Select the image to zoomPair of Covered Jars with Arms of Camillo Borghese, Pope Paul V
1605-21
Reus (Tarragona)
Tin-glazed earthenware with luster
H. 49.5 cm
Although it had dominated the market for lusterware in the fifteenth century, Manises's production declined in the following century, and as this happened, other centers in northeastern Spain flourished. From one of these, Reus (Catalonia), comes this pair of jars painted with coats of arms, warrior heads and eagles (a third one from this set is today in the State Hermitage Museum).
Appearing twice on each jar are the coat of arms of the Borghese family and because they include the papal tiara and keys of St. Peter, they must be that of Camillo Borghese from his tenure as Pope Paul V (1605-21). During this period, the Borghese family dominated culture in Rome, and the pope's nephew Scipione amassed an impressive art collection which included celebrated statues by Bernini. It is not known how the pope acquired these jars: he may have commissioned them himself, since he served in Spain as a papal legate in 1594 or he may have received them as a gift from a Spanish nobleman or prelate.
Text and images © Hispanic Society of America.