Capo de monte italy2/20/2023 ![]() ![]() He moved the manufactory with him - including 40 workers and 4 tons of clay - and continued operations in Madrid. In 1759, Charles succeeded to the throne of Spain. Capodimonte porcelain table snuff box, early 20th century, offered by David Sterner Antiques His earliest successes were small white snuffboxes and vases, although efforts soon progressed to full sets of tableware, decorative objects and stylized figurines of peasants and theatrical personalities. He hired chemists and artisans to experiment. He financed expeditions to search for the right clay. Struck by porcelain fever, Charles built a dedicated facility on top of a hill ( capo di monte) overlooking Naples. ![]() Her dowry included 17 Meissen table services. His new bride was the granddaughter of Augustus the Strong, Elector of Saxony and founder of Meissen, the first European hard-paste porcelain manufactory. The Story of Capodimonte Capodimonte porcelain five-light chandelier, mid-20th century, offered by FlowermountainĬharles VII began experimenting with porcelain around 1738, the year he married Maria Amalia of Saxony. From beginning to end, its manufacture lasted approximately 75 years. That’s because the timeline of royal Capodimonte porcelain is decidedly brief. A lot of it is in museums or private collections.” “The real deal,” says David Sterner, of David Sterner Antiques, in Philadelphia, “the fantastic stuff that’s over-the-top beautiful, is nearly nonexistent on the market. Although secondary manufacturers have built upon the aesthetic and kept the name alive, some connoisseurs of the royal product feel these pieces should be labeled “in the style of” Capodimonte. The Real Fabbrica (“royal factory”) di Capodimonte, however, hasn’t produced porcelain since the early 19th century, when Charles’s son Ferdinand sold it. If success is measured by lasting name recognition, Capodimonte would seem to be in the same league as such makers as Meissen, Sèvres and Wedgwood. Pair of Italian Capodimonte painted porcelain plaques, 19th century, offered by Mayfair Gallery Surely, Charles would not want to be outdone by the French. Madame de Pompadour, chief mistress of Louis XV of France, is said to have commissioned Sèvres to create an entire indoor garden of porcelain botanicals. And several leading courts of Europe had begun developing their own porcelain. Or did the perfect blossoms result from royal competition? After all, by the 18th century, China’s long-held monopoly on (ahem) china had finally been broken. Why? Was it because King Charles VII of Naples, who founded the manufactory in 1743, was allergic to the blossoms growing in his garden and wanted a hypoallergenic version? Much of the ground floor is taken up by part of the magnificent Farnese collection of classical, mostly Roman, monumental sculpture, which survives here and in the Naples National Archaeological Museum largely intact.Pair of porcelain Capodimonte putti figures, mid-20th century, offered by FlowermountainĮlaborate flowers are synonymous with Capodimonte porcelain. The museum is by far the best place to see paintings of the Neapolitan School, often under-appreciated by the wider world, with large holdings of Jusepe de Ribera, Luca Giordano, the Neapolitan Caravaggisti and many others (see List of works in the Galleria Nazionale di Capodimonte). The first and second floors house the Galleria Nazionale (National Gallery), with paintings from the 13th to the 18th centuries including major works by Simone Martini, Raphael, Titian, Caravaggio, Masaccio, Lorenzo Lotto, Giovanni Bellini, Giorgio Vasari, El Greco, Jacob Philipp Hackert and many others. It is one of the largest museums in Italy. The museum is the prime repository of Neapolitan painting and decorative art, with several important works from other Italian schools of painting, and some important ancient Roman sculptures. ![]() Museo di Capodimonte is an art museum located in the Palace of Capodimonte, a grand Bourbon palazzo in Naples, Italy. ![]()
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