The Art of German Stoneware Ceramics, 1300-1900. From the Charles W. Nichols Collection and the Philadelphia Museum of Art

Bold, bright, and functional, stoneware ceramics produced in the German-speaking centres of what is today Germany and the Low Countries were highly valued and widely traded in Europe and North America from the 16th through to the 18th century. In the 1600s, the heyday of stoneware production, these handsome, practical ceramics found an enthusiastic market in colonial North America. The addition of relief decoration and a brilliant salt-glaze during the Renaissance raised the status of these wares. Later examples eschewed such narrative ornament for more abstract floral or geometric patterns, and greater competition from other centres and mediums in the 18th century led to more unusual and original forms. About sixty fine stoneware pieces from the Philadelphia Museum of Art and a promised private collection testify to the success, artful decoration, and fascinating variety of this medium. Author Jack Hinton describes the developments in stoneware through these notable examples, and colour images bring their details to life on the page for the first time. With their bold designs and bright colours, these works exhibit the perfect balance of utility and beauty.