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Lot Essay
An awe-inspiring work of hand craftsmanship by one of the preeminent Western artisans of the nineteenth century, this monumental vase in the Moorish taste was almost certainly, and most appropriately, created for one of the Victorian period’s greatest patrons of the Decorative Arts, Alfred Morrison.
THE ‘MORESQUE MANNER’
The inspiration behind the design of this spectacular vase may be attributed to an amalgamation of influences typified by the burst of creativity and originality of leading nineteenth-century European artisans. The principal artist, Plácido Zuloaga (d. 1910), would have certainly been familiar with the catalogue of ‘Moresque’ designs illustrated in Owen Jones’s Grammar of Ornament (1856) as seen on the arrangement of motifs to the neck of the present vase. However as a native of Spain, Zuloaga would have also been familiar with these historic motifs himself and the vase is clearly inspired by the medieval Spanish Nasrid, so-called 'Alhambra' vases, footless amphora-like urns with wing-like handles dating from the thirteenth to fifteenth centuries. Like the present vase, they are believed to have been intended for decorative rather than practical use and the most celebrated example of the artistic form dated circa 1400 is in the collection of the Museo Nacional de Arte Hispanomusulmán, Grenada (inv. R.E.290).
Made of ceramic and traditionally painted in lusterware, the Nasrid-period vases were often decorated with a band of Arabic inscriptions below a narrow neck with vertical repeating designs. Here Zuloaga references the traditional form, the neck encircled by upright geometric and foliate motifs, while the shimmering damascene alludes the soft lustre of the ceramic glaze and the band across the body of the vase decorated with undulating floral vines which recall the forms of Arabic calligraphy. These vegetal designs do not appear to specifically recall known motifs on ‘Alhambra’ vases, but rather those found in another great Moorish art and architecture. The anthemion and palmettes are reminiscent of those found in the Alhambra’s Court of the Lions and the cartouches which frame the designs to the body of the vase divide the decoration in a manner similar to the blind arcades typically seen on Moorish walls. Such thoughtful and intentional details not only defined Zuloaga as a great artisan, but also illustrate his appreciation for the generations of artistry which came before him upon which he built his reputation.
PLÀCIDO ZULOAGA – AN OBVIOUS TALENT
Born into a family of Spanish Royal Armourers, Plácido Zuloaga went on to become one of the greatest masters of the art of damascening, praised in his day as 'a second Benvenuto Cellini'. His first recognition as an artist came in 1855 when, together with his father Eusebio, he inspired the following comments for work shown at the Paris Exposition Universelle: 'One cannot praise too highly the arms and other metal objects presented by the Sres. Zuloaga, father and son; [...] iron-chiselling, damascene, etching and repoussé never had interpreters of such obvious and varied talent' (Anon. Visite à l'Exposition Universelle de Paris, Paris, 1855, p. 121). In 1859, Plácido took over the management of his father Eusebio Zuloaga's manufactory at Eibar in the northern Basque province of Guipúzcoa, and what had principally been a gun-making factory for the previous two generations was gradually transformed under his supervision into one for forging and damascening art objects. The switch reflected not only Plácido's personal artistic interests, but also the changing face of a gun-making industry, which by the middle of the century was becoming increasingly machine-driven. Internationally lauded, Zuloaga went on to win the Grand Prix at 1878 and 1889 Paris International Exhibitions and died in 1910. Zuloaga was awarded officer of the French Legion of Honour, Knight of the Great Cross of the Lion and Sword of Sweden, Cross of King Leopold of Belgium, Knight of the Portuguese Order of St. James, Grand Cross of Santiago of Portugal, and Knight of the Order of Maria Teresa of Austria, among other distinctions.
TECHNIQUE
The process by which the present vase and all Zuloaga works of art were produced was meticulous, and in almost direct contradiction to the industrial revolution, entirely by hand. As noted in a contemporary article on the artistry of Zuloaga’s damascene work, ‘The steel of all countries arrived at Mr. Zuloaga’s in rough condition as sheet-iron; then begin the different operations of planning, polishing, adjusting, repulsing; while, on the other hand, the pattern and the model in wax, which ought to be executed are prepared. Let us remember that the relief, which Mr. Zuloaga is the only one to apply in Europe, is the application of gold in different thickness, afterwards chiselled on the whole.’ (‘Artistical Spain,’ Le Pantheon de l’Industrie, 1 January 1891, pp. 261-262).
This specific technique introduced by Eusebio and perfected by Plácido indeed involved drawing the designs by hand on the iron surface, the resulting shallow striations were cut in three directions and evenly spaced close together. The gold and silver wires were then laid down and permanently attached by manual process of punching so that surfaces becomes flattened and each wire joins together to appear as if executed from a single sheet of metal (see Lavin, pp. 36-37). The process was highly technical, and one that could not be rushed. As an article from 1874 notes that two ‘precious’ vases in repoussé iron, and gold and silver damascene destined for a ‘riche amateur anglaise, M. Alfred Morrison’ took three years to complete (La République française, 14 June 1874, p. 3).
THE ARTIST AND HIS PATRONS
With the high cost of materials and craftsman to produce his intricate designs, patronage was key to Zuloaga’s success. On the death of his father in 1856, Eusebio Zuloaga was promoted to the position of Chief Armourer to Isabel II and her consort king, and was given the title of Huntsman to the Royal Family. Thus for the next twelve years the firm of Zuloaga was kept busy not only supplying weaponry and armour, but also sumptuous table objects ordered by the monarchy, either for gifts or for their own private use. The latter included a gold and silver damascened iron inkstand supplied to Isabel II in 1860 (illustrated Lavin, p. 52, fig. 10), and a magnificent table-clock ordered by the queen mother, Marìa Cristina, for presentation to Napoleon III (op. cit., p. 55, fig. 11). However, the fall of Isabel II's government in 1868 not only brought the Royal patronage enjoyed by the Zuloaga’s over the previous decade to an abrupt end, it left the firm with considerable monetary loss, as 30,000 francs in salary and materials for work sent to the king would never be reimbursed. Fortunately for Plácido Zuloaga, a new patron, less prone to the precariousness of 19th century European royalty, arrived to replace the Borbóns and became his most important client for the next two decades – Alfred Morrison.
Plácido Zuloaga is believed to have met Alfred Morrison during his visit to London for the International Exhibition of 1862. The son of a wealthy textile magnate, Morrison had inherited the estate of Fonthill, Wiltshire, on the death of his father in 1857. Soon after, he engaged Owen Jones, the celebrated architect, to redesign its interior to complement his already extensive collection of modern objets d'art, commissioned from the most noteworthy European artisans of the day. Jones was an admirer of Islamic, and by extension, Spanish ornamentation, and had even spent some time living in the Alhambra, Granada. These tastes corresponded with those of Morrison, who over the next twenty years was responsible for virtually all of Plácido Zuloaga's major commissions, whether they were intended for Fonthill or for his London home at 16 Carlton House Terrace, acquired in 1865 and decorated by Jones in the same taste. Chief among these commissions were an enormous Renaissance style cassone, executed 1870-1 (sold Christie's, The Remaining Contents of Fonthill House, 1-2 November 1971, lot 9, now in the Khalili Collection; see Lavin, cat. 1, pp. 71-81) and a magnificent side-table, completed in 1880 and now in the collection of Her Majesty the Queen (The Royal Collection Trust, inv. RCIN 2526).
In a descriptive tour of Morrison’s home an article in The Magazine of Art records in the dining room two ‘important golden Moorish amphora-shaped vases, some three feet high’, and singles them out for having been previously exhibited at the 1878 Paris Exhibition (The Magazine of Art, vol. 2, 1879, p. 207). This pair, now in the Khalilli collection (inv. ZUL 104; see Lavin, pp. 82-87, cat no. 2), signed and dated 1877 , are then directly compared with another pair of ‘dark steel vases, placed on a hall table, which are damascened and engraved in the sumptuous, elaborate Moresque manner for which Zuloaga’s work is notable’ (op. cit.). The article goes on to emphasize the similarities between the two pairs, but notes that the ‘golden’ pair slightly ‘outvies’ the other. The present vase is known to be one of a pair (its pendant in the collection of the Liberbank, Spain), and a close comparison of this pair with those in the Khalilli collection reads very much like those noted in 1879, including the dark tone of the ground of the present vase, and the more intricate design of the ‘golden’ pair. Both pairs, which are similar in size, and are the only two pairs of this scale known to have been executed by Zuloaga, and it would come as no surprise that such an artistic tour de force such as the present vase would have been a part of Morisson’s collection, only to be dispersed following his death in 1897. The ‘golden’ 1877 vases were sold by Christie’s, The Remaining Contents of Fonthill House, Tisbury, Wiltshire, 1 November 1971, lot 8. However, almost 40 years prior Christie’s sold another pair of Zuloaga vases on behalf of John Granville Morrison (Alfred’s grandson), 7 May 1936, lot 142. Described as a ‘Pair of Metal Vases… of Moorish design, damascened with minute arabesque foliage in gold and silver’, and while the give height,102 cm. does not correspond exactly with the present vase, 107 cm., the discrepancy could be attributed to the difficulty in measuring such an object.
It is therefore likely that this magnificent vase canbe provenanced back to Zuloaga’s greatest patron, Alfred Morrison.
THE ‘MORESQUE MANNER’
The inspiration behind the design of this spectacular vase may be attributed to an amalgamation of influences typified by the burst of creativity and originality of leading nineteenth-century European artisans. The principal artist, Plácido Zuloaga (d. 1910), would have certainly been familiar with the catalogue of ‘Moresque’ designs illustrated in Owen Jones’s Grammar of Ornament (1856) as seen on the arrangement of motifs to the neck of the present vase. However as a native of Spain, Zuloaga would have also been familiar with these historic motifs himself and the vase is clearly inspired by the medieval Spanish Nasrid, so-called 'Alhambra' vases, footless amphora-like urns with wing-like handles dating from the thirteenth to fifteenth centuries. Like the present vase, they are believed to have been intended for decorative rather than practical use and the most celebrated example of the artistic form dated circa 1400 is in the collection of the Museo Nacional de Arte Hispanomusulmán, Grenada (inv. R.E.290).
Made of ceramic and traditionally painted in lusterware, the Nasrid-period vases were often decorated with a band of Arabic inscriptions below a narrow neck with vertical repeating designs. Here Zuloaga references the traditional form, the neck encircled by upright geometric and foliate motifs, while the shimmering damascene alludes the soft lustre of the ceramic glaze and the band across the body of the vase decorated with undulating floral vines which recall the forms of Arabic calligraphy. These vegetal designs do not appear to specifically recall known motifs on ‘Alhambra’ vases, but rather those found in another great Moorish art and architecture. The anthemion and palmettes are reminiscent of those found in the Alhambra’s Court of the Lions and the cartouches which frame the designs to the body of the vase divide the decoration in a manner similar to the blind arcades typically seen on Moorish walls. Such thoughtful and intentional details not only defined Zuloaga as a great artisan, but also illustrate his appreciation for the generations of artistry which came before him upon which he built his reputation.
PLÀCIDO ZULOAGA – AN OBVIOUS TALENT
Born into a family of Spanish Royal Armourers, Plácido Zuloaga went on to become one of the greatest masters of the art of damascening, praised in his day as 'a second Benvenuto Cellini'. His first recognition as an artist came in 1855 when, together with his father Eusebio, he inspired the following comments for work shown at the Paris Exposition Universelle: 'One cannot praise too highly the arms and other metal objects presented by the Sres. Zuloaga, father and son; [...] iron-chiselling, damascene, etching and repoussé never had interpreters of such obvious and varied talent' (Anon. Visite à l'Exposition Universelle de Paris, Paris, 1855, p. 121). In 1859, Plácido took over the management of his father Eusebio Zuloaga's manufactory at Eibar in the northern Basque province of Guipúzcoa, and what had principally been a gun-making factory for the previous two generations was gradually transformed under his supervision into one for forging and damascening art objects. The switch reflected not only Plácido's personal artistic interests, but also the changing face of a gun-making industry, which by the middle of the century was becoming increasingly machine-driven. Internationally lauded, Zuloaga went on to win the Grand Prix at 1878 and 1889 Paris International Exhibitions and died in 1910. Zuloaga was awarded officer of the French Legion of Honour, Knight of the Great Cross of the Lion and Sword of Sweden, Cross of King Leopold of Belgium, Knight of the Portuguese Order of St. James, Grand Cross of Santiago of Portugal, and Knight of the Order of Maria Teresa of Austria, among other distinctions.
TECHNIQUE
The process by which the present vase and all Zuloaga works of art were produced was meticulous, and in almost direct contradiction to the industrial revolution, entirely by hand. As noted in a contemporary article on the artistry of Zuloaga’s damascene work, ‘The steel of all countries arrived at Mr. Zuloaga’s in rough condition as sheet-iron; then begin the different operations of planning, polishing, adjusting, repulsing; while, on the other hand, the pattern and the model in wax, which ought to be executed are prepared. Let us remember that the relief, which Mr. Zuloaga is the only one to apply in Europe, is the application of gold in different thickness, afterwards chiselled on the whole.’ (‘Artistical Spain,’ Le Pantheon de l’Industrie, 1 January 1891, pp. 261-262).
This specific technique introduced by Eusebio and perfected by Plácido indeed involved drawing the designs by hand on the iron surface, the resulting shallow striations were cut in three directions and evenly spaced close together. The gold and silver wires were then laid down and permanently attached by manual process of punching so that surfaces becomes flattened and each wire joins together to appear as if executed from a single sheet of metal (see Lavin, pp. 36-37). The process was highly technical, and one that could not be rushed. As an article from 1874 notes that two ‘precious’ vases in repoussé iron, and gold and silver damascene destined for a ‘riche amateur anglaise, M. Alfred Morrison’ took three years to complete (La République française, 14 June 1874, p. 3).
THE ARTIST AND HIS PATRONS
With the high cost of materials and craftsman to produce his intricate designs, patronage was key to Zuloaga’s success. On the death of his father in 1856, Eusebio Zuloaga was promoted to the position of Chief Armourer to Isabel II and her consort king, and was given the title of Huntsman to the Royal Family. Thus for the next twelve years the firm of Zuloaga was kept busy not only supplying weaponry and armour, but also sumptuous table objects ordered by the monarchy, either for gifts or for their own private use. The latter included a gold and silver damascened iron inkstand supplied to Isabel II in 1860 (illustrated Lavin, p. 52, fig. 10), and a magnificent table-clock ordered by the queen mother, Marìa Cristina, for presentation to Napoleon III (op. cit., p. 55, fig. 11). However, the fall of Isabel II's government in 1868 not only brought the Royal patronage enjoyed by the Zuloaga’s over the previous decade to an abrupt end, it left the firm with considerable monetary loss, as 30,000 francs in salary and materials for work sent to the king would never be reimbursed. Fortunately for Plácido Zuloaga, a new patron, less prone to the precariousness of 19th century European royalty, arrived to replace the Borbóns and became his most important client for the next two decades – Alfred Morrison.
Plácido Zuloaga is believed to have met Alfred Morrison during his visit to London for the International Exhibition of 1862. The son of a wealthy textile magnate, Morrison had inherited the estate of Fonthill, Wiltshire, on the death of his father in 1857. Soon after, he engaged Owen Jones, the celebrated architect, to redesign its interior to complement his already extensive collection of modern objets d'art, commissioned from the most noteworthy European artisans of the day. Jones was an admirer of Islamic, and by extension, Spanish ornamentation, and had even spent some time living in the Alhambra, Granada. These tastes corresponded with those of Morrison, who over the next twenty years was responsible for virtually all of Plácido Zuloaga's major commissions, whether they were intended for Fonthill or for his London home at 16 Carlton House Terrace, acquired in 1865 and decorated by Jones in the same taste. Chief among these commissions were an enormous Renaissance style cassone, executed 1870-1 (sold Christie's, The Remaining Contents of Fonthill House, 1-2 November 1971, lot 9, now in the Khalili Collection; see Lavin, cat. 1, pp. 71-81) and a magnificent side-table, completed in 1880 and now in the collection of Her Majesty the Queen (The Royal Collection Trust, inv. RCIN 2526).
In a descriptive tour of Morrison’s home an article in The Magazine of Art records in the dining room two ‘important golden Moorish amphora-shaped vases, some three feet high’, and singles them out for having been previously exhibited at the 1878 Paris Exhibition (The Magazine of Art, vol. 2, 1879, p. 207). This pair, now in the Khalilli collection (inv. ZUL 104; see Lavin, pp. 82-87, cat no. 2), signed and dated 1877 , are then directly compared with another pair of ‘dark steel vases, placed on a hall table, which are damascened and engraved in the sumptuous, elaborate Moresque manner for which Zuloaga’s work is notable’ (op. cit.). The article goes on to emphasize the similarities between the two pairs, but notes that the ‘golden’ pair slightly ‘outvies’ the other. The present vase is known to be one of a pair (its pendant in the collection of the Liberbank, Spain), and a close comparison of this pair with those in the Khalilli collection reads very much like those noted in 1879, including the dark tone of the ground of the present vase, and the more intricate design of the ‘golden’ pair. Both pairs, which are similar in size, and are the only two pairs of this scale known to have been executed by Zuloaga, and it would come as no surprise that such an artistic tour de force such as the present vase would have been a part of Morisson’s collection, only to be dispersed following his death in 1897. The ‘golden’ 1877 vases were sold by Christie’s, The Remaining Contents of Fonthill House, Tisbury, Wiltshire, 1 November 1971, lot 8. However, almost 40 years prior Christie’s sold another pair of Zuloaga vases on behalf of John Granville Morrison (Alfred’s grandson), 7 May 1936, lot 142. Described as a ‘Pair of Metal Vases… of Moorish design, damascened with minute arabesque foliage in gold and silver’, and while the give height,102 cm. does not correspond exactly with the present vase, 107 cm., the discrepancy could be attributed to the difficulty in measuring such an object.
It is therefore likely that this magnificent vase canbe provenanced back to Zuloaga’s greatest patron, Alfred Morrison.