Gallery:
Europe 1400-1800
Room / Case / #
46 / 6
Cultured International Merchants
Iznik pottery was scarcely known in England in the 16th C. Elaborate, costly mounts have been used to create an exotic and rare display piece that appealed to a select clientele of wealthy Elizabethans. Probably made for Paul Bayning, a prominent Levant merchant. Bayning was a huge sponsor of privateering (state sponsored piracy) voyages and had at least five black Africans in his London household. The jug was manufactured in 1585 in Iznik, Turkey. It is 32 cms tall and weighs over 1kg.