Images(7)

Chimney Vase

Date1700-1710

OriginEngland, Bristol or London

MediumTin-glazed earthenware (delft)

DimensionsOverall: 6 3/8 × 5 3/8in. (16.2 × 13.7cm)

Credit LineMuseum Purchase, C. Thomas Hamlin III Fund and Partial Gift of Troy D. Chappell

Object number2022-14

DescriptionThrown vase of baluster shape: spreading circular foot rises to tall ovoid baluster body with a tight neck; a short vertical collar over the shoulder with pronounced bulbous girdle. Painted allover in red, blue, and bluish green with stylized flowers, geometric patterns, birds, and starburst motifs.
Label TextThis exquisite and very rare chimney vase was probably originally part of a garniture, although at this early date, single vases in British delft are known, as well. Few polychrome examples survive intact from the 1700-1710 period and this example decorated in red, blue, and green stands out as an important example. Fragments of similarly decorated objects turn up in Virginia and Massachusetts and "chimney vases" are found in Americans wills and inventories within the first quarter of the 18th century. Made in London or Bristol, examples of this pattern with its stylized floral and bird motifs turn up in the London archaeological record, as well, and help tell the layered stories of consumption and trade.