Vase

Royal Porcelain Manufactory, Berlin

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

The unusual decoration of this vase comprises the family tree of the Hohenzollerns, the royal family of Prussia. The tree charts the family's genealogical history from 800 to 1820, which provides an approximate date for the manufacture of the vase. The early history of the vase is not known, but it seems almost certain that, due to its subject matter, it was made for a member of the royal family. It is distinguished by the rich gilding that decorates much of the surface.

European Sculpture and Decorative Arts

An exhibit at Metropolitan Museum of Art

The fifty thousand objects in the Museum's comprehensive and historically important collection of European sculpture and decorative arts reflect the development of a number of art forms in Western European countries from the early fifteenth through the early twentieth century. The holdings include sculpture in many sizes and media, woodwork and furniture, ceramics and glass, metalwork and jewelry, horological and mathematical instruments, and tapestries and textiles. Ceramics made in Asia for export to European markets and sculpture and decorative arts produced in Latin America during this period are also included among these works.

Metropolitan Museum of Art