Delft, circa 1710

DIMENSIONS
Height: 22.9 cm. (9 in.)

PROVENANCE
Private Collection;
Collection Bernard Stodel;
Hotel Drouot, Paris, November 20-22 1924, Faiences Anciennes, lot 49;
Collection Paul Blancan, no. 102

LITERATURE
Auction catalogue Drouot, 20- 24 November 1924, Faiences Anciennes Françaises & Étrangères, Collection de Monsieur P.B., lot 49

NOTE
This ewer is a fine example of the so-called “cashmere palette,” a term coined by nineteenth-century connoisseurs to describe Delftware of about 1700–1720 decorated in a vibrant triad of cobalt blue, iron-red, and green enamels, occasionally heightened with touches of manganese or yellow. Executed in the demanding grand feu technique, these pieces took their nickname from the dense and colorful motifs of the prized woolen shawls imported from India, though their pictorial sources lay primarily in Chinese famille verte porcelain of the Kangxi period (1662–1722). Delft potters translated these imported models into their own idiom, expanding the color range and intensifying the tones through the application of an additional transparent lead glaze, which produced a luminous, enamel-like finish.

The decorative scheme of this ewer reflects this hybrid heritage: rocky outcrops, birds perched among blossoming chrysanthemums and peonies, and smaller birds in animated flight populate the central field. These motifs, derived from East Asian prototypes, were framed and enriched with scrolling borders and stylized foliage in a manner indebted to European baroque ornament. Such elements recall the designs of Daniel Marot, court architect to William III, whose adaptation of the elaborate French style for Dutch interiors left a lasting imprint on the decorative arts.

Delft, circa 1695

Marked AK in blue for Adrianus Kocx, the owner of De Grieksche A (The Greek A) factory from 1686 to 1701

DIMENSIONS
Height 28 cm. (11 in.)

NOTE
This flower vase represents an early and ambitious phase in the development of multi-spouted flower holders in Delft, produced around 1690 at the factory De Grieksche A under the direction of Adrianus Kocx. Vases of this type belong to the formative generation of Delft flower holders, when potters were experimenting with complex architectural forms designed to accommodate the fashionable display of cut flowers within domestic interiors.

The vase is constructed from stacked, bulbous elements rising from a faceted foot, with each tier pierced by short, projecting spouts arranged radially around the body and culminating in a central neck. This tiered construction reflects a modular approach to ceramic design, in which separately thrown and molded components were assembled into a unified sculptural form. Such structures allowed for the placement of individual flower stems at varying heights, creating a carefully orchestrated floral arrangement that emphasized symmetry and verticality.

The imagery draws upon Chinese decorative sources, mediated through late seventeenth-century European interpretations of porcelain decoration. The integration of birds and flowering plants within a continuous pictorial field enhances the organic relationship between the painted surface and the vase’s intended function as a flower holder.

Flower vases of this complexity emerged in Delft around the final decades of the seventeenth century, closely associated with the production of De Grieksche A, one of the most innovative and technically accomplished factories of the period. Under Adrianus Kocx, the factory played a central role in refining both the form and decoration of flower holders, responding to the growing demand for elaborate display objects that reflected contemporary tastes for symmetry, ornament, and botanical abundance.

Delft, circa 1690

Unidentifiably marked and numbered with a dashed O 10, attributed to Adrianus Kocx, the owner of De Grieksche A (The Greek A) factory from 1686 to 1701

DIMENSIONS
Height 20.5 cm. (8 in.)

PROVENANCE
Belgian private collection;
Salomon Stodel, Amsterdam;
Collection Mrs. Richard Ernst;
Sotheby’s New York, 31 October 1981, lot no. 26

NOTE
This exceptionally rare Delft flower vase belongs to the celebrated tradition of multi-spouted flower holders produced in Delft from the 1680s until approximately 1740. Such vases were conceived to accommodate fashionable floral displays in which individual stems could be arranged separately, reflecting contemporary horticultural interests and the growing prestige of cut flowers within elite interiors of the Dutch Republic.

The earliest Delft flower vases of this type were relatively restrained in form. Known as quintel vases, they consisted of a compact body surmounted by a single fan-shaped row of five tubular spouts. These early examples, introduced in the late seventeenth century, already demonstrate the ingenuity of Delft potters in adapting ceramic forms to specific domestic uses. As demand increased and competition between factories intensified, the basic model was progressively elaborated. Additional rows of spouts were introduced, the bodies became more sculptural, and the silhouettes evolved into oval or heart-shaped profiles that offered greater visual impact and complexity.

The present vase represents an advanced stage in this development. It is distinguished by its double row of spouts, a feature encountered only rarely and indicative of experimental design within the Delft industry. The body has been transformed into a sculptural, heart-shaped form supported by a pedestal foot, and is flanked by striking salamander-shaped handles, a motif documented in the output of both De Metaale Pot (The Metal Pot) and De Grieksche A (The Greek A) factories. 

The salamander-shaped handles contribute an additional symbolic layer. In seventeenth-century emblematic thought, the salamander was believed to possess the ability to live in or withstand fire, making it a potent symbol of resilience, purity, and incorruptibility. The incorporation of such creatures on Delft flower vases may therefore be read not merely as decorative whimsy, but as an allusion to desirable moral and intellectual qualities, subtly reinforcing the vase’s status as a prestigious and meaningful object.

Delft, circa 1670
Attributed to De Paauw (The Peacock) factory

DIMENSIONS
Height 55.5 cm. (21.9 in.)

NOTE
The vibrant polychrome palette seen on the present vase was the result of complex and highly skilled techniques, developed and refined over many years. Not all colors could be applied and fixed in a single firing; instead, pieces often underwent multiple kiln firings, each tailored to specific types of pigment. The grand feu colors on this vase, blue, green, and yellow, were applied before the glaze firing and required high temperatures of approximately 1000°C. The red color on this vases is a so-called cold-painted decoration, which was as the term suggests applied without firing at all, using lacquer-based paints that adhered to the glazed surface. Red was initially a challenging color for Delftware painters to master. The metal oxides required to produce red hues could not withstand the high firing temperatures used in the production of tin-glazed earthenware. In search of solutions, Delft artists looked to Middle Eastern and Italian traditions, adopting the use of a thin layer of diluted red ochre as a surface application. This pigment, known as ‘rode bolus’ (red bolus) or ‘Armeense zegelaarde’ (Armenian seal-earth), was not fired into the glaze but applied as a paint-like substance after the primary firing. The exact hue of red produced by this method varied depending on the geographic origin and mineral content of the ochre. For example, Terra di Pozzuoli contained only 20% iron oxide, resulting in a lighter red, while Spanish and Persian red ochres could reach up to 95% iron oxide, yielding much deeper and more saturated tones. The final color was thus determined by both iron content and natural impurities in the raw material. The cold-painting technique, in which red lacquer paint was applied after the vessel had already been fired with its blue, green, and yellow decoration, is relatively rare. Many painters continued to rely on the traditional red-ochre method; moreover, lacquered red adhered poorly to the glazed surface and was therefore particularly susceptible to wear. As a result, few well-preserved examples of true cold-painted red decoration survive. This type of polychrome decoration was especially favored at De Paauw (The Peacock) factory, where it was applied to a wide range of objects, including plates, vases, posset pots, and modeled animal and human figures. On the basis of the decorative execution and color palette, the present vase can be attributed to De Paauw factory.

Delft, circa 1670

DIMENSIONS
Height: 34.5 cm (13.6 in.)

PROVENANCE
Lempertz, Köln, 2010;
The Collection of Dr.Wilhelm Kappesser, Darmstadt, Germany

EXHIBITION
Mainz, Mittelrheinisches Landesmuseum, Keramik aus Privatbesitz, exhibition organized by the Gesellschaft der Keramikfreunde E.V. “KERAMOS”, 10 May-4 June 1979

NOTE
Shaped with a slender, elongated onion neck and a rounded body, this pair of bottle vases is continuously decorated with scenes derived from Chinese woodblock prints, depicting birds and insects animatedly fluttering among flowering plants. The uninterrupted pictorial surface reflects a decorative approach that privileges narrative flow over compartmentalization. For much of the twentieth century, roughly between 1920 and 1990, faience decorated in this manner was erroneously attributed to a small manufactory in Frankfurt am Main. This attribution has since been decisively overturned. Archaeological evidence, including factory waste recovered in Delft, combined with securely dated Delftware bearing identical motifs, has firmly established Delft as the center of production. Scholarly research by Dr. Van Dam and others has been particularly instrumental in this reassessment. A key comparative example in the collection of the Kunstmuseum in The Hague, dated 1661, predates the onset of faience production in Frankfurt and provides compelling chronological proof for a Delft origin. The decorative vocabulary of these vases must be understood in the context of the importation of high-quality Chinese porcelain into the Dutch Republic between circa 1630 and 1640. These so-called “transitional wares” exerted a profound influence on Delft potters. The term refers to the period of political upheaval following the death of the Wanli Emperor in 1619, culminating in the fall of the Ming dynasty and the establishment of the Qing dynasty in 1644. Unlike earlier Kraak porcelain, which was structured by radiating panels, transitional porcelain featured continuous scenes, often populated by landscapes, animals, insects, or figures engaged in quiet conversation or dynamic action. Early faience objects such as the present pair belong to a group produced in Delft between approximately 1660 and 1680, characterized by chinoiserie landscapes incorporating flora, fauna, and delicate natural motifs. On the basis of stylistic analysis, archaeological findings, and securely dated comparanda, these vases can now be confidently reattributed to Delft, correcting a long-standing misinterpretation in the scholarly literature.

Delft, circa 1640
Attributed to De Porceleyne Schotel (The Porcelain Dish) factory
DIMENSIONS
Height: 26.3 cm. (10.4 in.)

PROVENANCE
Dutch Private Collection,Maastricht;
Aronson Antiquairs, Amsterdam

NOTE
This type of Delftware jug belongs to the first generation of blue-and-white wares that entered Dutch homes in the mid-seventeenth century and soon appeared in contemporary painting. These early examples mark the moment when Delft potters successfully adapted Chinese porcelain models to local taste, creating objects that reflected both global exchange and Dutch domestic refinement.  Dutch artists of the seventeenth century were quick to recognize the visual and symbolic appeal of such Delftware. Willem Kalf (1619–1693) used comparable vessels to heighten the sense of luxury in his still lifes, while Jan Steen (1626–1679) placed them in lively scenes of daily life. In Girl Eating Oysters (c. 1658–60, Mauritshuis, inv. no. 818), a flirtatious diner sits beside a blue and white jug, and in The Doctor’s Visit (c. 1665–68, Mauritshuis, inv. no. 168), a maid holds a similar vessel in a humorous depiction of love-sickness. Steen’s repeated inclusion of the form suggests that such jugs served as studio props, reflecting how familiar Delftware had become in mid-seventeenth-century interiors. These jugs are traditionally linked to the Delft factory De Porceleyne Schotel (The Porcelain Dish), whose painters favored Chinese-inspired motifs, flowers, birds, and rockwork, interpreted with a lively and expressive Delft hand. Their presence extended beyond Steen’s domestic scenes: a related example appears in Laurens Craen’s Still Life with a Lobster and Delft Jug (Christie’s Amsterdam, 7 November 2001, lot 77). Viewed in this wider visual context, the present jug bridges domestic use and artistic representation, capturing an early moment when Delftware both emulated Asian porcelains and established a visible, even narrative, role in Dutch cultural life.

Delft, circa 1750

Each painted in blue, green, manganese, iron-red, and yellow, with a flowering tree and two exotic birds perched on a branch, the self-molded frame decorated with alternating panels filled with floral elements, affixed at the top with a pair of leaf scrolls flanking the suspension hole.

DIMENSIONS
Height: 25 cm. (9.8 in.);
Width: 23 cm. (9 in.)

NOTE
The fascination with exotic, vividly colored birds captivated the European imagination for centuries. Among the most prized natural luxuries from Asia were the plumes of birds of paradise, which had been highly valued in regional trade networks for at least 5000 years before European contact in the late fifteenth century. These magnificent feathers were not only symbols of opulence but also played a role in early global trade, stimulating European demand for exotic avian imagery in decorative arts.

By the eighteenth century, Chinese porcelain adorned with depictions of exotic birds—often shown in lush landscapes teeming with vibrant floral plants—was immensely sought after in the Netherlands. These motifs, blending elements of realism and fantasy, reflected both an admiration for the natural world and a growing European appreciation for Asian artistic traditions. Dutch Delftware painters, influenced by these imported porcelains, reinterpreted the imagery through their own artistic lens, creating some of the most vividly painted plaques of the period. These Delftware plaques commonly depict birds perched on flowering branches, rendered in rich polychrome palettes, often incorporating elements of chinoiserie and Dutch stylistic conventions. The adaptation of these motifs in Delftware exemplifies the fluid exchange of artistic ideas between Asia and Europe in the early modern period, highlighting the role of global trade in shaping decorative traditions. The enduring appeal of these compositions speaks to a shared fascination with nature’s beauty, translated across cultures through the medium of ceramics.

Delft, circa 1720

The bulbous body decorated with floral and foliate motifs, a central floral design with vines and stylized flowers on either side, underneath the handle and spout, which is painted with blue accents along the tip, the handle features a row of blue comma-shaped marks repeated at the rim of the cover which features a matching floral pattern and a rounded knop.

DIMENSIONS
Height: 13.5 cm. (5.3 in.)

NOTE
Initially, tea was consumed for medicinal purposes in Europe, since it “suivert het grove bloedt, verdrijft de sware droomen, (…) ’t verjaegt de dommigheijt en ’t sterckt Venus’ handel (gedienstig voor nieuw getrouwde)” (“purifies coarse blood, drives out heavy dreams, (…) chases away stupidity and strengthens Venus’ affairs (useful for newly weds)”. Although it took some time, the craze for tea drinking swept through Europe in the last quarter of the seventeenth century.

Once the practice became fashionable, it changed the rhythm of people’s daily lives. Tea could be drunk once or twice a day, but afternoon gatherings became the new habit. Furthermore, it inspired people to acquire the necessary accoutrements for serving the drink. In the seventeenth century, these necessities could be of a variety of materials, and even a combination of Chinese and European tea wares. However, by the end of the eighteenth century, it was customary to have complete matching sets. Tea was presented to guests in beautiful tea canisters, and then strongly brewed in small pots. These concentrated brews were then diluted with hot water from a bouilloire, a silver, copper (although this material was thought not so suitable for boiling water) or pewter kettle on a stand over a brazier. When the guest wanted to try a different kind of tea, he or she could rinse the cup in the slop bowl. The new drink should be sipped as hot as possible, but if too hot, it could be poured on the saucer to cool a little and sipped from there. With
tea being very expensive, the cups were small, so it was not uncommon if one would have up to twenty or even fifty cups during a tea party.

Dutch Delftware teapots are rare, since vessels made from regular earthenware were comparably coarser than porcelain, and considered less elegant and pleasant to drink from. More important is the fact that earthenware is not the best material to hold boiling water. Heat is conducted more readily by earthenware, being a porous material, than by
porcelain, and it was prone to crack when it had to endure large temperature differences. If the glaze crackled, the material underneath became unsealed, and the water caused it to crumble.

SIMILAR EXAMPLES
A smaller, but comparable modeled and decorated teapot is in the Kunstmuseum, The Hague (inv. no. 1059828).

Delft, circa 1690

Marked GK in blue for Gerrit Pietersz. Kam, owner of the Drie Posteleyne Astonne (The Three Porcelain Ash-Barrels) factory from 1679 to 1700

Painted boldly around the body with eight scaly dragons against a ground of entangled flowering lotuses loops continuing onto the cover, its slightly domed top with a single dragon on top amidst the lotuses.

DIMENSIONS
Height: 35 cm. (13.8 in.)

PROVENANCE
Swedish Private Collection

NOTE
Auspicious, mythical and intriguing, the dragon was a creature that found its way onto Delftware from the Chinese porcelain and other decorative arts imported by the Dutch East India Company (VOC) in the seventeenth century.

The origins of mythical Chinese dragons are vague, however it is believed that over 4,000 years ago, China was made up of two large tribes and several smaller tribes, all of which were symbolized by an animal. When the two large tribes unified, they chose the dragon as their symbol. The Han Chinese still claim to be descendants of this beastly creature. The earliest depictions of the Chinese dragon can be found on Neolithic pottery and on the Bronze Age ritual vessels and other artifacts from the Shang (1600-1100 BC) and Zhou (1100 BC-256 AD) dynasties. According to manuscripts of the Song Dynasty (960-1279), the dragon (represented by the traditional or simplified character), was an animal composed of various parts of nine other animals, including: “the head of an ox or donkey, the eyes of a shrimp, the horns of a deer, the feet of a phoenix, and the body of a serpent covered with the scales of a fish.” Assuming the best traits of the tiger, the fish, the serpent and the eagle, it was considered the most superior, powerful, wise and regal of beasts, and eventually it became associated with the emperor (the empress’s symbol being the mythical bird, the fenghuang, also referred to as the august rooster or the Chinese phoenix).

In Chinese art, the dragon is often depicted clutching or chasing after a pearl, which is emblematic of the beast’s supernatural powers. The dragon is revered as a divine creature that symbolizes good fortune, far from the terrifying and evil creature it came to represent in the West, where, through Europe’s own legends, it was the dragon-slayer who was the symbol of might, supremacy and heroism. Although the mythical dragon is a rare motif on Delftware, there are several Delftware objects with a rather similar depiction to the dragon. However, Delft potters and especially the ceramic painters imitated motifs from Chinese porcelain without understanding their symbolism. The dragon pattern was closely imitated and emulated after Chinese porcelain and there are various sorts of Delft tableware with this type of decoration, plates and egg cups, but also salt cellars and an oil and vinegar ménage (Rijksmuseum Amsterdam, inv. nos. BK-1961-33-A, BK-1961-33-B and BK-1961-32). It is assumed that these objects were possibly used to complement a Chinese porcelain service.

SIMILAR EXAMPLES
A jar and cover with similar decoration, featuring four dragons amid intertwined flowering lotus vines, illustrated in Aronson 2012, p. 27, no. 14, and attributed to Theodorus Witsenburgh, who owned De Witte Ster (The White Star) factory from 1690 until his death in 1700, after which it was likely operated by his family until 1705. This indicates that the pattern was produced by several different Delftware factories. Another similar, covered jar with slighlty larger dragons, is in the Prinsenhof Museum in Delft (inv. no. LM 2173).

Delft, circa 1700

The spherical body and cover painted with sprigs and flowering plants, the loop handle and spout with a border of stripes, and a triangle-shaped knop encircled with a continuous line.

DIMENSIONS
Height: 7.2 cm. (2.8 in.)

PROVENANCE
Bernard C.M. Grijpma Kunst en Antiek, 1998; Private collection

NOTE
Tea and coffee were first imported from China to Holland by the Dutch East India Company (VOC) in the last quarter of the seventeenth century. At the time, it could take up to two years for the Dutch trading ships to complete a round trip. Drinking tea was initially a luxurious pastime reserved for the elite. The practice of drinking tea became increasingly fashionable amongst the upper class who expressed their good taste by acquiring the necessary accoutrements. In response to the demand for tea wares, Delftware factories produced magnificent objects for tea services. Tea imports rapidly became one of the most profitable traded commodities. By the second half of the eighteenth century, the consumption of tea spread to every social class and became an indispensable article to daily life. By the end of the eighteenth century, almost every household owned a tea service.

Early teapots are generally of a small size, not only because tea was an exotic and expensive luxury and consumed sparingly, but also because these teapots were used as infusion pots from which a small portion of the strong brew would be poured into a cup and then diluted with hot water from a kettle. The present teapot, however, is particularly small and is referred to as a ‘tasting pot.’ As described in the exhibition catalogue, Thema thee: de geschiedenis van de thee en het theegebruik in Nederland, Rotterdam (Museum Boijmans van Beuningen) 1978, p. 32, the hostess would offer several blends in these small pots to be tasted by the guests so that they might select the one they would like to drink. K. Duysters, in Theepotten steengoed, Roodstenen theepotten uit Yixing en Europa, Arnhem (Historisch Museum het Burgerweeshuis) 1998, p. 31, comments further that tasting pots were brought along to the tea shops by ladies in order to sample the teas before choosing the kind they wished to buy.