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Where they are made
We source our ceramics from two places in Italy:
Our ceramics from the South of Italy come from the town of Vietri sul Mare. Click here to see where this is (the red marker).
The Amalfi Coast is known and loved by people all over the world, renowned for its breathtaking views and its picturesque towns clinging to cliff faces. The stunningly beautiful coast road is nevertheless not for the faint-hearted! Local drivers race round those bends with centimetres, even millimetres to spare, while looking out the window all there is to be seen is a long, long drop to the deep blue Mediterranean and jagged rocks.
- The Amalfi Coast in the South of Italy
- Deruta in Umbria, in Central Italy
Vietri sul Mare
Our ceramics from the South of Italy come from the town of Vietri sul Mare. Click here to see where this is (the red marker).The Amalfi Coast is known and loved by people all over the world, renowned for its breathtaking views and its picturesque towns clinging to cliff faces. The stunningly beautiful coast road is nevertheless not for the faint-hearted! Local drivers race round those bends with centimetres, even millimetres to spare, while looking out the window all there is to be seen is a long, long drop to the deep blue Mediterranean and jagged rocks.
If you are travelling north along this road from Salerno, Vietri sul Mare is the first town you will come across. It is built on terraces going down to the sea, full of the colourful ceramic shops for which the town is famous.
Vietri sul Mare has a population of just 8,500 and one of it's most famous sons is Antonio Carluccio, a re-knowned London chef.
Whilst like most of Italy, the dining can be remarkable and we have sampled some amazing cuisine there (especially sea food), it is the ceramics that pervade the local culture. The stunning ceramic mural shown here is just one of the contributions local artists have made to the community that is a great example of the local traditions that run back centuries.
Vietri sul Mare still has a thriving local community though. We were there recently during a local election and an abiding memory will always be the passion of the politician and the rapturous reception he received to his dramatic speech in the piazza late one night.
There are two major design themes to ceramics from this region:
The lemons are grown and sold everywhere and have been a symbol of the region for many years, so it is understandable that they feature in the art of the area. Lemons feature in several of our range including Limoncini (small lemons), Limone con greca, lemon / leaves, flowers / lemons.
The chicken symbol (gallinelle), particularly on the blue background is also an ancient and famous design that some say originated in France. However, it is also well known in this region and the design was expanded over the years to include other colours and animals and birds. We have brought in two of these designs - chickens and fish (pesce in Italian). These can be combined into a set of either multiple animals with the same background colour or multiple colours with the same animal. Both make a remarkable set that captures the essence of this beautiful region.
Our ceramics are sourced by from a family business in Vietri sul Mare, who have been producing ceramics for the local market and for export for many years.
marker on the map) is a small town just South of Perugia in Umbria and is also re-knowned for its ceramics. Deruta ceramics can be traced back to designs dated from the 14th Century. Deruta has a population of approximately 9,000.
The town consists of the ancient town on the hill (shown in the picture) and the more modern area on the plain below. The town was decimated by the plague in the 15th century to such a degree that the town walls were re-built to house a smaller population.
The local clay suited the production of ceramics, both for daily utilitarian and artistic purposes. Production first started in the early Middle Ages and reached a peak in the 15th and 16th centuries and designs from this period are still produced today.
The 14th Century is known for the production of "Archaic Majolica". The term "archaic" refers to the fact that these were the first types of ceramic pottery known in Italy, particularly in the traditional styles unique to this region in Umbria. Two simple forms characterised production at this time, with natural and abstract decorations with the use of two natural colours of brown tint derived from manganese and green from copper. Mostly utilitarian objects such as basins, jugs, pots, bowls and flasks were produced during this period in Deruta.
Styles such as the "Bella Donna" or "beautiful woman" with portraits appeared after this time. A lack of fuel to get the firing furnaces up to normal temperatures lead to techniques being developed to adapt to lower firing temperatures, which of course limited the production of vibrant colouring which was very popular at the time. To compensate for this, metallic lustre glazes were produced locally in golds and ruby red. To achieve the iridescent effect the glaze is coated with a varnish containing metal salts and the object is fired a third time. This lead on to the production of the "Rafaellesque" design, which were decorated in fine arabesque and grottesche on a fine white background.
Vietri sul Mare has a population of just 8,500 and one of it's most famous sons is Antonio Carluccio, a re-knowned London chef.
Whilst like most of Italy, the dining can be remarkable and we have sampled some amazing cuisine there (especially sea food), it is the ceramics that pervade the local culture. The stunning ceramic mural shown here is just one of the contributions local artists have made to the community that is a great example of the local traditions that run back centuries.
Vietri sul Mare still has a thriving local community though. We were there recently during a local election and an abiding memory will always be the passion of the politician and the rapturous reception he received to his dramatic speech in the piazza late one night.
There are two major design themes to ceramics from this region:
The lemons are grown and sold everywhere and have been a symbol of the region for many years, so it is understandable that they feature in the art of the area. Lemons feature in several of our range including Limoncini (small lemons), Limone con greca, lemon / leaves, flowers / lemons.
The chicken symbol (gallinelle), particularly on the blue background is also an ancient and famous design that some say originated in France. However, it is also well known in this region and the design was expanded over the years to include other colours and animals and birds. We have brought in two of these designs - chickens and fish (pesce in Italian). These can be combined into a set of either multiple animals with the same background colour or multiple colours with the same animal. Both make a remarkable set that captures the essence of this beautiful region.
Our ceramics are sourced by from a family business in Vietri sul Mare, who have been producing ceramics for the local market and for export for many years.
Deruta
Deruta (the redmarker on the map) is a small town just South of Perugia in Umbria and is also re-knowned for its ceramics. Deruta ceramics can be traced back to designs dated from the 14th Century. Deruta has a population of approximately 9,000.The town consists of the ancient town on the hill (shown in the picture) and the more modern area on the plain below. The town was decimated by the plague in the 15th century to such a degree that the town walls were re-built to house a smaller population.
The local clay suited the production of ceramics, both for daily utilitarian and artistic purposes. Production first started in the early Middle Ages and reached a peak in the 15th and 16th centuries and designs from this period are still produced today.
The 14th Century is known for the production of "Archaic Majolica". The term "archaic" refers to the fact that these were the first types of ceramic pottery known in Italy, particularly in the traditional styles unique to this region in Umbria. Two simple forms characterised production at this time, with natural and abstract decorations with the use of two natural colours of brown tint derived from manganese and green from copper. Mostly utilitarian objects such as basins, jugs, pots, bowls and flasks were produced during this period in Deruta.Styles such as the "Bella Donna" or "beautiful woman" with portraits appeared after this time. A lack of fuel to get the firing furnaces up to normal temperatures lead to techniques being developed to adapt to lower firing temperatures, which of course limited the production of vibrant colouring which was very popular at the time. To compensate for this, metallic lustre glazes were produced locally in golds and ruby red. To achieve the iridescent effect the glaze is coated with a varnish containing metal salts and the object is fired a third time. This lead on to the production of the "Rafaellesque" design, which were decorated in fine arabesque and grottesche on a fine white background.
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