An Italian maiolica dated istoriato dish, 1545, probably Francesco Durantino, perhaps in the workshop of Guido di Merlino

An Italian maiolica dated istoriato dish, 1545, probably Francesco Durantino, perhaps in the workshop of Guido di Merlino

painted with `The Continence of Scipio' with a maiden brought before Scipio, surrounded by Roman soldiers before a tent, within a band of Vitruvian scrolls painted en grisaille, the border with satyr, figures and putti among scrolls within a yellow rim, the reverse inscribed ome d nãzi a Scipio / re africano fumenata / la moglie di luzio pricipe / d celtebari, above the date 1545, within concentric yellow lines
diameter 11⅞in., 30 cm.
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Plat en majolique italienne "a istoriato", daté 1545, probablement Francesco Durantino, provenant probablement de l'atelier de Guido di Merlino

diameter 11⅞in., 30 cm.

Condition Report:
Some typical glaze loss to the edge of rim. A short hairline crack measuring 5 centimeters located at eleven o’clock. A D-shaped section of rim broken into two pieces and re-stuck measuring overall 21 centimeters wide and 5,5 centimeters at deepest point, with an associated hairline crack of 7,5 centimeters. Another D-shaped section of rim re-stuck, 15 centimeters wide by 5 centimeters deep with areas of infill, with an associated crack 12,5 centimeters long. Four smaller associated pieces of rim also re-stuck measuring overall approximately 10 centimeters wide and between 2 and 5 centimeters deep. The front surface in overall good appearance with the restorations barely visible but left visible on the underside.

Catalogue Note:
The Continence of Scipio is an episode from the life of the Roman general Scipio Africanus whilst on campaign in Spain during the Second Punic War as recounted by Livy. Scipio refused a generous ransom for a young female prisoner, returning her to her fiancé Allucius, who in turn became a supporter of Rome. It was a popular illustration of mercy during warfare.

The design of the present dish is related to the drawings of Battista Franco as illustrated by T. Wilson, Ceramic Art of the Italian Renaissance, 1987, pp. 128-9, pl. 195 and fig. xxviii and discussed by T. Clifford and J.V.G. Mallet, `Battista Franco as a Designer for Maiolica', Burlington Magazine, no. 789, June 1976, pp. 387-410. According to Giorgio Vasari, Franco was commissioned by Duke Guidobaldo II to create sketches for maiolica services working between about 1545 and 1551 and the present dish is possibly from a lost design by him.

Maiolica executed to designs by Franco in the workshop of Guido Durantino have been attributed to the potter and painter, Camillo Gatti, a pupil of Franco, see J.V.G. Mallet, `In Botega di Maestro Guido Durantino in Urbino', Burlington Magazine, no. 129, May 1987, pp. 292-4. The hand of Francesco Durantino seems a more likely attribution for the present dish, both stylistically and when comparing the handwritten inscription to other attributed pieces, for example the plate illustrated by T. Wilson, Italian Maiolica and Europe, Oxford, 2017, pp. 168-9, no. 65.

Provenance:
Christie's London, 5 July 2012, lot 84.

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Christie's Londres, 5 juillet 2012, lot 84.