Delft, circa 1720

Delft, circa 1785

Delft, circa 1695

Marked with an asterisk in blue for De Witte Ster (The White Star) factory, letter I or / and numeral 150 in blue, attributed to Dirck Witsenburgh, partial owner of the factory from 1690 – 1704

Comprising four sections: the top formed as two spreading square tiers with a bowl-shaped finial, each with a grotesque mask at the four corners issuing a tubular spout painted with floral sprigs, and with a perched bird on a sprig or bird in flight between the spouts, the lower tier with a lappet and with floral scrolls between the spouts; the two graduated square segments below each similarly formed with a grotesque mask at each corner issuing a tubular spout decorated with floral sprigs or lappets and painted between with a floral sprig or a bird perched on a sprig or in flight; the lower section with the largest tier, similarly shaped and decorated with a mask at each corner issuing a tubular spout decorated with floral sprigs and painted between with either a bird perched on a branch or a floral sprig, the canted area painted with a flowerhead and scrollwork, and raised on four scroll feet decorated with various floral borders and flanking on the center of each side the bust of a man wearing a blue doublet and forming extra supports; the bottom tier set on an architectural square base, its top painted with floral scrollwork motifs , its four sides painted with either a bird perched on a stylized rock below a fluttering insect and besides a profusion of blossoming plants, or Chinese precious objects such as a table with a ewer below two birds in flight and before a large vase with budding plants, or two birds in flight above a hare amiss floral shrubbery, or Chinese precious objects such as a table, a large teapot and a large vase below a bird in flight, all between moldings at the top and bottom variously patterned with borders of leaves and ribbons, petal tips, dentils and a flowering vine, all raised on four square ball feet painted with floral sprigs.

DIMENSIONS
Height: 54.4 cm. (21.4 in.)

PROVENANCE
Property of the Shelter Island Historical Society, sold to benefit the Museum Collections Program, probably since 1983

LITERATURE
Janet Roach (ed.), Delftware from the Gill Patterson Collection at the Shelter Island Historical Society, Shelter Island Historical Society, 2012, p. 7

NOTE
In their constant search for innovation and for expansion of their range, around 1680 the Delft potters began to develop new forms of vases. The most common types were table vases in the form of tureens and baskets, or stacks of round basins. But far rarer and more extravagant were the so-called ‘flower pyramids’, or as they were called in the seventeenth century, ‘flowerpots with pipes’. These monumental obelisk-shaped vases, which consisted of four or more spouted spheres of decreasing size stacked on top of one another, were predominantly made for the Dutch and English courts of King William III and Queen Mary II. These tiered pyramidal vases grew ever taller and more complex in shape over the years. The base for the pyramid is formed by a classical square pedestal, frequently standing on either four ball feet, lion’s-paw feet or complete lions, as in the vases in the collection of the Victoria and Albert Museum in London (inv. nos. C.96-1981, C.19-1982). The main scene, which is painted on the pedestal, often depicts Chinese scenes mixed with western imagery, but a number of vases were decorated with elements of seventeenth-century garden architecture. The painters often referred to the function of the object in their imagery, namely to display flowers. The pedestal of the present flower pyramid by De Witte Ster (The White Star) factory are decorated in this manner, with Chinese imageries alternated with panels of birds within floral scenes as a reference to the use of the objects.

The transition between the pedestal and the pyramid-shaped section is formed by a number of scrolls and crouching lions, lizards or animals resembling water buffaloes. But also busts of male figures, such as the figures with a more European or even Dutch appearance, in the present vase by De Witte Ster, support the pyramid tower. There are also other pyramidal flower vases known with busts of black men and volutes with sphinxes.

The repetition of the square tiers required the artists to repeat the same patterns and decorations, but to make them smaller and smaller towards the top. Often at all of the corners grotesque heads molded in relief issue spouts from their gaping jaws. The spouts were placed toward the bottom of each tier so that the flower stems could touch the water in the tier, which itself formed a small reservoir.

That these flower pyramids were constructed of stacked tiers is no wonder, since it would have been technically impossible for the potters to make and fire such tall earthenware vases in one piece without the risk of their collapsing in the kiln. Unfortunately a well formed model did not guarantee that the pyramid would be perfect, and the potters had to make sure that the parts fitted well both before and after the firing. During the firing process, sometimes parts of the vases collapsed or broke, a disaster that is evident on a few pedestals of which the walls slightly slumped. But the potters were clever in their methods of preventing potential problems, and they included in the interior construction of each tier a cylindrical pipe through which would be inserted a wooden stick or rod to ensure that the pyramids had additional invisible internal support. Furthermore, they realized that a structure of stacked tiers forming individual flower vases was also the most practical way of watering the flowers. Besides these practical considerations, there was also an aesthetic element.

That these flower pyramids were constructed of stacked tiers is no wonder, since it would have been technically impossible for the potters to make and fire such tall earthenware vases in one piece without the risk of their collapsing in the kiln. Unfortunately a well formed model did not guarantee that the pyramid would be perfect, and the potters had to make sure that the parts fitted well both before and after the firing. During the firing process, sometimes parts of the vases collapsed or broke, a disaster that is evident on a few pedestals of which the walls slightly slumped. But the potters were clever in their methods of preventing potential problems, and they included in the interior construction of each tier a cylindrical pipe through which would be inserted a wooden stick or rod to ensure that the pyramids had additional invisible internal support. Furthermore, they realized that a structure of stacked tiers forming individual flower vases was also the most practical way of watering the flowers. Besides these practical considerations, there was also an aesthetic element.

In the seventeenth century it was customary to display pieces of porcelain in pyramidal arrangements in or on the top of art cabinets, on wall brackets or on mantels of palace rooms. These étagères for porcelain, or so-called ’pyramids’, created an impression of great wealth and sophistication. This fashion may well have been inspired by the passion for all things Asian and by the association of the coveted Chinese ceramics with the tapering architecture of Chinese pagodas.

In all probability, molds were used in the manufacture of the vases with spouts. For angular and ribbed objects, and for handles and spouts the modelers used plaster molds, in which the clay was pressed. The resulting casts were secured individually to the object with slip, a thin, watery clay. Since during the baking process distortions or irregularities could develop, a numbering of the parts was necessary in order to avoid problems when stacking. Small differences in size usually were the result of characteristic but unpredictable shrinkage during the process of cooling in the kiln.

SIMILAR EXAMPLES
In the collection of Stichting Huizinghe ‘de Loet’, in ’s Hertogenbosch, The Netherlands, there is a pyramidal flower-holder quite similar in shape, with six tiers, of 72.5 cm (28 9/16 in.) in height. Another single flower pyramid (82.6 cm. [321⁄2 in] in height) is in the collection of the Rijksmuseum Twenthe (inv. no. Br 0001 [R 017], on loan from the Stichting Oudheidkamer ‘Riesen’ te Rijssen). It is marked LVE for Lambertus van Eenhoorn of De Metaale Pot factory, and the pedestal is painted with European- style floral decoration and mythological scenes of the goddess Flora and the god Bacchus amidst putti. Interestingly, a pedestal with the identical decoration and marked LVE was sold at Christie’s Amsterdam on June 7th 1994, lot no. 507, and given that flower vases always were made in pairs, it is very possible that this incomplete flower vase was originally the pendant to the one in the Rijksmuseum Twenthe. Another pair of flower vases marked with an asterisk for De Witte Ster factory was on sale on April 28- 29th in 1908 at Frederik Muller & Cie in Amsterdam. A pair of pyramidal flower vases, marked for Lambertus van Eenhoorn, is in the Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam, inv. no. BK-14852-A/B. A second pair, marked for De Witte Starre, published by Aronson 2016, is in a Private Collection. A single pyramidal flower vase, marked WB, is in Musée du Louvre, Paris, inv. no. OA 4040.

Delft, circa 1770

Each tureen and cover marked AK / * in blue for Albertus Kiell, the owner of De Witte Starre (The White Star) factory from 1762 to 1774

The covers modeled as a duck with slightly extended manganese-delineated wings, upswept tail, facial features and an iron-red beak seated on a green grassy mound, the tureens lightly molded and painted with green reeds and manganese plumes.

Dimensions
Lengths: 13 .8 cm. (5.4 in.)

Provenance
American Private Collection

Note
By the middle of the eighteenth century dining ‘à la Française’ was the fashion in Europe. Inspired by the French court of Louis XIV (1638-1715, reigned 1643-1715), the serving dishes were laid out on the table symmetrically and in a very ordered way for each course and guests would serve themselves from the platters, bowls or tureens within their reach. A 1790 Housekeeper’s Instructor cited by Ann Eatwell (in P. Glanville and H. Young [eds.], Elegant Eating, Four Hundred Years of Dining in Style, London (Victoria and Albert Museum) 2002, p. 48) illustrates that a dinner ‘à la Française’ included three courses: the first of “soups, boiled poultry, fish and boiled meats”, the second of “different kinds of game, high seasoned dishes, arts, jellies, etc.,” and the third a dessert course of “fruits, and various kinds of ornamental pastries…”.

Each course provided an opportunity to display and use a variety of tablewares: plates, serving vessels and a panoply of decorative objects. With this new fashion, the range of tableware expanded quickly and complete services with matching decoration began to be produced. The potteries in Delft quickly accommodated the new taste of the nobility and the wealthy bourgeoisie for adorning their tables with brightly colored table wares, such as butter tubs and tureens of various sizes and shapes. Amongst them were created true-to-life vessels, such as these zoomorphic tureens.

Similar examples
Although different in shape and decoration, a pair of manganese decorated duck tureens, marked for De Porceleyne Byl (The Porcelain Axe) factory, is
illustrated in Lavino 2002, p. 61.

Delft, circa 1765

Marked on each piece AP in manganese for Anthonij Pennis, the owner of De Twee Scheepjes (The Two Little Ships) factory from 1764 to 1770, or his widow Pennis-Overgaauw, the owner of the factory from 1770 to 1782

Each tub painted around the exterior with four flowering peony branches beneath the scalloped and barbed rim, the low domed cover surmounted by a recumbent goat with a manganese-delineated pale manganese coat, and manganese horns, ears, eyes and hooves.

Dimensions
Heights: 13 cm. (5.1 in.)

Provenance
French Private Collection;
Aronson Antiquairs, Amsterdam, 2007;
Swiss Private Collection

Note
Farm and domestic animals, such as cows, horses and goats, were among the most prolific animal figures in both white and polychrome Delftware. Tureens like the present pair must have made imaginative centerpieces on a dinner table. It therefore must have been a special pleasure to be the guest at a dinner party given by a prosperous family in the eighteenth century. With the invitation came the anticipation of a veritable feast for the senses: a gustatory treat to taste the beautifully prepared and perhaps exotic foods, and a visual treat in their presentation and in the table setting itself.

Similar examples
A taller butter tub with a similar goat on the cover and with the mark of De 3 Vergulde Astonnekens (The Three Gilded Ash-Barrels) factory is illustrated by Van Aken-Fehmers, Vol. II, p. 220, who in fig. 1 also illustrates several other models of recumbent goats. Another pair of butter tubs with goat covers, marked for Albertus Kiell of De Witte Starre (The White Star) factory, is illustrated in Aronson 2013, p. 86, no. 49. Another pair, marked for De Dubbele 0Schenkkan (The Double Ewer) factory is illustrated in Aronson 2016, pp. 82-83, no. 36.

Delft, circa 1770

Marked AK * in blue for Albertus Kiell, the owner of De Witte Ster (The White Star) factory from 1762 until 1774

Each cover modeled as a central yellow lemon surmounting a ring of apples and pears decorated in shades of yellow and iron-red, some molded with a single green leaf, and set on a dark green mound, above a circular tureen molded with yellow wickerwork delineated in green, and the sides affixed with loop handles applied with three florets decorated with iron-red dots.

Dimensions
Heights: 10.8 cm. (4.3 in.)

Provenance
Salomon Stodel Antiquités, Amsterdam, 1993;
The Van der Vorm Collection, The Netherlands

Note
Dining à la Française (in the French manner) was a fashionable new style of dining, where guests were served numerous dishes at once during the formal dinner service. A wide range of wares were designed in the newly stylish trompe l’ceil to complement the dishes, which were symmetrically arranged on the table and within reach for guests to serve themselves. Dinner wares cleverly imitated nature in the form of fruits and vegetables. Further, the table itself would be adorned with real flowers or fruits. A pair of butter tubs like the present one, formed as a wickerwork basket with a stack of pears, would fit accordingly on the dinner table.

Similar examples
A single basket tureen with a stack of fruits and leaves in the collection of the Musée des Arts décoratifs in Paris is illustrated in Lahaussois 1994, p. 141, no. 185. In the same collection and illustrated on the same page ibid., no. 186, is a different model with wickerwork and a stack of five pears that is marked for De Porceleyne Byl (The Porcelain Axe) factory (inv. no. 24890). An oval shaped butter tub with pears (inv. no. 24892), also marked for De Porceleyne Byl (The Porcelain Axe) factory is illustrated on the same page, no. 185. A pair of oval shaped pear butter tubs with wickerwork baskets are illustrated in Lavino 2002, p. 133 and 134.

Delft, circa 1700

Delft, circa 1765

Marked AK * in blue for Albertus Kiell, the owner of De Witte Ster (The White Star) factory from 1762 to 1774 Each domed cover applied with finely modeled flowers and leaves in manganese, blue, iron-red, green and yellow, and surmounted by a seated swan, the tureen imitating a yellow wicker basket with two loop handles.

Heights: 9.5 cm. (3.7 in.)

Provenance: Aronson Antiquairs, Amsterdam, 2004; Dutch Private Collection

Similar examples: Flower-encrusted objects, abundantly applied with blossoms, leaves and sometimes fruits, insects and small animals, may have been conceived originally by, and certainly are best known from, the Meissen porcelain factory. A flower-encrusted tureen and cover similar to the present examples, but without the surmounting swan, and marked JDB for Johannes van den Berg at De Witte Ster factory, is in the Musées royaux d’Art et d’Histoire, Brussels, illustrated in Lunsingh Scheurleer 1984, p. 196, ill. 45. A comparable larger tureen and cover, surmounted by a piece of fruit, is in the Lavino Collection, illustrated p. 49 (upper left), where there is also illustrated a pair with flower encrustation and surmounting pears, p. 209 (upper left).

Sold

Delft, circa 1720

Marked IG /4 in blue for Jan Gaal, the owner of De Twee Scheepjes (The Two Ships) factory from 1707 until 1725, or his widow Lijsbeth Gaal-van der Plank from 1725 through 1727

The circular well painted on the interior with a flowering branch within a whorl and hatchwork border on the octagonal rim, and on the octagonal exterior with alternating foliate scrolls and four-petal blossoms, the stem with a foliate-vine band, and the octagonal foot with panels of trellis diaper work interrupted by foliate devices and alternating with blue-ground panels of demi-blossoms and leaves.

Height: 4.8 cm. (1.9 in.)

Delft, circa 1730

Marked with an asterisk and CB in blue for Cornelis Brouwer, the owner of De Witte Ster (The White Star) factory from 1724 to 1738

The circular well painted on the interior with a peony sprig within a border of petal devices on the octagonal rim, and on the exterior with four foliate scrolls, the stem encircled by a band between lines, and the octagonal foot with four panels of trellis diaperwork surmounted by a leaf and alternating with blossoms issuing tiny scrolls.

Height: 4.6 cm. (1.8 in.)