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Lot Essay
The form of this vase, with its laurel swags and guilloche band based on antique prototypes, was conceived as a perfume-burner with a pierced lid to release the scent of aromatic herbs, and corresponds directly to a design illustrated in Matthew Boulton's Pattern Book (volume 1, p. 171).
Matthew Boulton (1728-1809) was the pre-eminent English manufacturer of objets de luxe in the late 18th century. His production of ormolu flourished throughout the 1770s, with his jewel-like objects being acquired by important patrons such as Lady Melbourne, Lady Exeter, Lord Fitzwilliam and most significantly George III, making his Soho 'manufactory' a place of pilgrimage for fashionable society.
Amongst Boulton's most notable clients was Catherine the Great of Russia, who in 1771 directed her envoy to visit Boulton's Soho manufactory. This appointment was followed by a delivery of vases, of near identical design to Professor Richardson's vases, to the English envoy in Russia destined for the Empress. Following their arrival, the Empress is quoted as saying that they were 'superior to those of the French in all respects'. The Imperial perfume burners were sold by the Soviet government at Rudolph Lepke's sale, Berlin, 4-5 June 1929, lots 254-5. Their subsequent whereabouts remains undiscovered. Another pair of vases, of similar design, but differing in the use of fluorspar in place of marble, remain in the collection of the State Hermitage Museum, St Petersburg, and presumably came from later Imperial commissions recorded in 1774 and 1776 (N. Bondil, ed., Catherine the Great: Art for Empire, Montreal, 2005, p. 129).
In 1765 Boulton had visited Paris, where he would have witnessed firsthand the output of the acclaimed Parisian bronziers. Following this visit he became determined to challenge their dominance of the ormolu market. This was a wise decision, given the strong anti-French sentiment in Britain following the recent war, and in 1768-69 a specialised department was established at his Soho manufactory for the production of ormolu. He rapidly gained a reputation for producing the most luxurious ormolu goods in the country. However, this period of excellence was to be relatively short-lived, as by the mid-1770s Boulton found that the cost of producing these objects to his exacting standards was almost prohibitively expensive. By 1778, when he had his final sale at Christie's, his ormolu production was already in decline and the operation of perhaps the most important ormolu manufacturer in English history was drawing to a close.
A closely related pair of vases is in the Royal Collection at Sandringham (N. Goodison, Matthew Boulton: Ormolu, London 2002, p. 302). Further examples of closely-related design include: a pair from the Collection of Viscount Clifden, K.C.V.O, sold Christie's, London, 2 December 1966, lot 73; a pair sold anonymously, Christie's London, 6 July 1995, lot 27; and a pair from the collection of The Princess Mary, Princess Royal, Countess of Harewood, sold Christie's London, 5 December 2012, lot 548 (£157,250 incl.).
Matthew Boulton (1728-1809) was the pre-eminent English manufacturer of objets de luxe in the late 18th century. His production of ormolu flourished throughout the 1770s, with his jewel-like objects being acquired by important patrons such as Lady Melbourne, Lady Exeter, Lord Fitzwilliam and most significantly George III, making his Soho 'manufactory' a place of pilgrimage for fashionable society.
Amongst Boulton's most notable clients was Catherine the Great of Russia, who in 1771 directed her envoy to visit Boulton's Soho manufactory. This appointment was followed by a delivery of vases, of near identical design to Professor Richardson's vases, to the English envoy in Russia destined for the Empress. Following their arrival, the Empress is quoted as saying that they were 'superior to those of the French in all respects'. The Imperial perfume burners were sold by the Soviet government at Rudolph Lepke's sale, Berlin, 4-5 June 1929, lots 254-5. Their subsequent whereabouts remains undiscovered. Another pair of vases, of similar design, but differing in the use of fluorspar in place of marble, remain in the collection of the State Hermitage Museum, St Petersburg, and presumably came from later Imperial commissions recorded in 1774 and 1776 (N. Bondil, ed., Catherine the Great: Art for Empire, Montreal, 2005, p. 129).
In 1765 Boulton had visited Paris, where he would have witnessed firsthand the output of the acclaimed Parisian bronziers. Following this visit he became determined to challenge their dominance of the ormolu market. This was a wise decision, given the strong anti-French sentiment in Britain following the recent war, and in 1768-69 a specialised department was established at his Soho manufactory for the production of ormolu. He rapidly gained a reputation for producing the most luxurious ormolu goods in the country. However, this period of excellence was to be relatively short-lived, as by the mid-1770s Boulton found that the cost of producing these objects to his exacting standards was almost prohibitively expensive. By 1778, when he had his final sale at Christie's, his ormolu production was already in decline and the operation of perhaps the most important ormolu manufacturer in English history was drawing to a close.
A closely related pair of vases is in the Royal Collection at Sandringham (N. Goodison, Matthew Boulton: Ormolu, London 2002, p. 302). Further examples of closely-related design include: a pair from the Collection of Viscount Clifden, K.C.V.O, sold Christie's, London, 2 December 1966, lot 73; a pair sold anonymously, Christie's London, 6 July 1995, lot 27; and a pair from the collection of The Princess Mary, Princess Royal, Countess of Harewood, sold Christie's London, 5 December 2012, lot 548 (£157,250 incl.).