Della Robbia Ware.

It is not known whether the above celebrated artist invented the opaque white stanniferous glaze with which he covered his works, but he was the first to use it successfully in the architectural decoration known as “Della Robbia” ware. He succeeded, however, in colouring his white glaze, thereby greatly enlarging its usefulness for exterior and interior decoration. The colours he obtained were blue, yellow, green, violet, and a copper tint. His sculptured terra-cottas glazed with these colours became objects of great request. He obtained more orders than he could execute himself, and so he employed his two brothers, who were sculptors, to assist him. His nephew Andrea, after himself was the most famous in this kind of work, and produced, like his uncle Luca, groups of figures in panels, single figures, tabernacles, friezes, &c.

Three sons of Andrea, Giovanni, Luca, and Girolamo, worked in the same material, and Girolamo was invited by François I^er to decorate the Château de Madrid with “Della Robbia” ware, representing the “Metamorphoses” of Ovid, which was done at a cost equal to £15,530.

=Fig. 13.—Medallion in Enamelled Earthenware, by Luca della Robbia. (S.K.M.)

In the Kensington Museum there are many specimens of Della Robbia ware, among which are a series of twelve circular medallions in enamelled terra-cotta, representing the twelve months of the year, one of which is illustrated at Fig. 13. The bas-relief of the Virgin and Child (Fig. 14) is likely to be a work of one of the Della Robbia family.

Fig. 14.—Virgin and Child. School of Della Robbia. (S.K.M.)