Pantaloon (one of a pair)
Medium
Soft-paste porcelain
Dimensions
Height: 8 5/8 in. (21.9 cm)
Classification
Ceramics-Porcelain
Culture
Italian, Naples
Department
European Sculpture and Decorative Arts
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Gift of R. Thornton Wilson, in memory of Florence Ellsworth Wilson, 1950
Accession Number
50.211.263
Rights
Public Domain
Tags
Art Historical Context
This charming soft-paste porcelain figure of Pantaloon, created around 1750–52 at the Capodimonte Porcelain Manufactory in Naples, captures one of the most beloved characters from the Italian commedia dell’arte tradition. Modelled by Giuseppe Gricci, the work stands just over eight inches tall and forms one half of a pair, likely intended to animate a banquet table or cabinet display. Its lively pose and expressive face reflect the theatrical energy of 18th-century Naples, where courtly entertainments often drew on popular street theatre. Capodimonte’s soft-paste porcelain allowed sculptors like Gricci to achieve remarkably fluid modelling and delicate surface detail, qualities that set Neapolitan figures apart from harder, more rigid porcelain produced elsewhere in Europe. The factory, founded in 1743 by Charles VII of Naples, specialized in such small-scale narrative groups that blended aristocratic taste with popular culture. Today this Pantaloon offers visitors a delightful glimpse into both the playful spirit of commedia dell’arte and the refined artistry of mid-eighteenth-century Italian porcelain.
About the Artist
Giuseppe Gricci|Capodimonte Porcelain Manufactory (Italian|Italian) · 1695 |1740 –1775 |1759
Italian, ca. 1700–1770|Italian, 1740/43–1759