Igniting the passion of mid 19th-century power couple and taste-makers, Queen Victoria and her beloved Prince Albert, the richly glazed and textured earthenware known as majolica flourished among the upper crust and middle class alike. With its whimsical and often pastoral designs alongside exuberant color palettes and fine detailing, majolica was the height of fashion in Victorian homes. 

The love affair with majolica continues even today, and with this Antique French Majolica Floral Pitcher it's certainly easy to see why. A lucky find at market, this exquisitely romantic jug features a lovely floral motif articulated in sweet tones of green and soft pink, with touches of blue and sunny yellow. Draped in a rich brown glaze, an articulated basketweave pattern encircles the lower perimeter of the sprightly jug while a nautical anchor and chain emerge to dance around upper rim. At once stately and romantic, this handsome pitcher is sure to make a charming focal point on the sideboard or vanity with seasonal blooms or employed for extra drama within a creative tablescape.

Strictly one of a kind and subject to prior sale. In very good antique condition with signs of use commensurate with age. 9"H x 9" at widest point.

Learn More About Majolica

Using glazing techniques developed in the Middle East during the 3rd century, combined with whimsical forms originating in 8th century Spain, Victorian Majolica was born in England during the latter half of the 19th century.  As the Industrial Revolution created a middle class with more disposable income, Herbert Minton - a potter in Staffordshire, England, saw the opportunity to introduce new trends for the English home. After decades of white ironstone, blue and white china and other monochromatic stoneware, Minton recognized a penchant for something colorful and new. 

Joining forces with French glazing expert, Leon Arnoux, the two visionary ceramicists, introduced majolica at the Crystal Palace Exhibition in London in 1851.  Queen Victoria and the public at large became instantly enamored with this new highly glazed, whimsical ware.  For the next 40 years, Victorian majolica held a position of prominence at most of the major international exhibitions on both sides of the Atlantic.  Large and small potteries, in England and on the European continent and later in the United States, began producing majolica.  By the 1870s, majolica was a household word and in wide use, both on the dining table and in the garden.