Description:
English creamware, press-molded figure modeled as a lion with two oval holes where the ears would be, standing with his left paw on a ball; and the solid section under the lion's belly molded with a vignette of two winged putti, one riding and the other moving in front of a lion. Often called a "Medici Lion," the figure sits on a plain rectangular base that has an indented band encircling the base just above the rim; and a glazed, hollow interior with an impressed "7" mold mark on the end between the front paws. This design of lion and ball, which was taken from the marble original sculpted by Flaminio Vacca (1538-1605) in 1598 that stands on the left side of the stairs at the Loggia dei Lanzi, Florence, Italy, was reproduced in English soft-paste porcelain at Bow in the early 1750s and in earthenwares. John Wood includes in his 1786 sales ledger: '"Image Toys [...] 1 Pair Large Lyons Gilt" sold "8 Mar 1786 to Mr. John Edwards." However these figures are difficult to attribute since several factories appear to have been producing the subject and possibly using the same molds. Overglaze enameled examples are known too.
Subjects:
Pottery; glaze (coating by location) Link to share this object record:
https://museums.fivecolleges.edu/detail.php?t=objects&type=ext&id_number=HD+2006.33.92 |
