Sewell & Donkin
Quintal Flower Horn (Finger Vase)

Public Domain

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Maker Sewell & Donkin (English, c. 1804–1828)English, c. 1804–1828

CultureEnglish

Titles

Quintal Flower Horn (Finger Vase)

Datec. 1815–1828

Made inNewcastle upon Tyne, England

MediumLead-glazed earthenware (lusterware)

Dimensions9 × 2 5/8 × 3 11/16 in. (22.9 × 6.7 × 9.4 cm)

Credit LineThe Bayou Bend Collection, gift of Miss Ima Hogg

Object numberB.61.91

Current Location

Bayou Bend Collection and Gardens

Ceramics Study Room

On view

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Department

Bayou Bend

Object Type

CERAMICS

DescriptionThough the technique was century’s old, production of shiny, metallic lusterware began in Staffordshire near the end of the 1700s. Potters applied metallic oxides to the glazed and fired wares, and then fixed the metallic layer with another firing at a lower temperature. Platinum oxide produced silver luster; gold oxide produced gold, bronze, or copper luster effects. A preparation of gold and tin oxide yielded pink and purple. The luster could be applied freehand, with the use of stencils and resist patterns, and with mottled or blotchy effects. This quintal flower horn or finger vase with five flower-holders is arranged in a fan shape.
Provenance[Ginsburg & Levy, New York]; purchased by Miss Ima Hogg, 1961; given to MFAH, by 1966.

Exhibition History"A Present from the Staffordshire Potteries," Theta Charity Antiques Show of Houston, George R. Brown Convention Center, September 23–26, 2004.
Inscriptions, Signatures and Marks

Faintly impressed: SEWELL with star

Cataloguing data may change with further research.

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