Maiolica vase, by the 'Master of the frowning profiles'

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Maiolica Vase. 'Master of the frowning profiles', possibly, Campania, Naples or Vietri. On the front, within a wreath of leaves and berries, is a bust of a dour young woman in profile to left facing a scroll inscribed `BEATRI' (Beatrice). The rest of the body is decorated with stylised scrolling foliage and dots. On the neck, there are semi-circles enclosing spots between horizontal bands; on the stem, two horizontal bands, and on the foot, a wavy line with spots at intervals, and concentric bands of different widths. Pinkish-buff earthenware, tin-glazed on the interior and exterior; base unglazed. Painted mainly in dark blue, with a little green, yellow, and brownish-orange. Height, whole, 21.2 cm, diameter, rim, 10.2 cm, diameter, foot, 12.0cm, diameter, wdiest part, 17.4 cm, circa 1500-1550. Renaissance. Notes: This is one of several bulbous vases and albarelli decorated with frowning profile busts, whose painter was named `Maestro dei profili corruciati' (Master of the frowning profiles) by Donatone (1993, pp. 82-3).

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Accession Number: C.97-1927
Photograph copyright © The Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge.
Aperture: f/22.0
Focal length: 120
Camera: Hasselblad H3DII-31
Photographer name: Katie Young
Image height: 1024 pixels
Image width: 760 pixels
Processed with: Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 5.4 (Windows)
Filesize: 589.52kB
Exposure time: 1/45
ISO Speed: 100
Fnumber: 22/1

Key words

16th Century banded bands blue bulb bulbous earthenware faces facial expressions female Fitz_PDP foot frown frowning glazed hair heads headscarf inscribed inscriptions Italian lady maiolica Master of the frowning profiles painted pottery profile Renaissance scrolling scrolls tin-glazed vase vessel woman

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            "Maiolica vase, by the 'Master of the frowning profiles'"
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