Antique Belgian Art Deco Hand-Painted Pitcher Boch

Product Details

Item #:

5-376-0

Dimensions (inches):

7.25H x 6.25W x 4.50D

Comment:

A wonderful hand-painted ceramic Pitcher from Belgium dating to 1920 in the Art Deco style and bearing the mark of Boch La Louviere.

Origin:

Belgium

Date:

1920

Material:

CERAMIC

The word ceramic originates from the ancient Greek word keramikos, meaning potter's clay. The practice of making ceramics has been in existence for nearly 30,000 years. Clay, the primary ingredient for any ceramic, is primarily made of aluminum silicate, which is a malleable soil from crumbling rocks. Ceramics can be grouped according to the type of clay used, the temperature at which the clay is fired, and the duration of the firing.

Condition

Condition:

GOOD

In overall good condition. Antique and vintage items by their very nature show normal wear to finish and miscellaneous scratches, nicks, and dings due to age and use. As we define 'good condition' relative to the stated age of the piece, we would expect to see 'character marks' consistent with that age and could include nicks or dings to a wooden, metal, enamel, or chalkware object, wear to a painted surface, speckling on a mirror, crazing, wear to gilding, or manufacturing glaze skips in ceramic finish, wear to a label, and some original decorative trim may be missing. If ceramic/porcelain restoration has been done, it is of museum-quality so that it is hardly discernible and would be specifically mentioned in the listing. 'Good condition' could include very small fleabite chips or very small hairline cracks in any glass, ceramic, or marble item, but these would be specifically mentioned in the listing.

Item Specifics:

Shows significant wear to the gilding due to age and use.

Shipping

Free Shipping:

Free shipping only applies within the Contiguous 48 United States and this item will be shipped via USPS Parcel Post. Shipments may occasionally be upgraded to UPS or FedEx Ground service. All shipments include insurance.

Additional Information

Mark:

Boch Keramis / Boch Freres / Royal Boch (1841 - 1998)

Victor and Eugene Boch founded Boch Freres Keramis in La Louviere, Belgium in 1841. From the end of the 19th century until 1920, Boch Keramis produced beautiful hand-painted tin-glazed blue & white and polychrome Delftware. The hand-painted mark from this period features a backwards k overlapping a large B.

Boch Keramis stopped production of Delftware in 1920, although a few transfer printed designs continued to be made using a printed Boch mark that features the words Made in Belgium Boch Fes La Louviere Fabrication Belge inside a circle superimposed over stylized leaves. Boch assumed production of Delftware again in 1969 when the company purchased the defunct Royal Sphinx. From 1969 until 1979, Boch produced blue & white Delftware for Royal Sphinx and used a printed mark that featured a circle with the words Made for Royal Sphinx by Boch inside the circle and with the Sphinx Delfts underneath. A mass of leaves and flowers surround the circle and Delfts. In 1973, the Boch name changed to Boch Limited and the company struggled financially through the 1980s. In 1985, the name changed again to the Manufacture Royale Boch, which featured a new printed mark similar to that used for Royal Sphinx, but instead showed MLR in the middle of the circle. The company changed hands again in 1989 and was renamed Royal Boch, however the production of Delftware ended in 1998.

Reference: Van Hook, Stephen J., Discovering Dutch Delftware: Modern Delft and Makkum Pottery

(Alexandria, VA: Glen Park Press, 1998).

Style:

Majolica MAJOLICA, FAIENCE, AND DERUTA

The invention of a pottery glaze for decorative use with the addition of tin oxide to the slip of a lead glaze occurred in Persia before the 9th century. Tin glaze turns into opaque white enamel when fired. Majolica and faience are synonymous terms, which refer to hand-painted earthenware pottery on which a tin glaze has been used.

The term majolica has its origin in the name of the Spanish island, Majorca (Maiorca), which was a transshipping point for tin-glazed wares being transported from the kingdom of Aragon in Spain to Italy in the 14th and 15th centuries. This type of pottery drew inspiration from the Moorish influence in Spain. Ships arriving from Majorca landed at the port of Pisa, so it is easy to trace on a map how the production of majolica spread through Tuscany to the Umbria region with its rich deposits of clay in the hills around Orvieto, Gubbio and Deruta, and to Faenza in the Emilia Romagna area. The term faience is the French word for the city of Faenza, one of the major producers of majolica for export as early as the 15th century. Eventually the production of majolica, or faience, spread to France,

Germany, Holland, Portugal, and England as well. Plateel is the Dutch word which means Majolica.

Italian majolica, or faience, reached its zenith in the 15th and 16th centuries, although it is still in production today.

Several styles of decoration developed over the centuries and different cities had their own unique interpretations. Quick brush strokes and the Moorish influence of interwoven leaves, flowers, arabesques, birds and other animals are hallmarks of Italian majolica. Depictions of beautiful courtly ladies and gentlemen were popular, as well as the styles known as Ricco, Rafaellesco, Arabesco, and Gallo.

The Ricco style dates from the 15th century and is one of the most classic and enduring majolica styles. It is also known as Ricco Deruta or just Deruta, and is recognized by the use of blue, orange and yellow and a stylized fleur di lis with many swirls.

The Rafaellesco style dates from the 16th century and is attributed to the Italian Renaissance master artist, Raphael, who created the stylized dragon as a symbol of good luck and fair winds (notice the puffs of wind coming from the dragon's mouth) for the seagoing merchants of the era. Bright yellow and blue are the predominant colors.

Birds are the central motif of both the Arabesco and Gallo styles. The Arabesco style features a dove on an abstract background and was commonly painted in blue, red, green, or in polychrome. The Gallo, or Rooster, style originated in Orvieto and features the symbol of good luck in Italy, the crowing rooster. Like the Arabesco style, the Gallo style is found in blue, red, green, or in polychrome.

Object:

Pitcher

The Fine Print

Because EuroLux Antiques maintains its own website and lists on other online sites, while also operating a physical store location in Newberry, South Carolina, we reserve the right to end any listing early if it has not been purchased outright or no bids have been placed upon the item. On occasion, a piece listed on a website may no longer be available. We do our best to maintain the accuracy of our inventory records but we often have customers interested in the same item at the same time. In those cases, we defer to the customer who placed the earlier order. We apologize in advance by any inconvenience this may cause. Because of this, we encourage all of our buyers to purchase the item as quickly as possible so that your treasured find doesn't sell elsewhere to someone else. Happy browsing and thanks! Aimee & Greg Talbot at EuroLux Antiques.

Terms & Conditions

All Buyers purchasing any of EuroLux Antiques listings acknowledge that they have completely read and agree to all terms and conditions stated in EuroLux Antiques'

Complete Terms and Conditions.

EuroLux Antiques has painstakingly developed these policies and procedures to protect the Buyer and EuroLux Antiques, and not reading these policies will not