This vessel in the shape of a stylized toad goes back to the kendi (Sanskrit kundi, Malay kendi), a common vessel for drinking water in pre-modern South Asia. As early as the 12th/13th century, such vessels came to China as a result of the flourishing maritime trade. Later, for export to Europe and the so-called “Near East,” the original geometric shape of the drinking bottle was playfully replaced by the body of an animal such as an elephant or a toad.

The toad-shaped vessel shown here was created around 1680 in the Frankfurt faience workshops as a less expensive imitation of the highly sought-after but very expensive Chinese porcelain models from the late Ming period (1368 –1644). At this time, porcelain production was still unknown in Europe. Until porcelain was first produced in Europe in Meissen around 1710, faience was a widespread form of ceramic. Among other things, it differs from porcelain in that it has a dark body and a lower firing temperature.

The piece came into the museum collection in 1951/52, but its provenance, i.e., its origin and history, still needs to be researched in more detail for the years 1933 to 1935 (when the previous owner acquired it).