Lot Essay
Count Tessin was in the mid 18th Century Swedish ambassador to Paris. A crest of a demi-lion holding the staff of Aesculapius, similar to the design at the centre of the pair of plates, can be found on a famille rose armorial servie made for von Steijern of Sweden, and it is quite possible that these plates come from another service commissioned by the same family. A example from the von Steijern service is in the Gothenburg Historical Museum, inv.no.19185. A pair of plates similar to the present lot was sold in these Rooms 6 April 1998, lot 125.