Description:
A pair of garniture or spill vases (part of a larger garniture of five pieces) in the shape of identical tree stumps with sheep with curled wool fleece seated at their bases and a pair of birds on each side of the tree stump seated on a cut branch and a large open mouth for spills for lighting a fire or dried flowers, the stump is decorated with high temperature underglaze oxide colors of green, brown, and yellow, and the rim of the stump is outlined in underglaze blue, the sheep is painted with a yellow color and spots of brown, the lower edge of the stump has alternating brushwork in brown and yellow.
Label Text:
This is a rare, complete example of a mantelpiece garniture – typically a set of five ceramic vases that “garnished” the mantelpiece. These pottery vases could have held dried flowers or spills for lighting candles or the fireplace. Although decorative pieces weren’t a major part of his business, the 1819 inventory of the shop of Boston china merchant Horace Collamore included, “[1 pr] stumps with sheep 6/.”
Link to share this object record:
https://museums.fivecolleges.edu/detail.php?t=objects&type=ext&id_number=HD+2023.23.1.1 |
