A Castel Durante istoriato dish, circa 1540-1560

the centre painted with Solomon judging two brothers, the broad rim, in the manner of Battista Franco, with a border of satyrs, putti, youths and trophies of war, the reverse inscribed "quando Salamone dette la sententia per quelli doi figlioli uno ligetimo et laltro bastardo" and with initials AB (some restoration)

section of rim from 6 to 10 o'clock restored, another restored chip at 4 o'clock.
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

In the early 1540's, Guidobaldo II Duke of Urbino, commissioned a series of designs from Battista Franco of Trojan war subjects. The designs, and their broad symmetrical borders, remained in fashion for some time, with elements still included in later designs of the 1560's. Although Vasari in his Lives of the Potters, implies that the Guidobaldo service was made in Castel Durante, present scholarship attributes it to Camillo Gatti at Urbino. For a pair of albarelli by a very similar hand, dated 1563 and attributed to Castel Durante, see G. Conti, L'arte della maiolica in Italia, pp. 235-236.

The scene is called "Shooting a dead body" and depicts a test, like the judgment of Solomon, designed to elicit the truth by forcing a person to betray his inner feelings. In its original version, which has been shown to go back to the Babylonian Talmud, two rival claimants to an inheritance were ordered to knock on their father's tomb to call him back to life. The one who refused proved by his piety that he was the true heir. In later versions, as here, a judge ordered the father's corpse to be strung up. The "sons" were instructed to shoot it; the false one shot without compunction, the true one turned away. The story recurs in the Middle Ages and was popularized in the 14th century Gesta Romanorum. Christian moralists interpreted the story as the conflict between greed for money and reverence for a dead parent, the judge being sometimes Solomon himself.