Polychrome Delftware

Attributed to Lambertus van Eenhoorn
Factory ‘De Metalen Pot,’ ca. 1700

From the mid-seventeenth century onwards, in addition to Chinese blue porcelain, more Chinese colored porcelain was imported into the Netherlands. Just like the blue porcelain, the colored porcelain became an inspiration for Delft potters. This led to a new category of Delftware, namely colored Delftware, also known as polychrome Delftware. The color palette was of big variety, including colors such as red, yellow, and green.

Black Delftware is among the rarest of polychrome Delftware, as it is technically challenging to produce. Only a few potteries attempted it, one of which was ‘De Metalen Pot.’ Unlike the black produced by the competitor ‘De Grieckse A,’ which used the so-called cut out technique, the defining feature of ‘De Metalen Pot’ production is the reflective black foundation, also known as ‘mirror black’. This reflective black color is well-recognizable in this black Delft Buddha from the Stodel collection.

Another example of polychrome Delftware is the extremely popular cashmere decoration, which first appeared around 1700. It is derived from the colorful cashmere material originating from India, but it is freely interpreted and consists of floral motifs with images of phoenix-like birds, while the border decoration is usually ‘Lambrequin’ of French origin. A beautiful example of the cashmere decoration are the small vases from our collection shown here.