Dutch Delft Tile Large Picture of a Fleet of Ships

Details

Description

Maritime Majesty: Dutch Delft Tile Picture of a Fleet of Ships

Object: Large Picture of a Fleet of Ships
Medium: … Read more Maritime Majesty: Dutch Delft Tile Picture of a Fleet of Ships

Object: Large Picture of a Fleet of Ships
Medium: Tin-Glazed Earthenware (Delftware) Tiles
Origin: The Netherlands
Date: $19^{th}$ Century
Composition: 20 individual tiles, mounted as a single panel

This monumental tile panel captures the glorious naval tradition of the Netherlands, depicting a formidable Dutch fleet on the high seas. Composed of 20 hand-painted, blue-and-white tiles, the picture shows at least eleven different battleships and longboats traversing the choppy water.

Visual Analysis and Subject Matter

The composition is dominated by a majestic ship of the line in the center foreground, shown in a dramatic rear-view perspective. This large vessel proudly displays a coat of arms on its stern, signaling its importance as an official or flagship vessel. The presence of debris in the foreground water suggests the scene may commemorate a significant naval battle or a return from a challenging engagement, emphasizing the turbulent, yet profitable, maritime life of the era.

Unlike smaller, decorative Delft tiles that show single vessels, this large-scale picture functions as a naval painting translated into ceramic form. It serves as a striking piece of decorative history, celebrating the naval strength and global trading power that defined the Dutch Golden Age and continued to inspire art a century later.

Historical Context: Delftware and Maritime Art

While the tradition of Dutch ships on tiles dates back to the $17^{th}$ century, this particular piece, dated to the $19^{th}$ century, reflects a revival of Dutch national pride and a reverence for the golden age of naval exploration and trade.

Delftware Technique: These tiles are examples of Delft Tin-glazed earthenware—the European attempt to replicate the highly prized blue-and-white porcelain imported from China. The white tin glaze provided an opaque, brilliant surface ideal for painting with cobalt oxide, creating the famous blue-and-white palette.

Scale and Use: Large tile pictures of this size (20 tiles) were expensive to produce and typically commissioned for use as decorative wall panels in grand homes, above fireplaces, or in ship-owners' offices or commercial buildings, where the image of a successful fleet was both decorative and symbolic of prosperity.

Condition and Dimensions

The panel, while well-preserved, shows evidence of its history, with two tiles in the sky having been invisibly repaired.

Overall Dimensions (Framed): $29 \ 1/2$ inches high x $24 \ 1/2$ inches wide x $1 \ 1/4$ inches deep

Sight (Visible Tiles): $20 \ 1/4$ inches high x $25 \ 1/2$ inches wide

Potential References

Pluis, Jan., The Oxford English Dictionary of Delftware Tiles (A definitive reference for Dutch tile imagery).

Van Dam, J.D., Delffs Porceleyne: Dutch Delftware 1620-1850 (For historical context on Delftware production and styles).

National Maritime Museum, Greenwich (For comparative reference on Dutch naval painting and ship iconography). See less