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Drug Jar (Wet)

CultureItalian
Dateca. 1480
MediumTin-glazed earthenware (maiolica)
DimensionsOverall: 9 × 6 × 7 inches (22.86 × 15.24 × 17.78 cm)
Credit LineGift of Robert Lehman
Object number43-39/4
On View
On view
Gallery Location
  • 108
DescriptionCaffagiolo jar with spout and handle. Blue-ground decorated in cobalt blue with bands of orange.Gallery Label
Pharmacies were great patrons of maiolica potteries from the early fifteenth century onward. Usually housed in monastic hospitals or royal residences, pharmacies often commissioned large sets of matching jars which were displayed in rows on shelves around the walls.  Each jar was marked with the name of the drug it contained.  Spouted jars were used to store and dispense liquid medicine. Early examples were closed by tying parchment over the top.
Provenance

With V. & L. Benguiat, New York, by November 10, 1932;

 

Purchased at their sale, Rare Old Velvets…Italian Majolica, American Art Association Anderson Galleries, New York, November 12, 1932, lot 442, by Robert Lehman (1891-1969), New York, no. C37, 1932-1943 [1];

 

His gift, through Harold Woodbury Parsons, to The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, Kansas City, MO, 1943.

 

NOTES:

 

[1] Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, Robert Lehman Papers, box 82, folder 13.

Information about a particular artwork or image, including provenance information, is based upon historic information and may not be currently accurate or complete. Research on artwork and images is an ongoing process, and the information about a particular artwork or image may not reflect the most current information available to the Museum. If you notice a mistake or have additional information about a particular artwork or image, please e-mail provenance@nelson-atkins.org.


Drug Jar
mid-16th century
43-39/3
Drug Jar
ca. 1525-1550
43-39/1
Drug Jar (Wet)
1639
33-1571 A,B
Jar with Two Handles
1510-1530
43-39/2
Plate
ca. 1525
46-88
Plate
early 16th century
43-39/10
Dish
early 16th century
43-39/11
Plate
1490-1500
45-55/1
Dish
Maestro Domenego da Venezia
1560-1570
43-39/9
Dish
ca. 1540
43-39/7
Plate
ca. 1530
45-55/3