HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

In different periods of time and in different countries, the term ''majolica'' has been used for two distinct types of
pottery Pottery is the process and the products of forming vessels and other objects with clay and other ceramic materials, which are fired at high temperatures to give them a hard and durable form. Major types include earthenware, stoneware and ...
. Firstly, from the mid-15th century onwards, was ''maiolica'', a type of pottery reaching Italy from Spain, Majorca and beyond. This was made by a tin-glaze process (dip, dry, paint, fire), resulting in an opaque white glazed surface decorated with brush-painting in metal oxide enamel colour(s). During the 17th century, the English added the letter '' j'' to their alphabet. ''Maiolica'' was commonly anglicized to ''majolica'' thereafter. The second style of pottery known as ''majolica'' is the mid- to late-19th century Victorian style made by a simpler process (painting and then firing) whereby coloured lead silicate glazes were applied directly to an unfired clay mould, typically relief-moulded, resulting in brightly coloured, hard-wearing, inexpensive wares that were both useful and decorative, typically in naturalistic style. This type of majolica was introduced to the public at the 1851 Great Exhibition in London, later widely copied and mass-produced. Minton & Co., who developed the coloured lead glazes product, also developed and exhibited at the 1851 Exhibition a tin-glazed product in imitation of Italian maiolica which they called also ''majolica''.


Terminology

The notes in this article append ''tin-glazed'' to the word meaning 'opaque white tin-glaze, painted in enamels', and ''coloured glazes'' to the word meaning 'coloured lead glazes, applied direct to the biscuit'.


Mintons' description

Leon Arnoux, the artistic and technical director of
Mintons Mintons was a major company in Staffordshire pottery, "Europe's leading ceramic factory during the Victorian era", an independent business from 1793 to 1968. It was a leader in ceramic design, working in a number of different ceramic bodies, ...
, wrote in 1852, "We understand by majolica a pottery formed of a calcareous clay gently fired, and covered with an opaque enamel composed of sand, lead, and tin...". Arnoux was describing the Minton & Co. tin-glazed product made in imitation of Italian
maiolica Maiolica is tin-glazed pottery decorated in colours on a white background. Italian maiolica dating from the Renaissance period is the most renowned. When depicting historical and mythical scenes, these works were known as ''istoriato'' wares ...
both in process and in styles. Tin-glaze is simply plain lead glaze with a little tin oxide added. His description is often referenced, in error, as a definition of Minton's other new product, the much copied and later mass-produced ceramic sensation of the Victorian era, Minton's coloured lead glazes, Palissy ware. The 16th-century French pottery of
Bernard Palissy Bernard Palissy (c. 1510c. 1589) was a French Huguenot potter, hydraulics engineer and craftsman, famous for having struggled for sixteen years to imitate Chinese porcelain. He is best known for his so-called "rusticware", typically highly decor ...
was well known and much admired. Mintons adopted the name 'Palissy ware' for their new coloured glazes product, but this soon became known also as ''majolica''.


Minton Archive first design for majolica

Thomas Kirkby's design G144 in the Minton Archive is inscribed "This is the First Design for Majolica...". The design is
Italian Renaissance The Italian Renaissance ( it, Rinascimento ) was a period in Italian history covering the 15th and 16th centuries. The period is known for the initial development of the broader Renaissance culture that spread across Europe and marked the trans ...
in style. Close-up images illustrate a design suited for fine brushwork on flat surfaces. The design is for Minton's rare tin-glaze
majolica In different periods of time and in different countries, the term ''majolica'' has been used for two distinct types of pottery. Firstly, from the mid-15th century onwards, was ''maiolica'', a type of pottery reaching Italy from Spain, Majorca a ...
imitation of Italian tin-glaze maiolica. Minton's designs for Palissy ware, also known as ''majolica'', were suited for 'thick' painting of coloured lead glazes onto surfaces moulded in
relief Relief is a sculptural method in which the sculpted pieces are bonded to a solid background of the same material. The term '' relief'' is from the Latin verb ''relevo'', to raise. To create a sculpture in relief is to give the impression that th ...
to make best use of the intaglio effect.


Coloured glazes earthenware

Earthenware coated with coloured lead glazes applied directly to an unglazed body has from the mid-19th century onwards been called ''majolica'', e.g.: 20th-century majolica, Mexican majolica, Sarreguemines majolica, Palissy majolica, majolica-glazed
Parian ware Parian ware is a type of biscuit porcelain imitating marble. It was developed around 1845 by the Staffordshire pottery manufacturer Mintons, and named after Paros, the Greek island renowned for its fine-textured, white Parian marble, used since an ...
. The science involved in the development of multiple temperature compatible coloured lead glazes is complex, but the process itself is simple (paint, fire). This majolica is the vibrantly coloured, frequently naturalistic style of earthenware developed and named Palissy ware by Minton & Co. and introduced to the public at the 1851 Great Exhibition that was mass-produced throughout Europe and America and is widely available. In English this majolica is never spelt with an ''i'' in place of the ''j''. It is, however, pronounced both with a hard ''j'' as in ''major'' and with a soft ''j'' as in ''maiolica''. In some other languages ''i'' is indeed used for both coloured glazes earthenware and for tin-glazed earthenware: French and Italian . Clay mould biscuit painted with thick coloured lead glazes simultaneously, then fired. The process requires just two stages and low skill in painting. When fired in the oven at a controlled temperature, every colour fuses to the clay body, usually without running into each other. The ceramic technology, which transformed the fortunes of Mintons, was developed by art director Leon Arnoux. File:Minton_coloured_lead_glazes_majolica_flower_vase,_shape_first_seen_1851_Exhibition.jpg, Coloured lead glazes majolica, flowers moulded in high relief. Shape first shown at the 1851 Exhibition by Minton & Co., Exhibit Number 60. File:Minton & Co. - Cherub and ribbon jardiniere.JPG, Coloured lead glazes majolica jardiniere, moulded in high relief, Mintons, second half 19th century. File:Majolica19050.JPG, Coloured lead glazes Palissy majólica, mottled glazes, applied fruits, late 19th century, Elias, Portugal File:Sarreguemines Majolica Majolique Strawberry plate.jpg, Sarreguemines Majolica Majolique plate, moulded in relief, late 19th century, France. Good example of intaglio effect. File:Sarreguemines Majolique Majolica makers mark.jpg, Sarreguemines Majolique plate, reverse. Impressed 'MAJOLICA' for English-speaking export markets. File:Majolica Canopic Jar.jpg, Majolica Canopic Jar File:Late 20th century Repro Majolica Beehive cheese keep in imitation of Mintons iconic cheese keep.jpg, Late 20th century majolica, fake Minton, running glazes, wrong colours, fake makers marks.


Tin-glazed earthenware

Tin-glazed earthenware Tin-glazed pottery is earthenware covered in lead glaze with added tin oxide which is white, shiny and opaque (see tin-glazing for the chemistry); usually this provides a background for brightly painted decoration. It has been important in I ...
having an opaque white glaze with painted
overglaze Overglaze decoration, overglaze enamelling or on-glaze decoration is a method of decorating pottery, most often porcelain, where the coloured decoration is applied on top of the already fired and glazed surface, and then fixed in a second firing ...
decoration of metal oxide enamel colour(s) is known as
maiolica Maiolica is tin-glazed pottery decorated in colours on a white background. Italian maiolica dating from the Renaissance period is the most renowned. When depicting historical and mythical scenes, these works were known as ''istoriato'' wares ...
. It reached Italy by the mid-15th century. It is frequently prone to flaking and somewhat delicate. The word is also spelt with a ''j'', ''majolica''. In contemporary England the use of ''maiolica'' spelt with an ''i'' tends to be restricted to Renaissance Italian maiolica. In the US ''majolica'' spelt with a ''j'' is used for both coloured glazes majolica and tin-glazed. In France and other countries, tin-glazed maiolica developed also as ''
faience Faience or faïence (; ) is the general English language term for fine tin-glazed pottery. The invention of a white pottery glaze suitable for painted decoration, by the addition of an oxide of tin to the slip of a lead glaze, was a major a ...
'', and in UK and Netherlands as ''
delftware Delftware or Delft pottery, also known as Delft Blue ( nl, Delfts blauw) or as delf, is a general term now used for Dutch tin-glazed earthenware, a form of faience. Most of it is blue and white pottery, and the city of Delft in the Netherlands ...
''. In France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Mexico and Portugal, tin-glazed wares are called , , , , '' talavera'', and respectively. Clay mould dipped (or coated) in tin glaze, set aside to dry, brush-painted on the unfired glaze, then fired. Process requires four separate stages and high skill in painting. File:Hispano-Moresque - Plate - Walters 482111.jpg, Hispano-Moresque maiolica, c. 1450, tin-glazed with lustre decoration,
Moorish Spain Al-Andalus DIN 31635, translit. ; an, al-Andalus; ast, al-Ándalus; eu, al-Andalus; ber, ⴰⵏⴷⴰⵍⵓⵙ, label=Berber languages, Berber, translit=Andalus; ca, al-Àndalus; gl, al-Andalus; oc, Al Andalús; pt, al-Ândalus; es, ...
. File:Dish MET sf46-85-3s1.jpg, "Earthenware, tin-glaze (Majolica), early 15th century, Italy." Metropolitan Museum NY. File:Assiette Castel Durante Lille 130108.jpg, Tin-glazed Italian Renaissance maiolica, 1550–1570. File:Rouen Musée des Antiquités majolique armoriée.jpg, Tin-glazed majolique armoriée, France, late 16th century. Italian Renaissance
Grotesque Since at least the 18th century (in French and German as well as English), grotesque has come to be used as a general adjective for the strange, mysterious, magnificent, fantastic, hideous, ugly, incongruous, unpleasant, or disgusting, and thus ...
style. File:Lisbona, piatto, 1675-99 ca..JPG, Tin-glazed Spanish maiolica, late 17th century. File:GreenPueblaBowlMAPDF.JPG, Tin-glazed 17th century '' Talavera'', also called ''majolica'', Mexico. File:Charger (AM 2124-2).jpg, Tin-glazed London Delftware charger, mid-17th century, in imitation of mid-16th century Palissy coloured glazes charger 'La Fecundite'. File:Minton Tin glazed Victoria plate California Collection 01.jpg, Rare tin-glazed Minton 'majolica' Victoria plate, brush-painted decoration on flat surface in Renaissance style, mid-19th century (1853). File:Minton Tin glazed Victoria plate California Collection REVERSE.jpg, Rare tin-glazed Minton 'majolica' Victoria plate, reverse, opaque white tin-glaze. File:Minton tin-glaze Majolica Renaissance style, reverse with date cypher and painted mark 02.jpg, Rare tin-glazed Minton Majolica, mid-19th century (1870), in imitation of Italian Renaissance istoriato style maiolica. File:Vase à décor renaissance.JPG, Tin-glazed faience, Luneville, France, late 19th century. Renaissance style. File:Faience-luneville-saint-clement.jpg, Tin-glazed
faience Faience or faïence (; ) is the general English language term for fine tin-glazed pottery. The invention of a white pottery glaze suitable for painted decoration, by the addition of an oxide of tin to the slip of a lead glaze, was a major a ...
, fine painted colours on opaque white tin glaze, France. File:Ceramica di Montelupo (riproduzione).JPG, Tin-glazed 20th century maiolica, Italy.


Majolica types, detail

Examples showing detail of coloured glazes majolica (paint, fire) versus tin-glazed majolica (dip, dry, paint, fire). File:Glaze miss thick coloured glazes no fine brush buff body.jpg, Coloured glazes (paint, fire) majolica, 'thick painted' on buff body (exposed by glaze miss), relief surfaces showing intaglio effect. File:Lead-glaze majolica (Left),Tin-glaze maiolica (Right).jpg, Left, Coloured glazes majolica, 'thick' painting on moulding in relief produces intaglio effect on green leaf. Right, tin-glazed majolica/maiolica, fine brush painting on flat surface, no intaglio effect. File:Minton colored glazes Pallisy ware Henk Rooster DETAIL.jpg, Minton coloured glazes (paint, fire) majolica, 'thick' painted coloured lead glazes on relief moulded surfaces making maximum use of intaglio effect. Naturalistic style. File:Minton colored glazes Pallisy ware Henk Rooster BASE 1875.jpg, Minton coloured glazes (paint, fire) majolica cockerel/rooster base detail, 1875 cypher, unglazed base rim (not dipped), 'thick' painted coloured glaze, not fine brush-work. File:Minton exhibit 1862 tin-glazed Italian Vase DETAIL.jpg, Minton tin-glazed (dip, dry, paint, fire) majolica, opaque white tin-glaze on flat surfaces, fine brush-painted decoration. Italian Renaissance style. File:Minton tin-glaze Majolica Renaissance style, reverse with date cypher and painted mark 01.jpg, Minton tin-glazed (dip, dry, paint, fire) majolica, opaque white tin-glaze on flat surfaces, brush-painted 'MINTON', 1860 date cypher. Italian Renaissance style. File:Tin-glazed Minton majolica artist Rochfort, coated, brush-painted.jpg, Tin-glazed Minton majolica, 1864, coated, brush-painted on flat surfaces, artist Rochfort. Possibly a combination of coloured glazes and tin-glaze decorated in enamels. File:Tin-glazed Minton majolica, date cypher 1864, coated not dipped. Brush-painted Rochford signature.jpg, Tin-glazed Minton majolica, date cypher 1864, coated not dipped, opaque white glaze, brush-painted Rochford signature (artist).


Collectors of majolica

Famous collectors of majolica include
William Randolph Hearst William Randolph Hearst Sr. (; April 29, 1863 – August 14, 1951) was an American businessman, newspaper publisher, and politician known for developing the nation's largest newspaper chain and media company, Hearst Communications. His flamboya ...
, Mortimer L. Schiff, Alfred Pringsheim, Robert Strauss, and Robert Lehman.


In contemporary fiction

* ''The Majolica Murders'' by Deborah Morgan


See also

*
Lustreware Lustreware or lusterware (respectively the spellings for British English and American English) is a type of pottery or porcelain with a metallic glaze that gives the effect of iridescence. It is produced by metallic oxides in an overglaze fini ...
*
Talavera de la Reina pottery Talavera de la Reina pottery is a traditional type of faience, or tin-glazed earthenware made in Talavera de la Reina, Toledo (Spain). The area has a long history of pottery, and dishes, jars, ceramics and other objects have been found in recen ...
*
Tin-glazing Tin-glazing is the process of giving tin-glazed pottery items a ceramic glaze that is white, glossy and opaque, which is normally applied to red or buff earthenware. Tin-glaze is plain lead glaze with a small amount of tin oxide added.Caiger-Smith ...
*
Victorian majolica Victorian majolica properly refers to two types of majolica made in the second half of the 19th century in Europe and America. Firstly, and best known, there is the mass-produced majolica decorated with coloured lead glazes, made in Britain, Eu ...


Citations


General and cited references

* Arnoux, Leon
''British Manufacturing Industries''
Gutenberg, 1877. * Atterbury, Paul, and Batkin, Maureen, ''Dictionary of Minton'', Antique Collectors' Club, 1990.


External links

{{Wiktionary, Majolica
The Majolica Society

Potteries Museum and Art Gallery, Stoke-on-Trent, UK

Victoria and Albert Museum, Majolica

The Minton Archive
"Magnificent Majolica" archive patterns for Minton tin-glazed majolica. American pottery Austrian pottery Ceramic glazes English pottery French pottery Pottery Types of pottery decoration