CIRCA 1765, MOST WITH BLUE INTERLACED L'S ENCLOSING DATE LETTER M, VARIOUS PAINTERS', GILDERS' AND INCISED MARKS

The 'M. Beaujean' in the sales records almost ceratinly refers to Nicolas de Beaujon, a wealthy financier and grain dealer from Bordeaux who rose through the ranks of the French court, eventually becoming Fermier Général or banker to the Court in 1765 and a conseiller d'Etat in 1769. His name appears regularly in the Sèvres sales records. In 1773, he purchased the hôtel d'Evreux from Louis XV to whom it had passed upon the death of his mistress Madame de Pompadour. The new owner enlarged the house, now known as the Elysées Palace, home of the Presidents of France. His purchase of a service decorated with the same pattern as a favorite of the French king is likely tied in with the refurbishment of his new home. See D. Peters, op. cit., pp. 361-2, no. 65-4 for a further discussion.