Vase is 320mm high and 215mm wide at widest point
I recieved it from my mother who inherited it from her aunt. It's been in their possession for many years.
This is a hand formed and hand decorated vase from Italy. It was produced at the Regia Scuola D'Arte Per la Ceramica, or the Royal School of Ceramic Art in Caltagirone, Italy. The school was founded by Don Luigi Sturzo in 1918; by the end of World War I, many male Italian artisans had perished in battle and the founder felt the school would help preserve the Italian art of ceramics. The vase is referred to as 'maiolica' which is closely similar to majolica. It is tin-glazed earthenware or terracotta with hand executed decoration. Maiolica was at its height in the 1500s. The teachers at the school at that time were Enrico Vella , Giuseppe Di Bartolo , Giacomo Vaccaro , Giuseppe Di Castro and Giacomo Judice. Your vase was likely executed by one of these artisans. In 1943 the school was destroyed during WWII bombings. The name changed in 1959 and the school still exists today. Your vase would have been made sometime between 1918 - 1943; this dating could likely be further narrowed down by your knowledge of the provenance or history of prior ownership. The estimate is based on actual recent past recorded auction sales of comparables. Retail 'asking' prices may vary and be higher.