Maiolica and Faience

This new Ashmolean publication explores one of the world's most important and inclusive collections of Italian Maiolica, as well as a range of works from France, England, Spain. and Iran. Authored by a leading authority in the field, Timothy Wilson, Maiolica and Faience details the acquisitions of European tin-glaze and related pottery for the Ashmolean Museum, 2017–25.

The 2017 catalogue from the Ashmolean Museum Italian Maiolica and Europe included a range of works from Spain, France, the Netherlands, Germany, England, and Mexico, as well as Italy, to illustrate the rich history of European tin-glazed pottery. Since that time, the Ashmolean has grown its collection of tin-glazed and similar earthenwares, strengthening its reputation as one of the world’s most significant and extensive collections.

This hardback book explores the collection which includes a unique piece of Italian maiolica crafted specifically for a Tudor Englishman, a plate created for Humphrey Dethick, who gained notoriety in 1602 for an alleged assassination attempt on King James VI of Scotland. The Museum’s collection of French faience has been greatly enhanced by the Sidney Knafel bequest from New York, while significant 16th-century maiolica pieces are from the late Airlie Holden-Hindley’s collection. Among the lustrewares included are fin-de-siècle pieces by Clément Massier and work by some of the world’s supreme contemporary masters of the technique.

Features an incredible collection of 158 colour and 3 black and white illustrations. Printed and bound in the UK.

Timothy Wilson was Keeper of Western Art in the Ashmolean Museum from 1990 and Professor of the Arts of the Renaissance in the University of Oxford. From 2013 to 2017 he was Barrie and Deedee Research Keeper in the Ashmolean. He is a specialist in the decorative arts of the European Renaissance, especially ceramics. His publications on Italian maiolica include catalogues of the collections in the British Museum (2009, with Dora Thornton), the National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne (2015), and The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York (2016).

Matthew Winterbottom is Assistant Keeper and Curator of Decorative Arts and Sculpture in the Ashmolean Museum’s Department of Western Art. He has over 30 years of experience of working in museums, including the Victoria and Albert Museum, Royal Collection, and Holburne Museum, Bath. He has a wide knowledge of European decorative arts from the late 15th century to the present day, including ceramics, metalwork, glass, furniture, and textiles. He is a Supernumerary Fellow of St John’s College, Oxford.

Francesca Leoni has been curator of Islamic art at the Ashmolean Museum since 2011, following curatorial and research roles at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston (2008–2011), Rice University (2008–2010), and the Metropolitan Museum of Art (2007–2008). Her recent books include the co-edited volume Islamicate Occult Sciences in Theory and Practice (Leiden, 2020), Aegean Legacies: Greek Island Embroideries from the Ashmolean Museum (London, 2021) and the forthcoming exhibition catalogue In Bloom: How Plants Shaped Our World (Oxford, 2026).