By Gardiner Museum
Gardiner Museum
The Gardiner Museum’s holdings highlight important developments in
the history of European earthenware from the fourteenth to the
eighteenth centuries, including tin-glazed earthenware, English
slipware, and creamware.
Introduction
Earthenware is the term given to ceramics that have been fired at a comparatively low temperature and have not vitrified. They have opaque bodies and are often glazed to make them impervious to liquids. Different types of earthenwares are given specific names that distinguish their bodies, glazes, and decoration. An important area of focus is tin-glazed earthenware produced in Italy, France, and England, where it was known as maiolica, faïence, and delftware respectively. Tin-glazed earthenware first appeared in the nineth century in present-day Iraq, and involved the addition of ashes of tin to a lead glaze to create an opaque white surface for decoration in emulation of Chinese porcelain. Throughout the next five centuries, knowledge of tin-glazing spread throughout the Middle East and the Mediterranean. The movement of objects and people further prompted its dissemination to Italy and Northern Europe.
Dish with scenes from the Abduction of Europa (1537) by Master of the Bergantini BowlGardiner Museum
Italian Maiolica
Italian maiolica is one of the most sophisticated and
refined ceramics produced in Renaissance Europe. Maiolica is tin-glazed
earthenware, a technique which involved the addition of ashes of tin to a
lead glaze in order to create an opaque white background for
decoration. Originating in the ninth century in present-day Iraq, the
technique spread throughout the Islamic world, reaching Southern Spain
by the twelfth century, before establishing itself firmly in Italy in
the fourteenth century.
One of the greatest artistic achievements of the Italian Renaissance,
maiolica played important roles in the social and domestic lives of
individuals. Ceramics held multiple functions; while some objects were
deeply embedded in the humanist culture of the time, others served to
commemorate important events, such as marriage and birth. Apothecaries
also stimulated the maiolica industry with large commissions of
pharmaceutical wares.
Istoriato, or narrative painting, represents the most
ambitious stylistic development in the history of maiolica. Istoriato
wares were decorated with scenes derived from ancient texts, mythology,
as well as religious sources. The high fashion from around 1500 to about
1570, istoriato was produced in various towns of north-central Italy,
with the Duchy of Urbino as the leading centre.
The Italian Renaissance maiolica collection at the Gardiner Museum is
the most important in Canada. It forms part of the original donation
made by George and Helen Gardiner.
Faenza was one of the earliest maiolica centres to produce the new istoriato style of decoration, where the surface of the vessel was painted with a narrative scene as if it were a fresco or oil painting. Maiolica artists frequently sought inspiration from prints and book illustrations, and chose to depict scenes from the Bible or classical stories, such as the Rape of Europa on this dish. So popular were ceramics made in Faenza, that almost all tin-glazed earthenware made in Europe eventually became known as faience.
Dish with embracing Lovers (c.1540) by Castel DuranteGardiner Museum
Dish with Two Lovers
Monumental drug jar with St. Catherine (c.1550) by Virgiliotto CalamelliGardiner Museum
This large pharmacy jar contained Zucarū Rosatū, or rose-flavoured sugar, as indicated on the scroll beneath the centre scene. Roses were an integral element of Islamic and Renaissance medicine. They were used extensively as a purgative, to aid the healing of wounds after surgery, for the reduction of inflammation, and to induce sleep.
Dish with boar hunting scene (c.1500-1550) by Italy, Tuscany, CafaggioloGardiner Museum
The scene is surrounded by a densely patterned border of scrolls and endless knots, coats of arms and an imprese, or personal device, of the Medici family — a roughly trimmed sprouting branch and the Latin word SEMPER (always). The Medici owned the pottery where this dish was made. It shows a perfect combination of Eastern and Western elements. Endless knots were a feature of Islamic ornament, whereas the dense cobalt blue scrollwork derived from Chinese porcelain. This type of decoration was called alla porcellana (like porcelain) in the 16th century.
Figure of the Madonna with the Christ Child (c.1480-1490) by Pesaro, ItalyGardiner Museum
The Madonna was deeply venerated during the Middle Ages and the Renaissance. This monumental sculpture is both an outstanding technical accomplishment and an expression of profound artistic tenderness. It comes from a small group of maiolica sculptural and relief works created for devotional use in churches or private chapels. The initials on the base may be those of the artist, whose name is not known.
Footed dish with a mythological scene (1546) by Coal Mine PainterGardiner Museum
When an artist’s name is not known, but a distinctive individual style can be recognized, the artist is often given a name that is associated with one of his works. The artist who painted this dish is now known as the Painter of the Coal Mine Service, named for this dish in the Gardiner collection.
Dish with scene of the Fall of Troy (1535) by Guido DurantinoGardiner Museum
Homer told the story of the Trojan War in the Iliad, one of the pillars of classical literature, which was widely read during the Renaissance. Aeneas, the Trojan hero, was seen as a model of devotion to duty, bravery and reverence, and was admired as a founder of Roman culture. In this scene from a large Urbino dish, Aeneas leaves the burning Troy after the city had been conquered and destroyed by the Greek armies. He tenderly carries his father Anchises to safety, and then washes his hands in reverence before taking charge of the family gods.
Dish with Zeus and Semele (1532) by Apollo Basin PainterGardiner Museum
The hand of this gifted artist has been identified and named for a basin in the Musei Civici, Pesaro. The basin and this dish both bear the same date and have a rim painted with trophies and grotesques on a blue ground. This dish is distinguished by a bianco sopra bianco (white on white) rim, which creates a delicate lacework frame for the scene in the centre — the final meeting of Zeus with Semele, the mother of Bacchus, as told by Ovid in Book III of the Metamorphoses. Semele was destroyed when Zeus revealed himself with all his thunder and lightening.
Two-handled drug jar with oak leaf pattern (c.1420-1450) by Giunta di TugioGardiner Museum
Dish with scenes from the Abduction of Europa (1537) by Master of the Bergantini BowlGardiner Museum
Charger inscribed 'THOMAS TOFT' (c.1680-1689) by Thomas ToftGardiner Museum
English Slipware
Slip-decorated pieces, commonly known as slipware, were
produced in the region of Staffordshire and Wrotham in Kent from the
early 1660s to the eighteenth century. This type of earthenware is
decorated with slip (coloured liquid clay), applied as relief decoration
using a variety of techniques such as trailing and stamping. This
resulted in bold and freely executed designs. Being more economical to
produce than delftware and porcelain, slipware was accessible to a wider
segment of society including the lower end of the middle class.
Part of the original gift made by George and Helen Gardiner, this
small collection includes ornamental chargers and drinking vessels in
shapes derived from metalwork. Some examples present inscriptions,
indicating that they may have been commissioned to commemorate important
life events, such as births and weddings.
The large bird on this dish may symbolize The Pelican in Her Piety, more typically portrayed as a long-necked bird who pricks her breast to feed her starving young on drops of her blood. Although a Thomas Toft is normally associated with such boldly-trailed, trellis-bordered dishes from the 1660s and 1670s, the crude execution of the central bird may indicate that it was made by a similarly named, but later, member of the family.
Cup - "THOUGH NERE SO DEEP - YOU'L IN ME PEEP" (1700) by George WardGardiner Museum
The drinking rhyme on this rare vessel bears witness to such cups being lifted to the mouth for drinking. When one imbiber finished his turn at the punch, beer or other alcoholic beverage, the vessel was passed to the next person. Two spouted posset pots (for concoctions of spiced warm wine and milk) bear decoration much like that shown here, but are inscribed LYDIA MOVNTFORD HER POT 1700.
Jug (1651) by Wrotham, EnglandGardiner Museum
This rare jug is one of at least 26 Wrotham pieces with the initials GR. that can be dated from the early 1640s to 1683. Most of these vessels are attributed to George Richardson. They include mostly four-handled drinking vessels as well as some initialed, multi-handled candlesticks and puzzle jugs. The initials of his apprentice (NH for Nicholas Hubble) also appear on some Richardson pots.
Dish with "Remember lots Wife, Luke 11:32" (1726) by Unkown Artist, EnglandGardiner Museum
Fragments from similar Lot’s Wife dishes, bearing references to the Bible (Luke 32:7), have been excavated in Burslem, in association with the Malkin factory, and in Yorkshire at Riveaulx Abbey. At least seven intact examples also survive, most of them with slip-dotted borders. Several other relief-modelled dishes with the initials SM also have religious or humorous motifs picked out in coloured slips.
Pair of shoes with buckles (c.1720) by Brislington, EnglandGardiner Museum
English Delftware
Tin-glazed earthenware was introduced to England in the
late sixteenth century by Flemish potters who settled in the region of
Norfolk to escape religious persecution, however, potteries specializing
in tin-glazed earthenware (known as delftware) flourished in the London
area from about 1610. They served a wide segment of seventeenth-century
society, with the highest demand coming from the gentry, rich
tradesmen, and members of flourishing guilds. Increased market demand
stimulated the emergence of potteries in Brislington near Bristol, and
throughout the British Isles.
The collection illustrates a broad range of functional and decorative
objects, embellished with popular heraldic and royal motifs, and
showing the new fashion for chinoiseries and the impact of Chinese blue-and-white porcelain.
Until England started producing porcelain domestically from 1745
onwards, delftware potteries supplied better-quality ceramic tableware
to a middle-class clientele who could not afford Chinese porcelain, nor
the continental imports from France and Germany. The production of
delftware started to decline in the 1770s when creamware, a new and
technically superior earthenware body was introduced to the market.
The Gardiner Museum’s collection of English delftware was largely
donated by George and Helen Gardiner and was expanded with a significant
gift from Joan Clark from the collection of Thomas Henry Clark.
Painting and reliefs on these shoes imitate flowered chintz fabric (imported from China), patterned cloth tapes, and glass-paste buckles that were featured on their fashionable, wearable counterparts. In traditional English society, shoes symbolized good luck: real shoes sometimes were placed in chimneys to ward off evil, or more recently, were tied to the bumpers of newlyweds’ automobiles. Ceramic shoes probably were gifts wishing the recipients well. Dated English delft shoes are known from 1654 to 1768, and some bear the original owners’ initials.
Charger with William III and Mary II (c.1689-1694) by Unknown Artist, EnglandGardiner Museum
Most portrayals of William and Mary together are thought to predate the queen’s death in 1694. On this dish, the king’s small stature is apparent. When in public, the monarch sometimes stepped onto a low stool, the better to reach his wife’s height. English and Dutch delftware portraying William and Mary has an early history in North America (excavated from sites in Virginia and New York, and passed down in families from Massachusetts).
Barber's bowl painted with implements of the trade (c.1690) by Lambeth, EnglandGardiner Museum
This distinctive basin is decorated with barbering tools: soap balls, scissors, perfume bottles, folding razors, a hinged box of bleeding tools, bone-shaped wig-curlers, needles, combs, a tea kettle (for steaming curls?), a wig-powdering brush and a mirror reflecting a face. Barber basins were also produced for private and professional use in many other ceramic and metalwork types.
Puzzle jug with Charles II (c.1660-1685) by Lambeth or Brislington, EnglandGardiner Museum
This rare and early puzzle jug bears an unusual portrayal of Charles II without a moustache. Known from the Middle Ages on, puzzle jugs commonly feature a hollow rim with one or more nozzles and a hollow handle that opens into the body near the base.
In drinking games, wagers were won by imbibers who could cover the appropriate nozzles and other holes to suck out the contents of the vessel.
Flower Container with Multiple Sockets (c.1690-1705) by London, EnglandGardiner Museum
This flower or bulb vase form is rare. The motifs in the few extant pieces consist of scenes from nature (as in this example) or of Chinese figures in a landscape. Multi-socketed flower containers were also made in other English models, in a range of Continental tin-glazed shapes, and in Chinese export porcelain for the European market.
Moulded dish with figures emblematic of 'Fecundity' (c.1635) by London, EnglandGardiner Museum
English fecundity dishes modelled much like this one bear dates from 1633 to 1697, and were displayed similarly to prints or paintings. The central scene symbolized the owners’ hopes for the successful bearing and raising of children. Such classical motifs form a peculiarly English contrast with the large leaf elements, in the wells, drawn from the Eight Precious Things motif found on some Chinese export porcelain. Traditionally, fecundity dishes were thought to have been inspired by Bernard Palissy’s wares made in Saintonge, France, during the late mid-16th century, but no closely similar prototype has yet been identified.
Posset pot with chinoiseries (c.1680-1690) by Lambeth, EnglandGardiner Museum
Posset was a warm concoction of wine, spices, and milk: the milk curdled and rose to the top, and the liquor was drunk through the straw-like spout. It began as a medicine but eventually became a popular drink. In the late 17th century, the term posset pot was more common than the earlier usage of wassail pot and syllabus pot.
Charger (late 17th Century) by Attributed to the Poterat manufactory, Rouen, FranceGardiner Museum
French Faïence
This collection surveys the production of some of the
most important centres of production of tin-glazed earthenware in
France, where the wares were known as faïence. Knowledge of tin-glazing
reached France in the second half of the sixteenth century when Italian
artisans settled in the cities of Rouen, Lyon, and Nevers. In the
seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, production spread to other centres
such as Marseilles, Moustier, and Sceaux.
Tin-glazed earthenware was used in the making of both functional and
ornamental objects. Pieces in the Gardiner Museum’s collection also show
how faïence makers first worked under the influence of Italian maiolica
before turning to Chinese porcelain as their main source of
inspiration.
Faïence provided a less expensive alternative to Chinese porcelain
and to the European hard-paste and soft-paste porcelain produced in the
eighteenth century. The discovery of kaolin sources in France, which
enabled the production of more durable hard-paste porcelain, as well as
the spread of less expensive creamware, caused the decline of the
faïence industry in the late eighteenth century.
The Gardiner’s collection of French faïence was donated by Pierre Karch and Mariel O’Neill-Karch.
The motifs of antiques and a vase with flowers on this dish were inspired by Chinese porcelain. Faïence makers were the first to produce porcelain in France, so the exchange of designs is not surprising.
Charger (c.1750) by Lyon, FranceGardiner Museum
Warriors, pineapples and coconut trees… This charger featuring an exotic landscape evokes images of distant lands which most Europeans only encountered through the travel narratives that circulated since the Renaissance, providing perhaps an imaginary conception of the Caribbean islands where France had colonies. The Manufacture of Madeleine Héraud and Louis Leroy was, along with the Veuve Perrin, the most important and prosperous faience enterprise in Marseille.
Rectangular trays with décor Bérain (early 18th Century) by Moustier, FranceGardiner Museum
Decorated with grotesque ornaments finely outlined in blue on a white ground, the trays exemplify the impact of Jean 1er Bérain’s designs on the decorative arts of the 18th century. Bérain (1640-1711) was a painter, draftsman, engraver and Louis XIV`s official court designer, providing theatrical decors and costumes for royal entertainments. Artisans adapted his ornamental designs known through prints in various media, including textiles, tapestries and furniture.
Ewer and basin with chinoiserie (1750-1800) by Manufacture de la Veuve PerrinGardiner Museum
Ewers and basins were essential components of the morning ritual of the toilette, used for washing the face and hands, the basin serving as a portable sink. They were also used for washing hands after eating in bedchambers or private apartments. Made fashionable by its chinoiserie ornament, this faience ewer and basin would have provided a less expensive alternative to examples made of porcelain or silver.
Inkstand and desk tidy (late 17th-early 18th Century) by Nevers, FranceGardiner Museum
The inkstand and desk tidy is decorated with quills, instruments to sharpen them, coins, as well as a coat of arms, thus reflecting the use of the object as well as the identity of its owner. The inscriptionJC which appears twice inside the round containers are probably the owner’s initials. On the back, the chinoiserie scene of a scholar meditating on a rock while gazing at the moon – a common motif of Chinese art – reflects intellectual pursuit. Used everyday, such objects have rarely survived.
Rectangular charger manufactured by Guillibaud. (18th Century) by Jean-Baptiste Guillibaud ManufactureGardiner Museum
Coffee Pot (1780s) by LeedsGardiner Museum
Creamware
Creamware is a type of fine earthenware with a
cream-coloured body produced in England and Europe during the late
eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. Various versions of creamware were
developed by potters in the mid-eighteenth century. Josiah Wedgwood,
however, deserves recognition for improving the formula in the 1740s and
for transforming it into a popular, mass-produced commodity in the
1760s.
Creamware possessed many of the same practical and aesthetic
qualities as porcelain, but could be produced for a fraction of the
cost. For this reason, it quickly emerged as the ceramic tableware of
choice for middle class consumers. Competition from creamware producers
put great pressure on many English and European porcelain and
earthenware factories, forcing some of them to modify their products and
others to go out of business.
The creamware collection, which was donated by Jean and Ken Laundy,
includes objects made in Staffordshire and illustrates the spread of the
medium to other regions of England and to factories of continental
Europe.
This coffee pot was probably modeled on a silver prototype. Very similar forms were produced by many different creamware factories in Staffordshire and Yorkshire during the 1770s and 80s. Coffee was enjoyed by people of the time as a stimulant that inspired conversation and aided digestion.
Tureen, cover and stand (c.1800) by Creil FactoryGardiner Museum
The Creil factory was founded in France in 1795 to produce English style creamware pottery. This tureen and stand reflect the Neo-classical Empire style that was popular in France at the beginning of the 19th century. It may have been modeled on a Wedgwood prototype.
Dish (c. 1780s) by WedgwoodGardiner Museum
Creamware glazes provided light grounds that were well suited to both painted and printed decoration, and many creamware vessels were decorated with these techniques. This Wedgwood dish is decorated with a neo-classical design inspired by ancient Greek painted pottery.
Monteith (1770-1780) by WedgwoodGardiner Museum
This undulating vessel, a monteith, was used for chilling wine glasses in ice water. Its name derives from the name of a Scottish aristocrat at the court of King Charles II who wore a cloak with a scalloped hem. The form was first offered in a creamware body in the 1774 Wedgwood factory catalogue.
Sculpture of a stove with animals and humans (c.1650) by WinterthurGardiner Museum
Other Earthenware and Stoneware
The Gardiner Museum’s holdings include examples of earthenware and
stoneware produced in European factories in Germany, England, Italy, and
Switzerland.
Charger with vase of flowers (late 18th Century) by The Golden Flower PotGardiner Museum
While the use of blue and white decoration emulated Chinese porcelain, this plate shows the increasing influence of Japanese sources in the 18th century. The peacock’s tail or fan motif seen here derives from Japanese Imari designs, and became characteristic of the Dutch repertoire of the mid-18th century.
Fluted dish with Kraak-type design (c.1680-1700) by Hanau PotteryGardiner Museum
Jug with powdered ground (c.1630-1650) by London, EnglandGardiner Museum
The Bird on Rock design derives from Chinese hard paste porcelain that was made some time during the late Ming dynasty (1573–1619). This popular motif was also copied on tin-glazed earthenware in 17th-century England, Spain and Portugal. Archaeological fragments indicate that ceramics with this type of decoration – Chinese porcelain as well as English and Continental tin-glazed earthenware – were also used in colonial North America.
Barrel-shaped teapot (c.1765)Gardiner Museum
