Baroque Ceramic Tray

We call this one James. It is a rectangular ceramic tray, about 45 cm by 25 cm, with two open handles on the sides shaped in ornate baroque scrollwork. Our artisans in Vietri sul Mare form the whole thing by hand — including the sculpted, scalloped edge — and then paint the decoration freehand.

The border is glazed in a deep teal green with golden-yellow scrolls and curling motifs running all around it. Small white flowers with brown centres are painted at the top, bottom, and sides, sitting inside the teal-and-gold scrollwork. The centre of the tray is left white, which gives you a clean surface for whatever you want to put on it. The two handles are shaped like baroque cartouches in matching yellow.

People use James for serving pastries, bread, or cheeses at the table. It also works well as a decorative tray on a console or coffee table — for candles, a small vase, or just to hold odds and ends. The teal and yellow palette makes it easy to pair with other pieces from our Barocco Collection.

James is part of a larger series of baroque-style ceramics, all made by the same artisans in Vietri sul Mare. Every piece is painted freehand, so you will see slight differences in the brushwork and the intensity of the colours from one tray to the next.