POSSIBLY ZULOAGA, TOLEDO, SPAIN, 20TH CENTURY

Toledo ware is unique and easily recognisable, with its regal black steel base and delicate gold. It remains an important part of the culture of Toledo, with much of the original technique being maintained in modern manufacture. Indeed, ten years’ apprenticeship is required to fully master the craft, which is still being produced today.

The technique demands that a gold wire, or sheet, be laid out on a lightly engraved steel surface. A similar example to this lot is in the Khalili Collection (ZUL 9), illustrated further in Lavin (1997) cat. 91.