#306 Spain...Thanks Jose!

The two stamps is from a strip of four stamps depicting pieces of Spanish ceramics belonging to the Ruiz de Luna Museum in Talavera de la Reina (Toledo, Spain). The stamps depict a polychrome inkwell, a XVIII century pitcher, a plate and an amphora both from the XX century.

The plate (left) is the work of Andalusian artist Enrique Guijo and baked in the pottery oven “El Carmen” in the town of Niveiro. It dates back to 1970 and depicts the profile of a warrior with a renaissance style helmet rimmed with a border and surrounded by two feminine figures holding each a horn of plenty. The main colours used are blues and yellows and the word Talavera featuring in a heraldic device.

The amphora (center) is a sample piece made by the Ruiz de Luna pottery workshop in the XX century. It is a small piece as it was used for showing clients. It is lavishly decorated on both sides in blue, yellow and white. The name of Talavera also features in this piece and in its handles there are two anthropomorphous figures.

The polychrome inkwell (right) is a piece influenced by the town of Alcora and was made in the XVIII century. It is white with lavish plant decoration and baroque shapes. There are a number of elements typical of the pottery from Alcora and especially from “chaparro”, the name of the person for whom it was made. The inkwell has four holes around the central well.