This 'Armi' or army plate, depicting a young woman, is bordered by musical instruments, battle shields and the bust of a horse. These plates were given as a memento to one's love before leaving for military duty. This maiolica plate is done in the fifteenth century style. Stoneroads Collection

The second term bibliography continues investigating the historical context of Renaissance italian maiolica. It also provides further information about the social and cultural background to maiolica production and consumption. It will indicate the nature of gender relationships through the role maiolica played in the lives of Renaissance men and women with its multifold purposes and implications.

Studies such as Marta Ajmar and Dora Thornton's article "When is a Portrait not a Portrait? Belle Donne on Maiolica and Renaissance Praise of Local Beauties"(see reference) and Paola Tingali's book Women in Italian Renaissance Art: Gender, Representation, Identity (see reference) will indicate the role of maiolica as a gendered artistic representation within the context of Renaissance art and society.

With further study, it will become evident that maiolica is a vehicle for understanding the various gender roles in society and the various rituals and customs associated in recognizing the nature and status of those roles, such as those of pregnant wife, mercenary soldier, bride-to-be, and rich merchant, among others.

Top of Page

Ames-Lewis, Francis. Concepts of Beauty in Renaissance Art. New York: Ashgate Publishing Company, 1998.

Beard, Mary. "Souvenirs of Culture: Deciphering in the Museum." Art History 15, no. 4 (1992): 505-32.

Bourdieu, Pierre. "The Aristocracy of Culture." Commerce and Culture: From Pre-Industrial Art to Post-Industrial Value. Stephen ed. Bayley, 89-93. London: Design Museum in association with Fourth Estate, 1989.

Burke, Peter. Varieties of Cultural History. Oxford: Polity Press, 1997.

Ciappelli, Giovanni. Art, Memory and Family in Renaissance Florence. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2000.

Cole, Bruce. Italian Art 1250-1550: The Relation of Renaissance Art to Life and Society. New York: 1987.

Craig, T. L. "Aesthetics Aside: How to Find Historical Information in Works of Art." History News 37, no. 6 (1982): 17-19.

Hughes, Diane Owen. "Representing the Family: Portraits and Purposes in Early Modern Italy." Art and History: Images and Their Meaning. Rabb, Theodore K. and Robert I. Rothberg eds.Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1986.

Jardine, Lisa. Worldly Goods: a New History of the Renaissance. London: Macmillan Press, 1996.

Johnson, Ragnar. "The Extent of Representation, the Relationships of Artifacts and the Anthropology of Art." Visual Anthropology 9, no. 2 (1997): 149-66.

Kemp, Martin. Behind the Picture: Art and Evidence in the Italian Renaissance. Yale: Yale University Press, 1997.

Kingery W.D. and P.B Vandiver. Ceramic Masterpieces. New York: Free Press, 1986.

Kristeller, Paul Oskar. Renaissance Thought and the Arts: Collected Essays. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1990.

Mallet, J. V. G. "Gonzage Patronage of Maiolica." Apollo 114 (1983): 160-175.

Pearce, Susan M. Museum Studies in Material Culture. London: 1989.

Plog, S. "Analysis of Style in Artifacts." Annual Review of Anthropology 12 (1983): 125-42.

Poole, Julia E. Italian Maiolica and Incised Slipware in the Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge (Fitzwilliam Museum Publications). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1995. Abstract: This catalogue of Italian maiolica and incised slipware in the Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge gives detailed information on over five hundred objects in the collection. It includes late medieval earthenware from Orvieto and Perugia as well as Renaissance and later maiolica from such regions as Sicily, the Abruzzi and Perugia which reached their peak at a later date. Compiled by a leading expert in the field, this catalogue will prove an indispensable work of reference for scholars and students of the applied arts.

Prown, Jules. "Mind in Matter: An Introduction to Material Culture Theory and Method." Winterthur Portfolio 17, no. 1 (1982): 1-19.

Rabb, Theodore K. and Jonathan Brown. "Evidence of Art Images and Meanings in History." Art and History: Images and Their Meaning. editors Jonathan Theodore K. Rabb and Robert I. Rothberg Brown. Cambridge; New York: Cambridge University Press, 1988.

Shapiro, Maurice L. "A Renaissance Birth Plate." Art Bulletin XLIV (1967): 236-43.

Tinagli, Paola. Women in Italian Renaissance Art: Gender, Representation, Identity. Manchester: Manchester University Press, 1997.

Welch, Evelyn S. Art and Society in Italy 1350-1500. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1997.

Wilson, Timothy. Ceramic Art of the Italian Renaissance. London: 1987.

Wilson, Timothy. Maiolica. London: Ashmolean Museum, Oxford University, 1989.

Top of Page