Broad-rimmed bowl with the sacrifice of the Greeks at Aulis and the omen of the serpent devouring nine birds, interpreted by the priest Calchas; arms of Anne de Montmorency
1535
Ceramist


West Building Ground Floor, Gallery G10
Artwork overview
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Medium
tin-glazed earthenware (maiolica)
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Credit Line
-
Dimensions
overall (diameter): 25.6 cm (10 1/16 in.)
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Accession
1942.9.346
Artwork history & notes
Provenance
Presumably made for Anne de Montmorency [d. 1567].[1] Perhaps in the collection of Pierre Crozat the Younger [1661-1740], Paris; by inheritance to his nephew, Louis-François Crozat, marquis du Châtel [1691-1750], Paris; (sale, Paris, 14 December 1750).[2] Probably De Monville; probably (his sale, Paris, 7-10 March 1837, no. 23).[3] Baron Achille Seillière, Château de Mello (Oise); (sale, Paris, 5-10 May 1890, no. 65).[4] Maurice Kann [1839-1906], Paris, by 1896;[5] purchased 1908 as part of the Kann collection by (Duveen Brothers, Inc., London, New York, and Paris); purchased February 1910 by Peter A. B. Widener, Elkins Park, Pennsylvania; inheritance from the Estate of Peter A. B. Widener by gift through power of appointment of Joseph E. Widener, Elkins Park, 1942.
[1] The arms decorating the bowl are a slightly inaccurate rendering (the cross should not be couped) of those of Anne de Montmorency [1493-1567], Grand Maître and later Constable of France.
[2] Description sommaire des statues, figures, bustes, vases...provenans du Cabinet de feu M. Crozat (Paris, 14 December 1750 and following days), 43-45: "Faïences faites en Italie au commencement du seizième siècle par Guido Durantino de la ville d'Urbin...Quelques unes de celles qu'on voit ici ont été faites pour les seigneurs de l'illustre maison de Montmorency." There is no specific indication of the pieces that were from the Montmorency set, but nos. 209-212 were eighteen assiettes, which may have included most or all of the plates listed above.
[3] Catalogue d'objets d'art et de curiosité de la renaissance ...composant la collection de M. De Monville (Paris, 7-10 March 1837), no. 23, probably this piece (plat rond à sujet: le serpent d'aerain; avec écusson aux armes de Montmorency).
[4] Catalogue des objets d'art et de haute curiosité et de riche ameublement provenant de l'importante collection de feu M. le Baron Achille Seillière au Château de Mello (Paris, 5-10 May 1890), no. 65.
[5] Fortnum 1896, 202.
Associated Names
Exhibition History
1982
Sixteenth-Century Italian Maiolica; Selections from the Arthur M. Sackler Collection and the National Gallery of Art's Widener Collection, National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C., 1982-1983, no. 47, repro.
1995
Le dressoir du Prince: Services d'apparat à la Renaissance, Musée national de la Renaissance, Ecouen, France, 1995-1996, no. 30, repro.
Bibliography
1896
Fortnum 1896, 202.
1935
Inventory of the Objects d'Art at Lynnewood Hall, Elkins Park, Pennsylvania, The Estate of the Late P.A.B. Widener. Philadelphia, 1935: 65.
1942
Works of Art from the Widener Collection. Foreword by David Finley and John Walker. National Gallery of Art, Washington, 1942: 14, as Urbino (Maestro Guido of Castel Durante), about 1530-1540.
1983
Wilson, Carolyn C. Renaissance Small Bronze Sculpture and Associated Decorative Arts at the National Gallery of Art. Washington, 1983: 122, no. 5, repro.
1987
Newman, Michael. "Le service de majolique d'Anne de Montmorency Connétable de France." L'estampille (Dijon) 204 (June 1987): 61, no. 13.
Mallet 1987, 297, no. 15.
1988
Bojani, Gian Carlo. Ceramiche nelle Marche. Bergamo, 1988: 130, repro.
1989
Rasmussen Jörg. The Robert Lehman Collection, 10. Italian Majolica. New York and Princeton, 1989: 157, 259, fig. 91.9.
1993
Distelberger, Rudolf, Alison Luchs, Philippe Verdier, and Timonthy H. Wilson. Western Decorative Arts, Part I: Medieval, Renaissance, and Historicizing Styles including Metalwork, Enamels, and Ceramics. The Collections of the National Gallery of Art Systematic Catalogue. Washington, D.C., 1993: 219-222, color repro. 220.
Inscriptions
center reverse: Sachrifitio d Gre / ci & de lo augurio / d Calcant / In botega d mo Guido / durantino In Urbino [The sacrifice of the Greeks and the prophecy of Calchas. In the workshop of Master Guido Durantino in Urbino]
Markings
Kann collection labels 22, 192; Seillière sale label: "65"; handwritten label: "30" (now in object folder, NGA Curatorial Records)
Wikidata ID
Q62131103