TWO MEISSEN KAKIEMON BALUSTER SAKE-FLASKS

The form of this pair of Meissen sake-flasks, and their decoration, exactly mirrors that of their forerunners from the Sakaida Kakiemon factory in Arita. For a Japanese example of circa 1690 in the Staatliche Kunstsamlungen Dresden (inv. no. PO 4766), together with its Meissen counterpart from the same museum (inv. no. PE 5016), both with Japanese Palace inventory numbers, see Ulrich Pietsch et al., Triumph of the Blue Swords, Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden, Exhibition Catalogue, 2010, p. 253, cat. no. 191, where the author notes that 'Japanese pieces were taken from the Japanese Palace to Meissen so that they could be copied for the French merchant Rodolphe Lemaire, who was planning to see Meissen copies in France as Japanese originals'. Count Hoym, the factory director at the time when the scam was discovered was subsequently arrested and the merchant expelled from the country. The type is further discussed by Julia Weber, Meissener Porzellane mit Dekoren nach ostasiatischen Vorbildern, Stiftung Ernst Schneider in Schloss Lustheim, Munich, 2012, Vol. II, pp. 129-136, with cat. nos. 110-112, examples of the same form with different Kakiemon decoration.

Provenance

With J.M. Béalu & Fils., St. Germain, Paris, according to the paper labels attached to the undersides.

Pre-Lot Text

PROPERTY FROM THE FALCK COLLECTION (LOTS 128–145)

The following lots (lots 128 – 145) are from the collection formed by Alberto Falck (1938-2003) and his wife, Cecilia Collalto Giustiniani (1941-2015). Cecilia had porcelain ‘in the blood’, as she was from the noble Venetian family which had ordered the famous Meissen armorial service for their palazzo in the mid-18th century. The couple lived in Milan, and for many years Alberto was President of the Milanese private steel company Acciaierie e Ferriere Lombarde Falck, which was founded by his great, great grandfather in 1833.
Alberto was a profound lover of the Arts, collecting among other things, manuscripts and ancient Roman glass, and he began collecting Meissen after marrying his wife in 1969. He was particularly drawn to the whiteness and hardness of Meissen porcelain, and was fascinated by the endless forms of objects that were produced, from snuf-boxes, vases or wares to models of animals. Cecilia was fascinated by the detail of the decoration, and how the decorative styles at Meissen evolved during the 18th century. They collected together, beginning with models of birds acquired from a dealer in Milan. After acquiring the models of swans in Venice from the sale of a Rothschild collection in 1977, the collection grew in earnest. As their passion grew, the breadth of the collection began to include pieces from other 18th century manufactories, such as du Paquier in Vienna, or decorative Dutch Delft pieces.