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Brightly colored circular dish with scene of tree, city, figures, and man with deer head

In the foreground of this painted dish is a man in a short blue robe facing away from the viewer. Rather than a human head, he has a long snout and low ears. Facing his feet are a pair of orange dogs. To the left is a rectangular pool of water full of several nude figures. They face the deer-headed man. In the background is a very tall tree, a large river, a boulder, and a city that stretches all the way to the horizon. The pigments in this painting are vibrant, including bright orange, lush green, and deep blue.

Gallery Text

Private patronage of art increased during the sixteenth century, significantly expanding the range of possible subject matter. The new themes often derived from classical models and displayed a naturalism that reflected the growing influence of humanism. Though no longer unequivocally Christian in content, these objects nevertheless continued to address moral issues and to concern themselves with the nature of the soul. For example, the salt cellars, which illustrate the labors of Hercules, are generally a metaphor for the triumph of virtue. With the growth of a mercantile economy and the consequent increase in lay patronage, figures of vanity and death also became popular subjects, as is evidenced by objects in this case.

Pottery decorated with subjects derived from classical literature (often, as in this case, from Ovid’s Metamorphoses) represents the application of the revival of antiquity to the decorative arts. Urbino was one important center for the production of such istoriato ware in the mid-sixteenth century. The hunter, Actaeon, coming across Diana and her nymphs while bathing, is transformed into a stag, pursued and killed by his own dogs.

Identification and Creation

Object Number
1990.67
People
Unidentified Artist
Title
Low-Footed dish with Scene of Diana and Actaeon
Classification
Vessels
Work Type
vessel
Date
c. 1540-1545
Places
Creation Place: Europe, Italy, Marches, Urbino
Culture
Italian
Persistent Link
https://hvrd.art/o/222156

Location

Location
Level 2, Room 2540, European Art, 13th–16th century, The Renaissance
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Physical Descriptions

Medium
Tin-glazed earthenware
Technique
Maiolica
Dimensions
26 cm (10 1/4 in.)

Acquisition and Rights

Credit Line
Harvard Art Museums/Fogg Museum, Gift of Edward W. Forbes, by exchange
Accession Year
1990
Object Number
1990.67
Division
European and American Art
Contact
am_europeanamerican@harvard.edu
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Publication History

  • Judith A. Neiswander, "Selections from the Ceramics Collection of the Fogg Art Museum, Harvard University", Ars Ceramica, Wedgwood Society of New York (Bronx, NY, 1991), no. 8, p. 36, repr. as fig. 1

Exhibition History

  • 32Q: 2540 Renaissance, Harvard Art Museums, Cambridge, 11/16/2014 - 01/01/2050

Verification Level

This record was created from historic documentation and may not have been reviewed by a curator; it may be inaccurate or incomplete. Our records are frequently revised and enhanced. For more information please contact the Division of European and American Art at am_europeanamerican@harvard.edu