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Lot Essay
Born in Rome in 1691, Bartolomeo Terchi worked with his brother, Antonio, at the San Quirico d'Orcia potteries outside Siena from 1717. In 1735, under patronage of the Giustiniani family of Rome, Terchi’s maiolica manufactory was transferred from San Quirico (Siena) to Bassano Romano in Viterbo, due north of Rome. Terchi died there in 1766.
The present pair of vases are from a small corpus of stunning Baroque-inspired pieces sculptural in shape, painted overall with istoriato scenes by Terchi in his signature style, recalling that of Renaissance maiolica but more informed by what was then contemporary art – 17th and early 18th century mythological, biblical and historical painting - the handles, rims and feet gilt in imitation of gilt-bronze mounts.
His inspiration for the istoriato decoration on the present pair was the frescoes of Annibale Carracci for the Palazzo Farnese in Rome, in particular those for the Grand Salon, the ceiling of which is covered with scenes from The Loves of the Gods.
Many of the extant examples of Terchi’s production for the luxury market of the early 18th century are today found in the Collezzione Chigi Saracini, Rome. For an extensive illustrated discussion of these pieces, see Carmen Ravanelli Guidotti, Collezione Chigi Saracini: Maioliche Italiane, Florence, 1992, cat. nos 60-78. For a pair of virtually identical vases in the Collezione De Ciccio retained in the Museo di Capodimonte, Naples, see Elena Pelizzoni and Giovanna Zanchi, La maiolica dei Terchi, Florence, 1982, p. 50, no. 29.
The attribution of the present vases to the hand of Bartolomeo Terchi can be firmly confirmed by a comparison with the vases in the Collezione Chigi Saracini, many of which are signed Bar: Terchi. Romano. Although equally luxurious in decoration, none have the style and panache of the present pair, arguably Terchi's masterwork.
The present pair of vases are from a small corpus of stunning Baroque-inspired pieces sculptural in shape, painted overall with istoriato scenes by Terchi in his signature style, recalling that of Renaissance maiolica but more informed by what was then contemporary art – 17th and early 18th century mythological, biblical and historical painting - the handles, rims and feet gilt in imitation of gilt-bronze mounts.
His inspiration for the istoriato decoration on the present pair was the frescoes of Annibale Carracci for the Palazzo Farnese in Rome, in particular those for the Grand Salon, the ceiling of which is covered with scenes from The Loves of the Gods.
Many of the extant examples of Terchi’s production for the luxury market of the early 18th century are today found in the Collezzione Chigi Saracini, Rome. For an extensive illustrated discussion of these pieces, see Carmen Ravanelli Guidotti, Collezione Chigi Saracini: Maioliche Italiane, Florence, 1992, cat. nos 60-78. For a pair of virtually identical vases in the Collezione De Ciccio retained in the Museo di Capodimonte, Naples, see Elena Pelizzoni and Giovanna Zanchi, La maiolica dei Terchi, Florence, 1982, p. 50, no. 29.
The attribution of the present vases to the hand of Bartolomeo Terchi can be firmly confirmed by a comparison with the vases in the Collezione Chigi Saracini, many of which are signed Bar: Terchi. Romano. Although equally luxurious in decoration, none have the style and panache of the present pair, arguably Terchi's masterwork.