Vase

The ball-shaped body stands on a high, narrowing, cylindrical toot, supported by a small node and ends in a horn-shaped, high neck. The outer, curved rim of the two plain, flat, wing-shaped handles is jagged. The vase follows the shape and the rich, geometrical and plant arabesque decoration of Late Medieval Spanish-Moor ceramics most likely with the help of an original model. This is supported by the blue inscription in Arabic letters, running around the foot, meaning "in the name of the forgiving and merciful God".

The vase revives the reduction-fired metal lustre technique, which had been forgotten through the centuries. Originally one of the centres of metal lustre glazed ceramics of the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries was Valencia, where this object was made. In the collection of Vince Wartha, who was about to explore the secret of metal lustre glazes, the vase described above was in the group of late nineteenth century Spanish-Moor lustre ceramics - some photos of these are published in the Book of Applied Arts, edited by György Ráth (Vol.2, appendix LXVI).

The Ros y Urgell company from Valencia was an invited exhibitor at the National Ceramics Exhibition in 1891. (see Petrik, Lajos: Az 1891 évi agyagipari tárlat /The Ceramics Exhibition of 1891/, In. Művészi Ipar, 1891, p. 184.) The vase was probably purchased there by Vince Wartha.