Victorian Grotesque Majolica Fur Seal Vase c.1880

Pottery : Antique : Majolica : Grotesque

 

This is an unusual 19th century majolica vase in the form of a fur seal with glass eyes. It stands 9 and 3/4 inches tall, and is in Excellent Condition. Majolica is a soft earthenware ceramic, fired to the "biscuit" or unglazed stage at approximately 1100 degrees Fahrenheit. Majolica pottery gained international acclaim in the 16th century. These early majolica pottery pieces featured sphinxes, cupids, griffins, and many other fantastical creatures. At the beginning of the 17th century Deruta tradition knows another pattern for its production, called grotesque style from Nero’s Domus Aurea frescos, discovered in the caves of the building, “grotte”. The Grotesque tradition is also known as “raphaelesque”; this term referred painting in fantastical style used to describe the influential decoration by Raphael of the Vatican Loggias, of about 1519. This pattern is characterized by mythological figures, allegorical symbols, fantastic animals, sibyls and so on. Majolica, with its bright colors and intense surface decoration was exactly the right kind of accessory to complement the elaborate interiors of the Victorian home. Victorian Majolica is earthenware pottery made in 19th century Britain and the USA with molded surfaces and colorful clear lead glazes Many late 19th-century majolica designs had rustic motifs with backgrounds of basketry and wooden-bound buckets decorated with molded flowers, birds, fish and animals.

Item ID: A4236