A set of six black bucchero ceramic vessels designed by Gio Ponti and produced by Costantino for the Neoponti collection, Italy, 1997 - one example of each form in the series. A two-handled amphora with a flared trumpet rim and two tall thin handles sweeping to the shoulder, raised on a turned pedestal foot; a twin-necked vessel with two tapering spouts bridged by a single arched handle, lifted on four cylindrical legs; a split-rim footed vessel with a deep V-notch cut into its flared upper body above a distinct spherical base; a swan-necked jug whose neck rises in a long flattened curve to a pinched lip, counterbalanced by a handle arcing high from rim to base; a tripod pitcher with a sharply pinched spout and high loop handle on three tapered legs; and a squat jug with an elongated blade spout projecting well past the body. All are finished in a rich black glaze.
The bucchero reference is deliberate. Ponti developed these shapes in collaboration with the Umbrian ceramicist Carlo Alberto Rossi, reworking the black earthenware of pre-Roman Etruria - fired in a reducing atmosphere to drive the clay black - into forms that are unmistakably modern: attenuated necks, exaggerated handles, tripod and quadruped supports lifting bulbous bodies clear of the surface. Costantino returned the series to production in 1997 as part of the Neoponti program of authorized re-editions, since discontinued.
The amphora and twin-neck vessel are marked NEOPONTI GIO PONTI 1940 on the underside, carrying the original design date rather than the production year; the remaining four are unmarked, consistent with other documented examples of this production. All six are in excellent condition with no chips, cracks, or restoration. Each is accompanied by its original Neoponti booklet and manufacturer's box.
Two-handled amphora - 6.5" × 5" × 11.75"
Twin-neck vessel - 6" × 5.5" × 11"
Split-rim footed vessel - 5.75" × 5.75" × 10.5"
Swan-neck jug - 6" × 5.5" × 10"
Tripod pitcher - 7" × 5.5" × 10"
Blade-spout jug - 11" × 6" × 7"
