Faenza Majolica

The 'istoriato' style is a decorative technique developed extensively between the 15th and 16th centuries that features intricate, narrative scenes painted directly onto the ceramic. These scenes often depicted historical, mythological, or biblical events, effectively treating plates as painted canvases.

The tin-glazed earthenware takes its name from the Italian city of Faenza, which was a major hub of ceramic production during the Renaissance. The French word for faience, widely used to describe tin-glazed pottery across Europe, actually derives directly from the name of this Italian city.

Traditional Faenza Majolica is made from local earthenware coated in an opaque white glaze containing tin oxide. This white base allowed Renaissance painters to apply vibrant metallic oxides—like cobalt for blue and antimony for yellow—that retained their brilliant colors after firing.

A vast collection of authentic 15th and 16th-century Faenza Majolica is preserved and displayed at the International Museum of Ceramics in Faenza, Italy. This museum houses one of the world's most comprehensive collections of Renaissance earthenware.