Vintage Maioliche Deruta Italy Cobalt Blue, Red and Yellow and Green Floral Pitcher Hand Painted Majolica 

A wonderfully decorative vintage Italian maiolica pitcher from Deruta, Umbria, hand painted in the exuberant traditional palette for which the historic pottery town is renowned.

The underside bears the authentic and distinctive “DERUTA” pottery mark confirming its Deruta manufacture.

The focal point is a charming stylised floral sprig, boldly painted in deep cobalt blue with a warm rose-red and yellow floral and sweeping green leaves as scrolling foliage motifs. A hand-painted orange border brushstroke around the rim and base follows with a green dash gently following the undulating handle.

The irregularities in the brushwork, density of colour and line are part of the appeal of hand-decorated Italian pottery rather than the uniformity one would expect from machine-printed tableware.

Deruta in Umbria has been an important Italian pottery centre for centuries, and the blue/yellow ornamental vocabulary seen here draws upon the town's long maiolica tradition. Traditional Ricco Deruta decoration itself traces its inspiration back to Renaissance designs of the early 1500s. This makes an attractive decorative piece for display.