Back in the start of the year I was abroad in Italy – before the oppressive worries of COVID-19. While there I of course had the chance to observe and study some fabulous art, including ancient Mediterranean pottery.
The Tuscan region of Italy has some amazing historical contributions to pottery and many techniques still used to this day are traced back to Italy. The bellied vases and urns are highly recognizable and the ornate decoration was added to depict scenes usually commissioned specifically by a wealthy family or estate to elevate their status.
Most do not stop to think about it; but the reason we are even seeing these pieces of pottery after hundreds of years is because they were not used (or at least very seldom so). works of this quality were made as decoration more to tell stories and show power than to be functional wares. The ordinary tableware of lower class families are much harder to find in good condition because they were used so much and there was not much value to them.