place have Christian devices; many of them bear the inscription, “In principio erat Verbum et Verbum erat apud Deum,” from the first chapter of St. John, and the eagle displayed (not in an escutcheon as in the arms of Aragon), for St. John was particularly venerated at Valencia. Of its earlier productions of the Moorish period nothing is known.
Fig. 46.—Plateau.
Fig. 47.—Dish.
Valencia has from time immemorial been celebrated for itsazulejosor enamelled tiles. There are many houses of the 15th and 16th centuries still existing in the ancient cities of Spain, the walls of whose rooms are covered with tiles ornamented with borders, scrolls, and geometrical designs. The celebrity of this manufacture is maintained to the present day. Fayence of all descriptions wasextensively made at Valencia throughout the 17th and 18th centuries. Fig. 47, a dish, is blue and white with a lion in the centre.
Manises, near Valencia, was also celebrated from the 16th to the 18th century. The decorations appear to be of Oriental design, executed for the most part in a rich copper-coloured lustre. Some dishes with copper-colour lustre have upon them a mark of an open hand, which may be the emblem of the place, and are dated 1610 and 1611. Fig. 48, a vase, is painted in lustre, with foliage, birds and animals, and with a rudely executed shield of arms, seemingly of Sicily or Portugal.
Fig. 48.—Vase.
Triana, near Seville. There were severalfabriqueshere, one for the manufacture of spires or ornaments of earthenware, with which the gables of the buildings were crowned; others for theazulejosor tiles so much used in Spain, and for fayence vessels of all descriptions. Fig. 49 is a bottle in the form of a lady in the costume of the period of Louis XIV.,en grande tenue; inside thefontangeor top-knot of the headdress, which forms the spout, is written “Victor. I. Viva. Mi. Arno. Don. Damian. Sant.✠.”