A Dutch tin-glazed Tile, circa 1600
Painted in blue, green and ochre with a stylised floral design, the corners with tulips.
Tulips were imported into Holland from Turkey during the late 16th century, and the Southern Netherlandish botanist Carolus Clusius was one of the first to write about their propagation and cultivation in the 1590s. Within no time at all, Europe was in the grip of tulip mania, leading to a major stock market crash in 1637.
Provenance: An English Private Collection.
Condition: One corner is lacking and there are losses to the edges and upper surface. Some glaze wear and crazing.
Dimensions: 13.3 cm x 13.3 cm
A Catalogue of English Delftware Tiles, compiled by Jonathan Horne (1980).
Delftware: The Tin-glazed Earthenware of the British Isles, Michael Archer (V&A/HMSO, 1997).
English Delftware, F.H. Garner and Michael Archer (Faber & Faber, 1972).