A DERUTA MAIOLICA DISH

CIRCA 1530-50

Details

A DERUTA MAIOLICA DISH
CIRCA 1530-50
Painted with a bust-length portrait of a Roman Emperor, flanked by a scrolling banner inscribed NON V/ALE. SA/PERE. A CHI A. F/ORTNA / CONTA flanked by flowering tendrils, the brown-glazed reverse with blue scrolls (rim cut down, cracked and restored with associated in-filling)
11 in. (28 cm.) diam.

Provenance

Anonymous sale; Bonhams, London, 8 December 2010, lot 8.

Brought to you by

Victoria Drummond

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Lot Essay

The inscription translates as 'Knowledge is worth nothing to those who depend on Fortune'. The portrait on this dish is probably a standardised representation of a Roman emperor and may be derived from Roman medals and coins. A series of engravings of Roman emperors in profile by Marcantonio Raimondi could have also provided inspiration, see Timothy Wilson, Italian Maiolica of the Renaissance, Milan, 1996, pp. 78-79, cat. no. 035. See the similarly decorated dish sold in these Rooms; ' Au Bord de la Mer, Private Collections from St. Tropez, Cap d'Antibes and a Swiss Villa', 17 April 2013, lot 288.

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