Relevant categories: Porcelain
(Above photo - English Majolica Pottery Elephant Seat Raj )
Majolica porcelain is a form of tin-glazed earthenware, including jugs, tea sets, tableware, planters, and other art pieces. The majolica makers had the pottery pieces glazed with white tin enamel, manganese purple, copper green, iron red, antimony yellow, and cobalt blue colors. Because of that, it has a fanciful, colorful charm that sets it apart from many antique art pieces. Apart from producing table-sized objects, majolica also specialized in producing large-scale objects such as garden ornaments in the form of forty-inch-high pedestals.
(Above photo - Pair English Majolica Porcelain Peacock Statues )
Majolica porcelain features different themes and motifs, depending on the influence the designers had. For example, it is not uncommon to find majolica pieces with natural history and antiquity as the dominant themes, especially during the Victorian era. Also, majolica may feature agrarian imagery, exotic creatures, and other motifs from the prevailing social circumstances.
Some of the most prominent influences on the themes of majolica porcelain include:
Ancient Egypt and Roman sculpture
Chinoiserie
Renaissance art
Augustus Pugin's neo-gothic work
Luca Della Robbia's work
Art nouveau
Chinese sancai porcelian
(Above photo - Pair English Majolica Minton Porcelain Planters Pots Bowls Maiolica Pottery )
Spanish moors first produced majolica on the Majorca island. In the 15th century, the art was introduced into Italy by the moors, later making it to England following the 1851 Great Exhibition in London. The modern form of majolica was significantly different from the Italian version mainly because it didn't promote religious, mythological themes and was more in three dimensions. Victorian majolica highlighted the social and scientific advances of the era and was popular with the English middle and upper classes.
The 1851 Great Exhibition showcased majolica to make it one of the most significant sensations of the 19th and 20th centuries. Minton and other manufacturers started producing decorative tiles for the tavern, train station, and other interiors across England. At the same time, the company made majolica porcelain pieces for use by the emergent middle class.
(Above photo - Majolica Porcelain Comport Dish English Pottery )
Despite Minton's massive investment into majolica production, the company soon moved onto the latest Art Nouveau style, which was emerging. That's because the turn of the 1900s had moved the people's focus to something completely different. However, in the 1970s, majolica production was revived for a while due to the growing demands of collectors. At that time, Jeremy Cooper, a London dealer, held several exhibitions to celebrate the history of majolica.
Today, you can find majolica in the form of the original Victorian-era motifs that still dazzle quite some collectors worldwide. For example, you are likely to find botanical elements and rural themes popular with population-laded cities of the Industrial Revolution. Thus, you can choose your majolica porcelain based on its style, patterns, origin, price, manufacturer, and style.
If you are a collector, buying a genuine majolica porcelain piece should be one of your sworn pursuits. Well, we have a variety of original articles from the 19th century and newer versions made in the 1970s. Why don't you visit our showroom today?
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