Ceramics and glasswork
The art of laying the table
The hall exhibits ceramics from the area, not only discovered during digs and restorations or available on the market, but also from important donations, which especially enhanced the group of majolica.
A group of etched ceramics (bowls, small plates, flasks, mugs) documents the production of the workshops of Modena from the end of the 15th century through the end of the 18th century; alongside these there is a moderate sampling of 15th to 18th century Italian majolica ware that can be traced back to factories in Faenza, Veneto, Lombardy, Liguria and Umbria.
Shapes and decorative motifs of the ceramic production of the Este Duchy from the mid-18th to the late 19th century are represented by a group of majolica and stoneware produced by factories in Sassuolo: Dallari (1756-1835), Ferrari Moreni (1836-1853) and Rubbiani (1853-1911).
Among the blown glass and crystal cut glass that comprise the collection, there is a core group of Venetian and Murano samples dating back to the 16th through the early 18th century, part of which come from the Physics Cabinet of the University of Modena. A group of jars, glasses, vials and bottles used for conserving balsamic vinegar represents glass produced in Modena in the 18th and 19th centuries, which was similar to that produced in other parts of Europe.