CIRCA 1730-40

Details

A PAIR OF FAMILLE ROSE 'BOTANICAL' SAUCERS
CIRCA 1730-40
Each finely enamelled at the centre with a white-bodied caterpillar crawling on the leaf of a blue iris, beside another with green body crawling amongst the petals of an orchid, a butterfly hovering above, enclosed by an underglaze blue and gilt floral band in the well and a broad band of elaborate strapwork, acanthus leaves and gilt stylised flower-heads at the border, one with rim crack, other with minor rim chip
6 1/8 in. (15.5 cm.) diam. (2)

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Lot Essay

The design on these saucers and on the plate in the following lot is taken from the sketchbook of Maria Sibylla Merian (1647-1717), a Dutch botanist and artist who was particularly interested in the study of insects and plants in the Dutch West Indies; it is a combination of details from three sketches. The border is reminiscent of designs by Cornelis Pronk. See the plate of this design from the Mottahedeh Collection, illustrated by Howard and Ayers, China for the West, London and New York, 1978, vol.I, p. 304, no.298, where the authors suggest that this design could have originated from the 'studio' of Pronk. This design is more commonly found in underglaze blue, white and gilt. Examples in the famille rose palette can be found in several museums, including the British Museum and the Rijksmuseum.

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