Terms and conditions of use
Covered box, from the Gallia collection
(c. 1908)
Medium
earthenware
Measurements
(a-b) 17.9 × 16.8 × 10.8 cm (overall)
Credit Line
National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne
Samuel E. Wills Bequest, 1976
Gallery location
Mid 20th Century Paintings & Decorative Arts Gallery
Level 2, NGV International
About this work
This covered box designed by Michael Powolny depicts figures from Austrian folklore: the Eisnermann, a knight who fell in love with the Donauweibchen, a water nymph from the Danube river. The pose of these figures, the kneeling knight embracing the naked nymph in a field offlowers, is clearly related to Gustav Klimt’s 1908 masterpiece The kiss. The referenceto local folk tradition gives this object a distinctly Austrian character.
Artwork Details
Place/s of Execution
Vienna, Austria
Inscription
(a) incised in base c.: W (monogram) MP (monogram)
Accession Number
D182.a-b-1976
Department
International Decorative Arts
This digital record has been made available on NGV Collection Online through the generous support of Digitisation Champion Dame Carol Colburn-Grigor CBE through Metal Manufactures Limited
Physical description
Ovoid cream glazed on four gilt ball feet,cover surmounted by figures of kneeling knight and nude girl.