Artwork Page for Bella Donna Charger

Details / Information for Bella Donna Charger

Bella Donna Charger

c. 1520–30

Italy, Papal States, Deruta

Medium
tin-glazed earthenware with yellow and blue lustre (maiolica)
Measurements
Diameter: 8.6 x 41.3 cm (3 3/8 x 16 1/4 in.)
Credit Line
Purchase from the J. H. Wade Fund 1923.1096
Public Domain
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Location
118 Italian Renaissance
Print
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Did You Know?

Scholars believe that chargers such as these were given as marriage gifts or in memory of someone who had died.

Description

Ceremonial plates decorated with a bella donna (beautiful woman) feature half-length portraits of a young woman surrounded by scrolled banners. Many bella donna plates were informed by the frescos of Renaissance painters Pietro Perugino and Pinturicchio.
A circular ceramic plate depicts a woman in profile facing left with a downward gaze. She wears a yellow dress with puffed sleeves and a matching headpiece. Behind her, a twining banner bears the text "BELLA BILIA" and "IV." The wide rim features alternating sections of yellow foliate patterns and radiating blue and yellow stripes. The composition employs a bold palette of deep blue and bright yellow over a cream-white background.

Bella Donna Charger

c. 1520–30

Italy, Papal States, Deruta

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