Temperance or Continence
early 17th century
Medium
Lead-glazed earthenware
Dimensions
Height: 7 7/8 in. (20 cm)
Classification
Ceramics-Pottery
Culture
French, Avon
Department
European Sculpture and Decorative Arts
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Gift of Julia A. Berwind, 1953
Accession Number
53.225.31
Tags
Art Historical Context
Nestled in the Metropolitan Museum of Art's European Sculpture and Decorative Arts collection, *Temperance or Continence* is a charming early 17th-century lead-glazed earthenware figure by Claude Beaulat, a potter from Avon, France. Standing just 7 7/8 inches tall, this petite sculpture likely depicts a virtuous woman embodying temperance—moderation in all things—or continence, self-restraint, common allegorical themes in Baroque-era art that reflected moral and religious ideals of the Counter-Reformation. Crafted in Avon's regional pottery tradition, the piece showcases lead-glazing techniqu...