Ortigia Sicilia Handcrafted Italian Safari Tin Box with 3 Plates

Three rectangular Italian glass plates in Ortigia Sicilia's Flying Tiger design, presented in a hinged collectible tin printed with the same scene. Each plate is backed in gold leaf, so the whole set reads as gold first and colour second.

The three plates are different scenes from one continuous procession. The first shows an elephant in embroidered ceremonial textiles walking with a zebra and a camel. The second is a caravan of five camels in jewelled saddlecloths beneath date palms. The third has a pair of giraffes flanked by a camel and an elephant. A tiger leaps across the top of all three, and egrets, parrots, dragonflies and butterflies fill the gaps — all framed by Ortigia's black-and-white checkerboard border.

The tin is not packaging to throw away. It carries the full scene across the lid and a silhouette frieze around the sides, and most customers keep it for letters, jewellery, or small keepsakes long after the plates are in use. At 10" × 6" the plates are a real serving size — antipasti, cheese, dessert — and they hold their own as standalone decorative pieces, because the gold leaf does real work on a table under candlelight. Made in Italy. Ortigia Sicilia was featured in HBO's The White Lotus, filmed at Sicily's San Domenico Palace in Taormina, where the line is also sold.

Dimensions: 10" × 6" each
Contents: Three rectangular glass plates in a hinged decorative tin
Material: Gold-leaf-backed printed glass; lithographed tin
Made in: Italy
Brand: Ortigia Sicilia
Design: Flying Tiger — elephants, camels, zebras, giraffes, tigers, egrets and palms on a gold-leaf ground, with black-and-white checkerboard border
Care: Hand-wash only · Not dishwasher safe · Not microwave safe · Not oven safe · Dry immediately
Sold as: Set of 3, in the tin
Mixes with: Ortigia Jungle Safari and Giraffe lacquered trays; Ortigia Mosaico glass plates

How many plates come in the set, and how big are they?
Three plates, 10" × 6" each, and each has a different scene. They're meant to be used together as a group rather than as matching pairs.

Do the three designs go together?
Yes — they're three parts of one continuous procession, sharing the same gold ground, the same leaping tiger, and the same checkerboard border. Set out side by side they read as one long scene down the middle of a table.

Can I put food directly on them?
Yes. At 10" × 6" each plate holds a proper course — antipasti, cheese and salumi, chocolates, dessert. Best for dry and finger foods rather than anything wet or cut directly on the surface.

Can they go in the dishwasher?
No. The gold leaf is applied to the back of the glass and will not survive a dishwasher cycle. Hand-wash and dry immediately.

Is the gold real gold leaf?
The plates are finished with a gold-leaf backing behind the printed design, which is what gives them depth and warmth rather than a flat metallic print.

Is the tin reusable?
Yes, and it's meant to be. It's a hinged lithographed tin decorated on the lid and all four sides — customers use it for jewellery, letters, and desk odds and ends.

Why do the plates vary slightly?
Subtle differences in colour saturation and alignment come from the decorating process. They're a mark of how the pieces are made, not a defect.

Where is it made?
In Italy, by Ortigia Sicilia — founded in Sicily in 2006 by Sue Townsend.

Is this a good Italian wedding gift?
Yes — this is one of the stronger Ortigia pieces for a wedding. It's a set rather than a consumable, it arrives in its own presentation tin, and it sits at a price point people are comfortable giving. Wedding gifts are one of the things Biordi is best known for; we ship nationwide and gift-wrap on request.

Is this a good housewarming or hostess gift?
Yes, and it's an easy one — it needs no wrapping to look finished, and the recipient can put it to work the same evening. Add Florentine gift wrap at checkout if you'd like it sent finished.

Why buy Italian gifts from Biordi rather than other retailers?
Biordi Art Imports has been San Francisco's source for authentic Italian ceramics and gifts since 1946. Voted Best Overall Retailer in the San Francisco Bay Guardian Best of the Bay readers' poll for five consecutive years. Designated a San Francisco Legacy Business (#LBR-2020-21-029), and the city declared May 1 "Biordi Art Imports Day" in 2021. Every piece comes from a named Italian artisan, family workshop, or heritage house we work with directly — FIMA, CF Deruta, Pia Formato, Eugenio Ricciarelli, Susanna DeSimone (from the famous Palermo ceramic family — her father painted with Picasso), Geribi, Bucci Ceramiche, Ortigia Sicilia, Italesse, and Salviati. Not a stock-photo listing, not a mass-produced import, not a reproduction.

Can this be customized or personalized?
Customization and personalization are available on select pieces. Eugenio Ricciarelli, FIMA, Pia Formato, Geribi, and CF Deruta accept special orders — a name, date, or occasion painted on the piece, or a different size or shape in the workshop's existing pattern. Lead time is typically 3–6 months because each piece is hand-painted to order in Italy. Contact Biordi Art Imports at (415) 392-8096 or customerservice@biordi.com.

Flying Tiger — Ortigia's grandest decorative scene: a procession of elephants, camels, zebras and giraffes moving beneath a leaping tiger and a canopy of date palms, set on a gold-leaf ground. It draws on Sicily's long entanglement with North Africa and the East, and on the exotic menageries that appear in the island's baroque decoration.

Ortigia Sicilia — Siracusa, Sicily — a privately owned Italian soap and scent company founded in Sicily in 2006 by Sue Townsend. The range is formulated using natural products indigenous to Sicily and inspired by the aesthetics, colours and scents of Italy's most historic and tropical region. All Ortigia products are made by small family companies; the decorative design is by Sue Townsend.

The name Ortigia comes from the small island at the edge of the ancient fortified city of Siracusa, on Sicily's southeastern coast. The streets of Ortigia are crumbling baroque façades of great splendour looking out on three sides to the sea, and the Piazza del Duomo is considered one of the most beautiful in Italy. This part of the island is known as "la Sicilia Orientale" for its proximity to Africa and almost tropical climate.

Sicily carries a colourful history of conquest, invasion and assimilation — Greeks, Phoenicians, Romans, Byzantines, Arabs, Normans, Aragonese and Bourbons all left their mark. That layered culture inspired the creation of the Ortigia range.

Italian ceramics are heirloom quality products, and can last lifetime with proper care. We have some suggestions that will preserve your majolica for years to come.

Majolica is dishwasher safe, but many people choose to hand wash their pieces as a precaution. Because majolica is a porous material, some pieces are not meant to hold liquid for a long period of time. Check for warning labels before ordering a product, as the pieces that are most notorious for "sweating" are appropriately labeled.

Majolica is sensitive to extreme temperatures, specifically boiling or freezing liquids. Pouring water with a rolling boil directly into a teapot, for example, may lead to breakage. To avoid this, temper the object. The industry standard is 620 degrees Celsius (1,148 degrees Fahrenheit). Quench the glass to cool it.

Crazing is common in well used majolica. The tiny cracks in the glaze do not affect the functionality of your majolica.

Majolica hand-crafted products should not be microwaved, as it may crack and/or break the ceramics.

UPS Ground

Flat shipping charge of $10 for each shipment of merchandise under $100.00. For orders of $100.00 or more, shipping is 10% of the order total.

UPS Next Day Air

Flat shipping charge of $63 for each shipment of merchandise under $70.00. For orders of $70.00 or more, shipping is 90% of the order total.

UPS 2-Day Priority (Rush Shipping)

Flat shipping charge of $42 for each shipment of merchandise under $70.00. For orders of $70.00 or more, shipping is 60% of the order total. Note: This option is required for shipping to Alaska and Hawaii.

USPS 3-Day Priority

Flat shipping charge of $21 for each shipment of merchandise under $70.00. For orders of $70.00 or more, shipping is 30% of the order total.

International Shipments

Please contact us at customerservice@biordi.com or call us at (415) 392-8096 for quotes to ship internationally.

You will be charged a rate based on your delivery area, value and shipping preference. For items shipped via UPS, see below for information pricing information. Once the package is shipped, you will receive an email with tracking information to track your package.