Tile

PeriodCirca 1680 - 1700

Place MadeNetherlands

MediumTin glazed earthenware

Dimensions5.25 × 5.13 × 0.63 in. (13.3 × 13 × 1.6 cm)

ClassificationsArchitectural Features

Credit LineBequest of Charles Vanderveer, 1983

Object number1983.7.249.3

DescriptionA square tile of brownish earthenware, with a thick white tin glazed surface, featuring a bright blue scene of a seated barefoot man at left, in front of a tree, holding a shepherd's crook and a standing woman in a draped gown with her bodice undone and breast exposed, holding a similar crook. A goat can be seen at the man's left. Four small floral sprigs decorate each corner of the tile.
NotesThis tile depicts a scene from Il Pastor Fido, or The Faithful Shepherd, a tragicomedic play written by Giovanni Battista Guarini. First published in 1590, the play follows the story of Arcadia and shepherd Silvio and nymph Amarilli along with numerous other characters. The play was translated into English by Richard Fanshaw in 1647. Guarini continued to revise and update his play, with his last revision in 1609. There were numerous scenes used for tile subjects, and it appears that quite a few tilemaking potteries in the Netherlands used Il Pastor Fido for tile scenes.

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