Previous image 1 2 3 4 5 6 / 6 Next image

Unknown Maker, Italian

Apothecary Jar (Orciuolo)
Now On View

Maker

Unknown Maker, Italian

Culture

Italian

Title

Apothecary Jar (Orciuolo)

Year

ca. 1419-1460

Medium

Materials/Techniques

Techniques

Materials

tin-glazed earthenware

Geography

Place Made: (Probably Florence)

Dimensions

23.5 x 25.4 x 20.3 cm (9 1/4 x 10 x 8 inches) (maximum)

Credit / Object Number

Credit

Museum Works of Art Fund

Object Number

43.351

Type

Publications

Exhibition History

European Galleries
Sep 02, 2017

Label copy

Used to store drugs or herbs in pharmacies, apothecary jars were designed so that their rims could be covered with parchment or leather and banded with cord to protect their contents. Intended to simulate Asian porcelain and known as maiolica, this earthenware jar was coated with a white leaded glaze made opaque by adding tin and decorated with metallic oxides. The hare surrounded by oak leaves and berries was rendered in cobalt and manganese, which turned blue and purple when fired in the kiln. Hare’s blood, like oak leaves and bark, had been used for medicinal purposes since ancient times.

Image use

The images on this website can enable discovery and collaboration and support new scholarship, and we encourage their use.

Public Domain This object is in the Public Domain and available under a CC0 1.0 Universal (CC0 1.0) Public Domain Dedication

Tombstone

Unknown Maker, Italian
Apothecary Jar (Orciuolo), ca. 1419-1460
Earthenware with tin-glaze and enamels
23.5 x 25.4 x 20.3 cm (9 1/4 x 10 x 8 inches) (maximum)
Museum Works of Art Fund 43.351

To request new photography, please send an email to imagerequest@risd.edu and include your name and the object's accession number.