Plate 1727

This tin-glazed earthenware plate was made by the De Metaale Pot factory in Delft, sometime between 1670 and 1775. Its milky white surface and hand-painted cobalt blue decoration are characteristic of Delftware. To make it, artisans would have prepared the clay, shaped the plate on a wheel, and then applied an opaque glaze, made with tin oxide. The painter would then apply the decoration freehand, and the object would have been fired at a relatively low temperature. Delftware like this was part of a huge transformation in global trade. It was made to imitate Chinese porcelain, which was in high demand in Europe, but hard to come by. Factories in the Netherlands began to mimic the look of porcelain, and this plate with its intricate design, is a great example. The central image shows a fountain, framed by cherubs and ornate floral and geometric patterns. This was a kind of ‘proto-global’ style, referencing an international market, and the industrialization of skilled crafts. We should remember the many hands, and the global forces, that went into its making.