Obelisk
c. 1800
Medium
Stoneware (basaltware)
Dimensions
46.2 × 11.6 × 11.8 cm (18 3/16 × 4 9/16 × 4 5/8 in.)
Classification
sculpture
Department
Applied Arts of Europe
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
68174
Art Historical Context
Crafted around 1800 by the Wedgwood Manufactory, this elegant basaltware obelisk exemplifies the neoclassical fascination with ancient forms that swept through Europe at the turn of the nineteenth century. Standing just over eighteen inches tall, the slender, tapering shape evokes the monumental stone obelisks of ancient Egypt, yet its material and refined proportions transform the motif into a domestic-scale sculpture suitable for a mantel or library shelf. Wedgwood’s basaltware, an unglazed black stoneware developed in the 1760s, was prized for its dense, velvety surface that mimicked the a...
About the Artist
Wedgwood Manufactory
Wedgwood Manufactory, founded on 1 May 1759 by Josiah Wedgwood in Burslem, Staffordshire, England, revolutionized ceramics during the Industrial Revolution. Born into a family of potters, Josiah apprenticed under his elder brother Thomas at the Churchyard Works from age 14, mastering traditional techniques before partnering with Thomas Whieldon from 1754 to 1759, where he honed innovative glazes. ...