Vase with satyr and grotesque decorations

This maiolica ewer painted in polychrome features a grotesque decoration on the body, while a satyr, almost acting as a handle, supports a leaf at the height of the mouth, which takes the form of a spout. The mythological figure resting on the rim evokes solutions adopted in the 15^th and 16^th centuries for bronze and silver vases. 

The invention of the specimen in the Museo Ginori is attributed to the painter Giovanni Muzzioli, to whom only the creation of a second vase at the Doccia factory is certainly assigned. 

The vase model (mod. 244) was present at the 1881 Exhibitions in Milan, 1889 in Rome, and 1891 in Palermo. The decoration is still listed in a catalogue of artistic maiolica products by Ginori dating around 1905, but we do not know exactly when it was introduced. In addition to the version with grotesque decorations, there was also one with groups of swallows flying in the blue sky, documented in the archive of the Museo Ginori by a watercolour drawing (inv. Disegni/110) and certainly exhibited at the Italian Exhibition in London in 1888.