th
# 72 •novemBER 16 , 2015
ved a method of painting
majolica that had already been in vogue in the
sixteenth century under
the name “istoriato”, consisting in decorating pottery with scenes from the
Bible or mythology, hunting scenes or landscapes.
The style uses the subdued
and charming shades of
the Castelli palette, composed of five colours (yellow, orange, blue, green
and manganese brown),
and is known by the name
“Istoriato Castellano”. In
addition to the high qua-
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lity artefacts produced in
Castelli, there has always
been a production of ordinary pottery for everyday
use, which was sold mainly
at fairs and markets.
By the end of the 18th
century, Castelli’s ordinary
majolica production had
lost the competitiveness
and popularity that had
characterised it during the
previous two centuries.
There was a gradual decline in the quality of the
work, which became almost entirely limited to ordinary majolica objects for
common use, while porcelain and industrial pottery
were increasingly conquering the markets.
This was the situation
throughout most of the
nineteenth century, and
efforts were eventually
made to address it through improved training for
the workers and a request
for the establishment of
vocational schools to provide the technical and cultural basis for the re-conquest of the markets and
revival of the sector. The
foundation of the Institute