An Urbino maiolica armorial Istoriato tondino, circa 1525-30, circle of Nicola da Urbino

painted with a scene of Glaucus and Circe, centred with a coat-of-arms, carried by a winged putto holding a torch under an arch flanked by marble pillars, to the right sits Circe holding a book before a serpent, lion, turtle and stork, to the left stand Glaucus with his back turned pointing towards distant water, the reverse inscribed 'de Circie e glaucho',

Overall in generally good appearance. There is an area of fill at the edge of the central well located at 12 o'clock, perhaps a filled in hole which had been used for hanging; there are three associated hairline cracks, only visible to the front face, perhaps crazing cracks). At 7 o'clock there is a repaired flat rim chip to the front, and at 9 o'clock another to the reverse. The repairs have some age. Otherwise typical scattered glaze lose and minor nibble chips to rim.
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The arms can be attributed to the Altoviti family of Florence, one of the most prominent families in 16th century Italy.^I By marriage the family had alliances with the most influential of the papal and principal nobility including the Corsini, Salviati, Strozzi, Acciaioli, and Medici. 

There appears to be little documentation in the literature regarding the service that this dish originally belonged to. The Altoviti family commissioned or were gifted other armorial maiolica services that are better documented; the arms of the Altoviti together with those of the Soderini family can be seen on five known surviving pieces of a berettino ground service, one of which is dated 1524. The service was probably made for Bindo Altoviti, the influential banker, and his wife Fiammetta Sorderini, who married in 1511. The rare arms can also be seen on a Caffaggiolo maiolica dish, and on a jug with those of the Ridolfi di borgo, see Galeazzo Cora and Angiolo Fanfini, La maiolica di Cafaggiolo, Florence, 1982, p. 114, no. 99, p. 109, no. 94.

The episode depicted is taken from Ovid's Metamorphoses, Book XIV, and appears to be from lines 1-74, the transformation of Scylla, where Glaucus pleads for help from the Goddess Circe. According to Ovid Glaucus began his mortal life as a fisherman living in the city of Anthedon. He accidentally discovered a magical herb that enabled the fish he caught to come back to life and decided to try eating it. The herb made him immortal but caused him to grow fins and a fish's tail forcing him to dwell in the sea. He fell in love with the nymph Scylla, but repulsed by his appearance he asked Circe for a potion to make Scylla fall in love with him. Circe fell in love with him instead and tried to win his heart with her most loving words.

A later episode concerning Circe is painted by Xanto Avelli on a tondino of the same size in the service of the Pucci family of Florence in 1532.<sup>II

I</sup> See J.B. Rietstap, Amorial Général, Vol. I, p. 38.
^II In the collection of the Fitzwilliam Museum, obj. no. C.11-1953, see Julia Triolo, 'Francesco Xanto Avelli's Pucci Service' in Faenza 74 4-6, 1988, pp. 228-82.