Covered Jar

The snail-shaped handles on this jar speak to the fashion for ceramics inspired by the work of French Renaissance potter Bernard Palissy (1510-1590) that swept Europe in the second half of the 19th century. Rather than copying the aquatic themes realized in the forms of molded fish, amphibians, shells, and crustaceans on the pieces associated with the Palissy style, the decoration of this jar evokes a woodland landscape. This piece shares characteristics not only with Palissy-inspired works made in Portugal but also with the “rustic” style works modeled in the shape of logs and tree trunks associated with French makers. In England, manufacturers like Minton also created works in this rustic mode, decorated with ferns and foxgloves, that celebrated the native species found within the understory of the English forest.

The overall form, wide mouth, and domed cover of this jar suggests that it was made to store tobacco. In the 19th-century home, tobacco jars, or humidors, were among the varied suite of objects, including spittoons, ashtrays and smoking stands, pipes, smoking jackets and caps, that were designed especially for tobacco consumption. Majolica manufacturers throughout Europe created vessels that catered to the rituals of taking tobacco. In this period, smoking was considered to be a masculine habit and the rustic decoration of this jar was likely conceived with the smoking room or library in mind. This example is visually similar to surviving tobacco jars marked with the initials of French maker Thomas Sergent, and is likely of French manufacture. Further research, guided by the mark on the bottom of the vessel, could reveal the maker.

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Provenance

Provenance (from the French provenir, 'to come from/forth') is the chronology of the ownership, custody, or location of a historical object. Learn more about provenance at the Walters.

Collection of Deborah and Philip English, Baltimore, by 1998 [date and mode of acquisition unknown]; given to the Walters Art Museum, 2025.